Nov 14, 2014 4 min read

WAYNESBURG – The taxable value of Greene County property increased about 3 percent this year with much of the jump attributed to the increased value of coal.

Since last November, Greene County’s total taxable value increased by $52.9 million, from $1.59 billion to $1.64 billion, according to end-of-the-year assessment values prepared by the Greene County Assessment Office.

Of the $52.9 million increase in value, about $40.3 million resulted from coal. The remaining amount is due to the increase in value of land and improvements.

“The value of coal went up really well,” said John Frazier, chief assessor. Greene County coal continues to have a market, he said. “But I don’t know how long that will last.”

With the trend moving away from the burning of coal to generate electricity, “it’s going to hurt us eventually,” he said.

The impact could begin to hit later next year when Emerald Mine is scheduled to close.

The value of coal that might be left in the Emerald reserves will be assessed at a much lower value, affecting the total assessed value of property in Franklin and Washington townships as well as in Central Greene School District, Frazier said.

Though the county is now producing natural gas, that adds little to the property tax rolls. Unlike coal, natural gas is not taxed as real estate. The facilities to produce and transport natural gas, in addition, are not taxed as property.

A compressor, for instance, is classified as equipment and is exempt from property taxes. The steel-frame building that may house the compressor is taxable real estate, but that is usually only a “steel shell’ and does not carry much value, Frazier said.

The change in the classification of a property that may be used for a compressor station from agricultural to industrial also adds little value, he said.

Assessment values are updated each year by the assessment office to assist the county and municipalities in preparing their annual budgets, letting local officials know how much revenue will be generated by current or proposed millage rates. The figures are usually updated later for school districts, which prepare their budgets in June.

This year, the values for land and improvements also increased, but only by 1 percent, or about $12.6 million. The increase is about average for the county, Frazier said. Land values changed little this year, increasing by only $51,800, so the change is primarily due to improvements.

Greene County is a little different from most counties in regard to assessments because changes in value are most often attributed to coal.

Coal values fluctuate year to year as new reserves are permitted and added to the tax rolls and old reserves are mined and removed. “Other counties deal with surface property only, so (their values remain) fairly stable,” Frazier said.

Coal now makes up 34 percent of the county’s total property valuation. Its percentage of the total has remained fairly level during the last few years. About 20 years ago, however, coal was close to 50 percent of the total value, Frazier said.

During the past year, coal companies remove coal from the tax rolls that was mined. They also permitted new areas of coal they expect to mine relatively soon, changing the coal’s taxable status from reserve to active. Active coal is given a higher assessed value.

Municipalities where coal has been reclassified as active and where mining is occurring or expected to occur soon saw increases in value.

They include Gilmore Township, which is being mined by the Blacksville No. 2 Mine, and saw a $23.6 million increase in coal value; and Wayne Township, which is being mined by Cumberland Mine, and saw a $17.2 million increase in coal value.

Morgan Township also saw a $10 million increase in coal value. The increase was attributed to Freeport seam coal permitted by Alpha Natural Resources for the company’s proposed Freeport Mine.

On the other hand, municipalities in which coal was mined and removed from the tax rolls or returned to reserve status saw decreases in value.

These include Franklin Township, which saw a $10 million drop in coal value because of the Emerald Mine; Jackson Township, which lost $5.8 million in coal value due to mining by Blacksville No. 2; and Center Township, which saw a drop of $3.3 million in coal value because of mining by the Cumberland Mine.