Johnson City

Johnson City Approves $129 Local Property Tax Relief for 2026

Q: What should a seller tell a buyer about the $129?

Quote it as the proposed 2026 local amount for households already on state tax relief, subject to fund availability. Do not describe it as a permanent discount or as cash already paid.

Johnson City commissioners approved a $129 local property tax relief match for the 2026 tax year on Oct. 1, for elderly low-income homeowners, disabled homeowners, and disabled veterans who already qualify for the state’s program.

Tracy King

05 Oct 2026 • 6 min read

Johnson City’s Oct. 1 agenda sets a $129 local property tax relief amount for 2026.

Update (Oct. 5, 2026): City commissioners approved the $129 local match on Thursday, Oct. 1, according to Tri-Cities Local News, which also reported that more than 1,000 Johnson City homeowners qualified for the state program last year. The details below come from the Oct. 1 agenda packet.

Johnson City’s City Commission agenda for Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. in the Municipal and Safety Building Commission Chambers lists item 8.1: a resolution establishing the 2026 Local Property Tax Relief Program amount. The draft resolution puts that amount at One-Hundred, Twenty-Nine Dollars ($129.00) for the 2026 tax year, subject to the availability of funds.

This is not a new program. The city created the local supplement with Ordinance 4950-26 on Aug. 20, 2026. The Oct. 1 item is the yearly dollar figure that sits on top of the state’s tax-relief refund.

For Tri-Cities homeowners on a fixed income, $129 is not abstract. It is one more check that can land after the county and city bills are paid, and it only works if you already cleared the state’s eligibility steps.

Who is eligible

The draft resolution says only taxpayers who qualify under Tennessee Code Annotated §§ 67-5-702 through 67-5-704 are eligible for this additional tax relief. Those statutes cover elderly low-income homeowners, disabled homeowners, and disabled veterans, as defined in Title 67, Chapter 5, Part 7.

Section 2 of the draft is just as important: to receive the local relief, the taxpayer must already have applied for and obtained the state relief authorized by those same statutes. The city is not inventing a second application track. The local money follows the state approval.

Staff’s agenda summary recommends approval. Finance staff contact listed on the packet is Emily Pierson, Administrative Coordinator.

$129 tax relief at a glance

Field	Oct. 1 packet
Meeting	City Commission, Oct. 1, 2026, 6:00 p.m., Municipal and Safety Building Commission Chambers
Item	8.1 — Resolution Establishing the 2026 Local Property Tax Relief Program
2026 amount	$129.00, subject to availability of funds
Eligible groups	Elderly low-income homeowners, disabled homeowners, disabled veterans under T.C.A. §§ 67-5-702 through 67-5-704
Prerequisite	Must already have obtained state property tax relief
Administration	City Recorder’s office, same manner as the state program
Program origin	Ordinance 4950-26, passed Aug. 20, 2026
Staff recommendation	Approve
Status	Approved by the City Commission Oct. 1, 2026

How the state and local pieces fit together

Under the state’s program, qualifying homeowners get a refund of property taxes paid from a state appropriation. The draft resolution notes that Chapter 739 of the Public Acts of 2006 amended Tennessee Code Annotated § 67-5-701(j) so that a county, municipality, or metropolitan government may appropriate additional funds to supplement that relief.

Johnson City’s local program is that supplement. Ordinance 4950-26 created it. The Oct. 1 resolution sets the dollar amount for the 2026 tax year. Section 4 of the draft says the City Recorder’s office will administer the local relief the same way the state program is administered.

That matters if a seller or an adult child is helping an older parent keep a house. The refund is not automatic. The homeowner must stay in the state system first. If the state application is late or denied, the city’s $129 does not attach.

Why sellers and adult children should care

Property taxes show up in every listing conversation. Our earlier coverage of Johnson City Sets $1.66 Tax Rate 3-1, With 8 Cents for Aquatics and the Johnson City Adopts Ordinance 4950-26 Tax Relief 5-0 program adoption are the first two pieces of that story. The $129 figure is the third.

If you are pricing a house owned by a parent who gets state tax relief, do not tell a buyer that “the city will knock $129 off the tax bill forever.” The resolution is for the 2026 tax year and is subject to the availability of funds. Next year will need its own amount.

If you are helping a parent sell and move into a smaller place, the tax-relief status can still help your underwriting: it is evidence the household already qualifies under the state definitions. Bring the state approval letter to the listing appointment. Skip any city payment calendar the packet does not publish.

Nearby Kingsport’s rate story, covered in Kingsport Holds $1.67 Tax Rate; Board Hears AF-239-2026, is a separate municipal file. Keep Johnson City’s $129 and Kingsport’s rate in their own lanes when you talk to a Tri-Cities relocation client.

What the packet does not say

The Oct. 1 packet does not publish the number of households that received the local supplement last year, a timeline for when the $129 refunds go out, or a separate local application form. The draft points people back to the state statutes and the City Recorder’s office.

The Commission approved the amount on Oct. 1, but until Finance publishes a payment calendar, treat the $129 as an approved 2026 amount, not as cash already in a homeowner’s account.

Also on the Johnson City calendar: a factory expansion off Bob Fitz Road

A second Johnson City file this week touches homeowners from the other direction. The Board of Zoning Appeals agenda for Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. carries one new-business item: a variance from the frontage landscaping rules at 192 Bob Fitz Rd., permit PLZV202600213.

According to the staff report, Moog Inc. is asking to reduce the required landscaping setback from 4 feet to 2 feet to fit 12 additional parking spaces. Staff describes Moog as a high-tech manufacturer of aerospace components for the US military that is looking to expand its Johnson City facility and create several new high-paying jobs, and says that without more parking it may need to relocate.

The property is zoned B-5, Planned Community Business District. The report says it sits across the street from several residential homes in the Washington County R-1B Low Density Residential District. To offset the narrower screen, the applicant agreed to finish the sidewalk across the full front property line and add compensatory landscaping with ornamental trees, new curbing, and a new catch basin top.

For nearby sellers, the takeaway is modest: a narrower planted strip and a few more cars across the street, paired with a completed sidewalk. For the wider market, an employer choosing to grow in place instead of leaving is the kind of news that supports steady local housing demand.

Johnson City dates to watch

Oct. 1, 2026, 6:00 p.m. — City Commission, Municipal and Safety Building Commission Chambers: Resolution Establishing the 2026 Local Property Tax Relief Program amount ($129). Approved.
Oct. 6, 2026, 6:00 p.m. — Board of Zoning Appeals, Municipal and Safety Building Commission Chambers: Moog Inc. landscaping-setback variance at 192 Bob Fitz Rd.
After adoption — Watch for the City Recorder’s instructions to households already on the state tax-relief list.
Eligibility reminder — Local relief only attaches after the homeowner has obtained the state relief under T.C.A. §§ 67-5-702 through 67-5-704.

Planning a Tri-Cities move-up or a downsizing for a parent? Start with a free home valuation, or ask for a cash offer if the tax calendar is not the only clock you are racing.

What amount is on Johnson City’s Oct. 1 tax-relief resolution?

The draft resolution sets the local property tax relief for the 2026 tax year at One-Hundred, Twenty-Nine Dollars ($129.00), subject to the availability of funds.

Who can get the $129?

Only taxpayers who qualify under Tennessee Code Annotated §§ 67-5-702 through 67-5-704 — elderly low-income homeowners, disabled homeowners, and disabled veterans — and who have already obtained the state’s tax relief.

Is this a brand-new program?

No. The Board of Commissioners established the Local Jurisdiction Property Tax Relief Program by Ordinance 4950-26 on Aug. 20, 2026. The Oct. 1 item sets the 2026 dollar amount.

Who administers the local relief?

The draft says the City Recorder’s office will administer it in the same manner as the state’s property tax relief program.

What should a seller tell a buyer about the $129?

Quote it as the approved 2026 local amount for households already on state tax relief, subject to fund availability. Do not describe it as a permanent discount or as cash already paid.