The joint Shelbyville-Bedford County Senior Property Tax Freeze Committee met Tuesday evening at the courthouse for its second discussion. Ryan Duggin, assistant director, Tennessee Comptroller’s Division of Property Assessments (DPA) made a special presentation.

This week, the T-G reached out to the state comptroller’s office with some pertinent questions of its own about the potential senior property tax freeze for qualifying residents 65 and older.

Reminder: This is a freeze on whatever property tax rate the senior is paying at the time the program is approved by local governments. Again, it does not mean seniors will not pay property taxes but it keeps their rate the same (when there is a property tax increase) as long as they remain in the same home.
The senior tax freeze program will be added in addition to the current tax relief program, which is available through the Trustees office for those who qualify (income-based.)

1. Is Bedford County in a good position, financially, for the senior property tax freeze?
Bedford County is in a good financial position in terms of cash on hand at June 30, 2025. The County must evaluate how it will be impacted if they implement tax freeze, and it should have a plan to adjust for the lost revenue it will experience in future years.

2. What is one thing you will definitely tell counties before they commit to such a program?
Counties should ensure there is buy in and cooperation from all parties including the Assessor, Trustee, the County Commission, and County finance staff.

3. Approximately how many counties are participating in the tax freeze to date? And how many have been successful? We can't speak to which are considered a success.
See list of participating jurisdictions here: https://comptroller.tn.gov/content/dam/cot/pa/documents/tax-freeze/TaxFreezeJurisdictions.pdf

4. What's the first thing a County needs to do in order to have a successful launch of its program.
Public awareness would help encourage those eligible to apply. Education on the program would also help ensure that applicants understand how it works and their need to annually requalify for the program.

See more about the tax freeze meeting in the 3/19 Times-Gazette.