This bill amends the Mutual Finance Assistance Act by updating provisions related to property tax rates and qualifications for certain distributions. Specifically, it modifies the property tax rate requirements for mutual finance organizations, allowing members to levy an agreed-upon property tax rate for one out of three tax years, while ensuring that the maximum property tax rate is not exceeded in the remaining years. Additionally, the bill clarifies that property tax rates will exclude levies for bonded indebtedness and lease-purchase contracts that exist on or after July 1, 1998.

Furthermore, the bill changes the population threshold for rural or suburban fire protection districts and mutual finance organizations to qualify for distributions from the Mutual Finance Assistance Fund. The assumed population requirement is adjusted from eighty percent to sixty percent of the assumed county population residing outside city limits for eligibility. The bill also eliminates obsolete provisions and sets an operative date of October 1, 2025, for the new changes to take effect. The original sections of the law being amended are repealed as part of this legislative update.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 35-1204, 35-1205