ALEXANDRIA — Public records available on the Rapides Parish assessor’s website show properties for some elected parish officials, including the former and current sheriff are valued so low that they pay no or what appears on first blush to be anomalously low taxes for sizable properties with many coveted amenities. 

 Former Sheriff William Earl Hilton’s landscaped and fenced home, for instance, sits on a one-acre residential lot surrounded by 26 agricultural acres, bordered by a gravel road named for him. Assessor Richard Ducote assigned the spread a total value of $78,620, which comes to $7,862 for tax assessment purposes. After applying a homestead exemption credit of more than $900, the parish tax bill for Hilton’s domicile and acreage totals $44.49.

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