son said. "It's an abhorrence for most of us, but it's an issue of, when does it become a necessary evil? It's tough."

The Cottonwood Heights Parks and Recreation Service Area wants to raise taxes $20 a year on a $300,000 home to revitalize aging facilities. A hearing on that tax increase is scheduled for Wednesday at 7 p.m. at 7500 S. 2700 East.

Davis County wants to raise taxes on a $210,000 home by $61.79 a year to fund operations at the new expansion at the county jail, as well as fund senior services and fix up deteriorating flood channels throughout the county. A truth-in-taxation hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday at Farmington Junior High, 150 S. 200 West.

By contrast, in a year without a tax increase, most municipalities will be lowering the certified tax rate to make up for the rising values. However, because municipalities generally see growth, their budgets can get bigger every year even with a decreasing tax rate.

How to appeal

Computers aren't always right, however, so homeowners don't always agree with the appraised value.

Anyone who disagrees with the value the assessor has placed on a property can file an appeal by using the form that came with the valuation notice.

"It's a mass appraisal. There will be some that are in error that we will correct," said Liz Fehrmann, Salt Lake County's assistant tax administrator. "It's not that it's a totally futile process, which some people do believe."

Appeals must be filed with a county's board of equalization within 45 days of the valuation mailings. That's Sept. 17, in case you were starting to count the days.

Late appeals will be accepted in cases of death, medical emergencies or if the property owner never received a valuation notice, said Davis County Clerk/Auditor Steve Rawlings.

The board of equalization requires a property owner to provide evidence that the market value on the valuation notice exceeds fair-market value, which is the price a property would have when it changes hands between a willing buyer and seller.

Property owners can choose to provide three examples of comparable properties sold as close to Jan. 1, 2007, as possible.

If the board of equalization agrees, it revises the assessment and changes the property's value. But if the assessor's office disagrees, an independent hearing officer listens to both sides and makes a decision.

Salt Lake County property owners filed 4,899 appeals in 2006. Of those, 2,719 assessments were reduced, although in some cases the value was raised, according to data from the Salt Lake County Tax Administration Office.