City's proposed budget similar to last year

The proposed 2025 budget for the City of Holton will only generate about $26 in additional city taxes over last year on a mill levy that city officials were able to keep at the revenue neutral rate for the budget year due to a $2.3-million increase in the city’s valuation, it has been reported.

According to the proposed 2025 city budget, which appears on Page 10 of this edition of The Holton Recorder, the 2025 property tax levy of 50.169 mills — down from the 2024 budget levy of 54.252 mills — is the city’s assigned revenue neutral rate, which is calculated according to the city assessed valuation and the mill levy needed to produce the same amount of tax revenues generated during the previous year.

When the Holton City Commission holds its public hearing on the proposed 2025 budget prior to its regular meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 19, it will not need to hold a second hearing on exceeding the revenue neutral rate, a hearing that is required by state law should the assigned revenue neutral rate be exceeded in the proposed budget.

The city’s assessed valuation for 2025 is up $2,307,716 from 2024, when the valuation was listed at $28,353,897, to its 2025 valuation of $30,661,613.

Based on last year’s valuation, the 54.252-mill levy generated $1,538,259 in tax revenue, while the proposed 2025 levy of 50.169 mills is expected to generate $1,538,285 — an increase of $26, or less than 0.002 percent.

With the revenue neutral rate in place, the amount of tax revenue that the city will generate per mill will rise from $28,353 in 2024 to $30,662 in 2025, an increase of 8.14 percent. According to the proposed new budget, the city's total budget authority is at $14,067,344, up $924,262, or 6.6 percent, over 2024’s total budget authority of $13,143,082.

The total proposed 2025 levy includes 43.183 mills for the city’s general fund, generating $1,324,068 in taxes; 0.986 mill for the city’s liability insurance fund, generating $30,247 in taxes; and six mills for Beck Bookman Library, generating $183,970 in taxes.

The total amount includes $2,372,621 in the general fund, $36,000 in the liability insurance fund and $199,518 for Beck Bookman Library. The city is also looking to transfer about $400,000.

Budget authority for 2025 in other city department funds, according to the proposed budget, includes:

• $495,833 in the special highway fund, up from $399,050 in 2024.

• $6,597,407 in the electric fund, up from $6,153,595 in 2024.

• $1,553,368 in the water fund, up from $1,403,927 in 2024.

• $1,295,526 in the sewer fund, up from $1,192,515 in 2024.

• $279,000 in the trash fund, up from $200,000 in 2024.

• $138,071 in the special park fund, up from $127,952 in 2024.

• $1,100,000 in the capital improvement fund, unchanged from 2024.

The city’s outstanding indebtedness at the start of 2024, according to the budget, was $990,372, down $380,323 from the outstanding indebtedness of $1,370,695 at the start of 2023.

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