State Aid for Tax Exempt Computers

This program reimburses municipalities for lost revenues caused by the creation of the personal property tax exemptions for computers, cash registers, and fax machines.  The 2017-2019 state budget made changes to calculating the computer aid payments.  The prior formula for calculating aid payments was repealed.  In July 2018, each municipality received an aid payment equal to the payment it received in July 2017, multiplied by 1.0147.  In 2019, each community that received an aid payment in 2018 received an aid payment equal to that previous payment increased by the change in the inflation rate.  In 2020 and each year thereafter, those same communities will receive an amount equal to the 2019 aid payment amount.

Under the 2017-2019 budget changes, any payment made to a municipality on behalf of a tax increment district created by the municipality will continue to be made to the municipality after the tax increment district is terminated.

The 2017-2019 budget repealed the requirement that owners of exempt computers, cash registers and fax machines annually file a return with the local assessor or the Department of Revenue (DOR) reporting the estimated value of the exempt property.

The 2020 computer aid estimate is posted on DOR's website here (scroll down to exempt computer aid.)