Union County Property Tax Calculator
Rate basis: Arkansas DFA Assessment Coordination Division, 2025 Millage Report (2026 Collections), issued March 2026.
How Union County property taxes are calculated
Union County takes the assessed value of a parcel and multiplies it by the total millage for that parcel's school district and city. Arkansas assesses real property at 20% of market value, one mill produces $1 of tax per $1,000 of assessed value, and any homestead credit is subtracted after the multiplication.
Here is the working for a $180,000 home in Smackover, inside the Smackover-Norphlet district, which carries 53.9 mills for 2026 collections:
- $180,000 market value times 20% equals $36,000 assessed value.
- $36,000 times 53.9 divided by 1,000 equals $1,940.40 tax before credit.
- Subtract the $600 homestead credit to reach $1,340.40 estimated annual tax.
Take the same house to the rural tier of the El Dorado #15 district at 46.4 mills and the tax before credit drops to $1,670.40, or $1,070.40 after the credit. Same house, $270 less per year, decided by the school district line rather than by anything about the property itself.
Union County millage rates by district and city
Each row below is a taxing combination published for Union County for 2026 collections. School, city and county columns reconcile to the overall figure on every line. Union County has five school districts and eight millage-levying cities, and it is the largest county in Arkansas by area at 1,039 square miles.
| School district | City or area | School | City | County | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Dorado #15 | Rural | 38.5 | 0 | 7.9 | 46.4 |
| El Dorado #15 | El Dorado | 38.5 | 5.4 | 7.5 | 51.4 |
| Junction City #75 | Rural | 40.9 | 0 | 7.9 | 48.8 |
| Junction City #75 | Junction City | 40.9 | 5 | 7.9 | 53.8 |
| Parkers Chapel #35 | Rural | 39.8 | 0 | 7.9 | 47.7 |
| Smackover-Norphlet | Rural | 41 | 0 | 7.9 | 48.9 |
| Smackover-Norphlet | Smackover | 41 | 5 | 7.9 | 53.9 |
| Smackover-Norphlet | Calion | 41 | 6 | 7.9 | 54.9 |
| Smackover-Norphlet | Norphlet | 41 | 5.3 | 7.9 | 54.2 |
| Strong #83 | Rural | 39 | 0 | 7.9 | 46.9 |
| Strong #83 | Felsenthal | 39 | 4.61 | 7.9 | 51.51 |
| Strong #83 | Huttig | 39 | 5.8 | 7.9 | 52.7 |
| Strong #83 | Strong | 39 | 5.4 | 7.9 | 52.3 |
| County average | 39.89 | 5.31 | 7.87 | 51.03 |
Drawn from the Arkansas DFA Assessment Coordination Division 2025 Millage Report for 2026 collections, issued March 2026. Union County has 13 taxing combinations in that report. The Smackover-Norphlet district fringes into Ouachita and Columbia counties, so district boundaries cross the Union County line in both directions.
Why two Union County homes can have different tax bills
Union County has the widest city-levy range in this group of counties, and it also carries a quirk that shows up on only one row: the county levy is not identical everywhere.
- El Dorado city gets a lighter county levy. An El Dorado city address inside the El Dorado #15 district pays 7.5 county mills, not the 7.9 mills printed on every other row in the table. The city levy is 5.4 mills, made up of 2.4 general, 1 police, 1 misc and 1 library, and the total comes to 51.4 mills.
- Calion is the most expensive address in the county. Calion levies 6 mills, the highest city rate in Union County, split 5 general and 1 fire. Inside a Smackover-Norphlet district that already levies 41 school mills, that produces 54.9 mills, the county's top rate and 8.5 mills above the cheapest rural row.
- Junction City pays more school tax than El Dorado. The Junction City #75 district levies 40.9 school mills against El Dorado #15's 38.5, and it carries no other-M&O or bond discount to soften it. A Junction City address at a 5 mill city levy lands at 53.8 mills, 2.4 mills above an El Dorado city address.
- The same city levy lands on different totals. Smackover and Junction City both levy exactly 5 mills. Smackover ends at 53.9 mills and Junction City at 53.8, because the Smackover-Norphlet district levies 41 school mills to Junction City's 40.9.
The city breakdown in the state report shows where Union's city money goes. El Dorado splits its 5.4 mills across four lines, the only city in the county to do so. Calion, Huttig, Norphlet and Strong each add a fire mill on top of their general levy. Felsenthal uses 4.61 mills entirely in general, the lowest city rate in Union County, which is why a Felsenthal address lands 3.39 mills below Calion.
El Dorado and the other Union County communities
El Dorado
El Dorado is the county seat and the largest city in Union County, and it is the only place in the county where a city address gets a reduced county levy of 7.5 mills rather than 7.9. Its own rate is 5.4 mills, the second highest in the county, spread across general, police, misc and library lines. The net result, 51.4 mills inside the El Dorado #15 district, is still below every other city row in the table.
Calion
Calion carries the highest city levy in Union County at 6 mills and the highest total rate at 54.9 mills. The city sits inside the Smackover-Norphlet school district rather than its own, so the school levy of 41 mills applies on top of the city's own rate. A $150,000 Calion home pays $164.70 a year more than the same home in Felsenthal.
Smackover and Norphlet
Smackover and Norphlet both sit in the Smackover-Norphlet district, which levies 41 school mills, the highest in the county. Smackover's 5 mill city levy produces 53.9 mills and Norphlet's 5.3 mills produce 54.2. The two cities are 0.3 mills apart, entirely because of the city line rather than the school line.
Junction City and Strong
Junction City levies 4.6 mills of general city tax plus 0.4 mills for fire, producing a 53.8 mill total inside its own district. Strong levies 5 mills general plus 0.4 fire for 5.4 mills total, and sits inside the Strong Huttig district at 52.3 mills. Both are among the smaller communities in the county and both include a fire mill.
Huttig and Felsenthal
Huttig has the second-highest city levy in the county at 5.8 mills, and at 52.7 mills overall it sits 1.19 mills above a Felsenthal address. Felsenthal levies 4.61 mills, the lowest city rate in Union County, which is what keeps a Felsenthal parcel below the county average even inside a high-rate school district.
Parkers Chapel
Parkers Chapel is the only school district in Union County with no city row at all in the state report. The district levies 39.8 school mills, made up of 25 maintenance, 7.8 bond and 7 other bond, and every parcel pays the 7.9 mill county rate with no city tax on top. That produces 47.7 mills, 7.2 mills below the county's most expensive row.
Union County Assessor
Official name: Union County Assessor's Office. Assessor: Michelle Barksdale, with Carrie Langley as chief deputy. The assessor appraises real property between the first Monday in January and July 1, values personal property, maintains parcel and ownership records and administers exemptions. Personal property assessment dates for individuals and businesses run from January 2 through May 31.
One conflict worth recording. The Arkansas.gov county portal still lists Vickie Deaton as the Union County assessor, and that listing is out of date. The assessor's own page, the county government site and the Arkansas DFA county officials list all name Michelle Barksdale, so Barksdale is the current officeholder.
Assessor name, staff, contact and assessment dates from Union County Assessor; cross-checked against the Arkansas DFA county officials list. The older state portal entry is a known stale record; the county's own page governs.
Union County Collector
Official name: Union County Tax Collector's Office. Collector: Karen Scott, with Haley Pittman as chief deputy. The collector collects county, municipal, school, library and improvement district taxes and turns the revenue over to the treasurer monthly. She does not set property values.
Union County documents its payment rules in unusual detail, and three of them catch people out. Personal property is penalized only once after delinquency, while real estate and mineral interest keep accruing interest monthly until paid. Delinquent taxes must be paid by cash, cashier's check or money order, because personal checks are not accepted on delinquent accounts. And disabled veterans who qualify for the state benefit must bring their Veterans Administration form to the collector before March 1 each year, since the file has to be updated annually.
Source: Union County tax collector.
How to look up a Union County parcel and its tax
Union County runs three public lookup routes, and the fastest one depends on what you need. The assessor's real estate records sit on Arkansas Data Scout. The collector's tax record search runs on the county's own website and covers 2026 and prior years. For deeds and recorded documents, the circuit clerk holds them.
- Open the Union County assessor's real estate record search on Arkansas Data Scout. Search by owner name, address or parcel number.
- Read the market value and the assessed value on the card. Arkansas assessed value is 20% of market value, so a 5 to 1 ratio is expected unless an Amendment 79 cap is holding the taxable value lower.
- Note the school district and the city. Those two fields select the row in the millage table above. Union County has eight millage-levying cities against five school districts, so the combination matters.
- For the current bill and payment history, use the county's own Tax Record Search on unioncountyar.com. It accepts a last name, first name or parcel number and lets you pick 2026 or a prior year.
- For deeds, liens and recorded documents, the circuit clerk's office in the same courthouse holds the land records. Land records are not on the assessor's portal.
One data caveat: the third-party ARCountyData site still shows Union County collector data last refreshed on March 7, 2019, alongside a parcel count of 76,607. Do not rely on that mirror for a 2026 bill. The county's own tax record search and the Data Scout assessor records are the live sources.
Union County Assessor, Union County tax record search and Union County real estate records on Data Scout.
Paying Union County property taxes
Union County tax books open March 1 and the deadline is October 15, or the following business day when October 15 falls on a weekend. Payment postmarked October 15 is accepted without penalty. Tax statements are mailed promptly after the roll opens, and the county asks that you bring or return your statement if you pay in person or by mail.
Payment methods documented by the collector
- Online: the collector's online payment runs on the Arkansas Data Scout taxpayer portal. Card payments are accepted, and the state portal adds an electronic processing amount on top of the tax.
- In person: Room 106 at 101 North Washington in El Dorado, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a. m. to 4:30 p. m. There is a mail slot beside the collection windows for after-hours drop-off.
- By mail: to the collector's office at the courthouse address. The county asks that you include the statement or identify the parcel or owner you are paying for.
- Delinquent payments: cash, cashier's check or money order only. Personal checks are not accepted once an account is delinquent.
After delinquency, real estate and mineral accounts keep growing because interest accrues monthly, while personal property is penalized once. Union County publishes its delinquent list in the local newspaper in late November or early December. Real estate and producing mineral tax unpaid for two years is certified to the Commissioner of State Lands, and unpaid parcels eventually go to public sale. The statewide rules are covered in the guide to delinquent property tax redemption in Arkansas.
Source: Union County tax collector. Deadlines and penalties statewide are in the guide to Arkansas property tax due dates.
Homestead credit in Union County
The Arkansas homestead credit reduces the property tax on a qualifying primary residence, and it is not automatic. In Union County the registration happens at the assessor's office at 101 North Washington, the same office that maintains the value record the credit applies to.
Union County residents register with the assessor, who places the homestead status on the parcel record. Once it is on the record, the credit is applied against the real property tax on that residence each year. Arkansas limits a property owner to one homestead credit per year.
Union County also operates an annual disabled veteran benefit that is separate from the homestead credit. Veterans who receive a form from the Veterans Administration are asked to bring it to the collector's office as soon as it arrives, and the county notes the file must be updated every year with a new form. The county says the benefit produces a full credit on personal property tax and on real estate tax for the residence only. Contact the collector before March 1 if you have questions about that benefit.
Union County also runs the Amendment 79 protections, which cap how fast taxable value can rise and allow owners 65 or older or disabled to freeze the taxable value of a residence. The filing walkthrough for the standard credit is in how to apply for the Arkansas homestead credit, and the age and disability freeze is covered in the Arkansas senior property tax freeze.
Union County Assessor, Union County tax collector and Arkansas DFA property tax relief.
Appealing a Union County assessment
Start with the assessor's office. The statewide model procedures describe an informal appeal to the county assessor as the first safeguard before any formal hearing, and Union County's assessor staff handle valuation questions directly. Bring the parcel record and any comparable sales you have found.
If that does not resolve it, the formal appeal goes to the Union County Board of Equalization. Applications go to the board's secretary, who in Arkansas counties is the county clerk, and the deadline is the third Monday in August. The board begins hearing appeals no later than the second Monday in August and must issue its written decision within ten business days of the hearing.
- Board members: the Union County clerk's page lists Jim Peace, P. V. Griffin II, Yvonne Henry, Betty McGhee and Aubra Anthony on the equalization board.
- Filing route: send your application to the secretary of the Union County Board of Equalization. Arkansas law permits an application in person, by letter or by petition.
- Deadline: on or before the third Monday in August each year. In 2026 that date was August 17.
- What the board weighs: the accuracy and fairness of the value placed on your property compared with similar property, not the size of the bill.
- After the board: the next step is the county court, and a business entity must file through a licensed Arkansas attorney.
One practical point for Union County: because the county's own tax record search covers both 2026 and prior years, you can pull the assessment history for comparable parcels before the hearing and bring the printouts. That is the evidence the board can actually use.
The hearing itself, and the county court petition that can follow, are explained in how to appeal a property tax assessment in Arkansas and in the property tax appeal guide.
Sources: Arkansas DFA Board of Equalization model hearing procedures and Union County clerk for board membership and the clerk's role as board secretary.
Union County property tax examples
Every row below runs the Union County average of 51.03 mills for 2026 collections and claims one $600 credit. The El Dorado city rows are a useful sanity check, since they carry the county's lightest county levy at 7.5 mills rather than 7.9.
| Market value | Assessed at 20% | Tax before credit | After $600 credit | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $100,000 | $20,000 | $1,021 | $421 | $35.05 |
| $121,000 (county median, rounded) | $24,200 | $1,235 | $635 | $52.91 |
| $250,000 | $50,000 | $2,552 | $1,952 | $162.63 |
| $400,000 | $80,000 | $4,082 | $3,482 | $290.20 |
| $500,000 | $100,000 | $5,103 | $4,503 | $375.25 |
Calculated at the 51.03 mill Union County average for 2026 collections. Each row applies one $600 credit for a qualifying primary residence.
Union County median home value and median tax
Figures in this section are survey statistics for comparison, kept separate from the calculator on purpose.
Union County is the largest county in Arkansas by area and it has the second-largest population in this group, but its median home value is the second lowest, which is why the median tax bill lands below most of its neighbours. Multiplying the median home value by the 20% assessment ratio and the 51.03 mill average implies about $1,234 before any credit, against a surveyed median tax of $685. Amendment 79 caps, the districts where median-priced parcels actually sit, and the large share of Union County land in rural and mineral classifications all widen that gap.
Sources: B25077, median value; B25103, median tax; B01003, population. These are survey estimates and carry sampling error.
Union County property tax questions
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The county average total millage is 51.03 mills for 2026 collections, blending 39.89 school mills, 5.31 city mills and 7.87 county mills. Published combinations run from 46.4 mills for a rural El Dorado #15 parcel to 54.9 mills for a Calion address.
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The El Dorado city row inside the El Dorado #15 district carries 7.5 county mills while every other row carries 7.9. That is how the state report prints it, and it makes the El Dorado city combination about 0.4 mills lighter on the county portion than an otherwise identical parcel elsewhere.
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Calion, at 54.9 mills. Calion levies 6 mills, the highest city rate in the county, and it sits inside the Smackover-Norphlet school district, which levies 41 school mills, the county's highest school rate.
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Use the Tax Record Search on the county website, which accepts a last name, first name or parcel number and covers 2026 and prior years. For assessed values and parcel details, use the Union County real estate records on Arkansas Data Scout.
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October 15, or the following business day when October 15 falls on a weekend. Payments postmarked October 15 are accepted without penalty. Tax books open March 1.
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The account becomes delinquent after October 15. Personal property is penalized once, while real estate and mineral interest keeps accruing interest monthly until it is paid. Delinquent accounts must be paid by cash, cashier's check or money order, because the county does not accept personal checks on delinquent taxes.
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Yes. Veterans who receive a form from the Veterans Administration should bring it to the collector's office as soon as it arrives, and the file must be updated with a new form each year. The county describes the benefit as a full credit on personal property tax and on real estate tax for the residence only.
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Ask the assessor's office for an informal review first. If that does not resolve it, apply to the secretary of the Union County Board of Equalization on or before the third Monday in August. In Arkansas counties the board secretary is the county clerk.
Nearby county pages
Official sources
County average and the per-district Union millage table used on this page.
Assessor name, staff, address, hours and personal property assessment dates.
Deadlines, delinquent payment rules, the disabled veteran benefit and the mail slot.
The county's own bill and receipt search covering 2026 and prior years.
Board of Equalization membership and the clerk's role as board secretary.
The parcel and valuation search the assessor links to.
The statutory appeal deadline and hearing rules.
Cross-check on the current Union County assessor.