Sen. Cassidy’s property taxes triple after opponent questions assessment

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - The property taxes for U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy have more than tripled after a reassessment of his massive home near the LSU campus in Baton Rouge.

One of the senator’s neighbors also received a sizeable increase on the taxes for their home.

Cassidy’s 2021 property tax bill, due by the end of the year, is for the amount of $10,440.34, records show.

Last year, the property tax for the same home was $3,391.11, records show.

The reassessment came after a political opponent last year asked why Cassidy’s 4,600 square foot home was not being taxed as much as other properties of similar size in the city.

“The Cassidys have lived in their home for over 30 years and welcome the effort by the EBR Tax Assessor to ensure the assessments of their house and those in their neighborhood are up to date,” said Ty Bofferding, spokesman for Senator Cassidy.

When the issue was first raised, The Bayou Brief, an online newspaper, followed up with a lengthy article about the situation.

The newspaper reported that Cassidy’s home was assessed at just $358,100, despite him having a $720,000 mortgage on the home as of 2016.

After being reassessed this year, the home is now valued at $961,800, records shows.

The senator’s home is located off Dalrymple Drive, nearly adjacent to the campus of LSU.

Earlier this year, East Baton Rouge Tax Assessor Brian Wilson said his office began looking into the issue as soon as he was made aware of it in 2020.

Wilson said both Cassidy’s home and one next door were underassessed because they were likely being compared to the value of nearby commercial properties and not other residential homes in the area.

Cassidy’s neighbor’s home was previously assessed at a fair market value of $418,000 but is now assessed at $760,800, records show.

Wilson said the fact that the homes are near LSU makes it difficult to accurately value because LSU properties are exempt from assessment.

The value of nearby homes and businesses are typically taken into account when determining an assessment.

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