OKLAHOMA CITY – Legislation updating the statutory income qualifier to claim an additional homestead exemption was signed into law by Gov. Kevin Stitt.
House Bill 1009 increases the statutory income qualifier to claim an additional homestead exemption, from $20,000 to $25,000. The additional exemption reduces, by $1,000, the assessed valuation on the homestead of a homeowner whose gross household income is below the income qualifier limit. It’s the first such adjustment since 1997.
The bill was authored by Rep. Lonnie Sims, R-Jenks, and by Sen. John Michael Montgomery, R-Lawton. Stitt signed thebillonMay3andit goes into effect on New Year’s Day 2022.
“The cost of living has increased substantially over the last 24 years, so it is long past time for us to adjust this income qualifier,” Sims said. “Many Oklahomans living on a fixed income have lost their homestead exemption simply because they no longer meet the income qualifier as a result of cost-of-living adjustments by Social Security and others since 1997.”
“The homestead exemption is a valuable tool to aid homeowners in lowering their property taxes and protecting themselves in the event their spouse dies,” Montgomery said. “I’m glad we were able to expand the parameters of who qualifies for the exemption so more Oklahomans can take advantage of this benefit.”
HB1009 restricts any one-time federal disbursements, such as CARES funding, from being included in the income calculation for this exemption. On average, the double homestead exemption will result in savings ranging from $87 to $137 annually, Sims and Montgomery said.
Current statute outlines that Oklahomans aged 65 and older who previously qualified for the exemption are no longer required to file annually, but many retired Oklahomans still do. This puts local tax assessors in a position of having to take away the exemption when informed that the homeowner’s income has increased above the current qualifier of $20,000, Sims said.