What is the difference between a mill levy and a tax rate?

A mill levy and a tax rate are two related but different aspects of California’s property tax law. A mill levy is the actual amount of tax applied to each dollar of taxable property value, while a tax rate is the ratio of taxes to the taxable value of the property. The mill levy is expressed as a percentage of the property value. For instance, if a property is valued at $100,000 and the mill levy is 0.2%, then the tax on that property would be $200 ($100,000 x 0.002). The mill levy is usually set by the local government and can be different for different types of property in different local jurisdictions. The tax rate is the total amount of taxes due for all taxable property in a jurisdiction divided by the total value of all taxable property. Taking the example above, if a jurisdiction has a total taxable value of $1,000,000 with a tax of $200, the tax rate would be 0.02 or 2%. Although related, a mill levy and a tax rate serve different purposes and provide different information. A mill levy allows you to easily calculate the tax due on any amount of taxable property value, while a tax rate shows the total amount of property taxes as a percentage of the total value of all taxable property in the jurisdiction.

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What is the difference between a mill levy and a tax rate?

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