Property owners -- facing rough economic times and a prolonged housing slump -- have been flooding area assessors' offices with appeals in the hope of getting their tax bills lowered.

Monday was the final day for property owners to appeal the assessed value used to calculate this year's property tax bills, and preliminary estimates project near-record numbers of appeals. Sacramento County officials are expecting twice as many appeals as last year.

"It's tough times out there for people, and they're trying to get any help they can," said Sandy Burnett, an assistant clerk to the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors.

While reductions could help homeowners trying to stretch every last penny, less property tax revenue is a big concern for jurisdictions that rely on such money to fund services.

"That's the million-dollar question. Everyone is trying to forecast the impact of these reductions on the budget," said Kristen Spears, Placer County's assessor.

When property tax bills hit area mailboxes in October, many homeowners were shocked to see an increase from last year given the widespread drop in housing prices.

Most homeowners saw their bills increase because the assessed value of their property was still less than the market value as of Jan. 1, 2008, thanks to Proposition 13.

That 1978 initiative rolled property assessments back to 1975 levels and capped the annual increase at 2 percent. A property can be reassessed if it changes hands or the living area is enlarged.

Under Proposition 8 – a companion 1978 initiative not to be confused with this year's gay marriage initiative – counties are required to reassess a property when the market value falls below the assessed value, tax officials said.

Sacramento County reduced the assessed value on as many as 30 percent of residential units this year in the wake of the housing slump. The reductions translate to a loss of about $65 million in property tax revenue countywide, officials said.

Many more homeowners felt they deserved to have their assessed values reduced. As a result, assessors' offices were inundated with calls after tax bills came out, and numerous property owners have filed formal appeals.

Sacramento County received 4,800 appeals last year and could have as many as 9,000 this year, officials said.

Placer County currently has almost 3,200 outstanding appeals as compared to less than 200 at the same time last year, Spears said.

Yolo County officials are projecting a similar number of appeals this year as last year when they got about 800, officials there said. But unlike last year when many appeals were from developers, this year many appeals are from residential property owners.

Assessors can defend their assessments in front of a review board. Property owners who win their appeals could get refunds next year.

Assessment appeals alone won't have a significant impact on area budgets, tax officials agreed. The bigger concern could be Proposition 8, which will likely allow more homeowners to have their property values reduced next year.

Taxes are based on a property's value as of Jan. 1. So tax bills that came out in October are based on the value of the home almost 10 months earlier.

Even though many homeowners saw the market values of their properties plummet in the past six months, if the assessed value was below the market value at the start of 2008, they still saw their normal annual increase in property tax.

The downturn in the housing market this current calendar year, therefore, will show up in next year's tax bills. As a result, county assessors are projecting minimal growth – at best – in property tax revenue.

El Dorado County officials say they could see a total increase of less than 2 percent from this year, while Sacramento County is already saying that the county could see a loss of property tax revenue for next year.

All of this puts pressure on localities, already reeling in the current economy.

"We're aware that a lot of cities are struggling," said Eva Spiegel, spokeswoman for the League of California Cities. "Declining sales tax and declining property tax hits cities really hard."

Call The Bee's Robert Lewis, (916) 321-1061.