2 days Ago By Randy Petersen
ROCHESTER — Olmsted County could collect an additional $7 million in property taxes next year. County commissioners capped the potential property tax levy at nearly $132.7 million, a 5.
57% increase from this year’s levy. “This would be, I’m guessing, below the average increase,” Interim County Administrator Pete Giesen told commissioners, following two days of budget review. ADVERTISEMENT Giesen said other Minnesota counties are proposing lower levy increases, while some are expecting to see collections increase by more than 10%.
The levy increase, which is to the entire amount collected on properties throughout the county, doesn’t directly translate to increases on individual tax bills, since new construction offsets the increase. County Board Chairwoman Sheila Kiscaden said developing the budget has been a balancing act. “We take this responsibility seriously, and we have tried to be both diligent about what our needs are and what impact those needs will have on people paying the bills,” she said.
Olmsted County Chief Financial Officer Wilfredo Roman-Catala said the proposed 5.57% county levy increase will likely be closer to a 3.9% increase for a home without significant value changes when compared this year’s taxes.
In addition to the county’s operating levy, the Olmsted County Housing and Redevelopment Authority will continue to collect its annual levy at the maximum allowed rate of 1.85% of a property's market value, which has been collected since 2017. The HRA levy will provide nearly $5.
2 million to address housing concerns. County commissioners entered budget discussions on Monday, knowing a 4.37% tax levy increase, or nearly $5.
5 million, is needed to maintain county services into 2025 due to increased costs. ADVERTISEMENT Additional spending in the projected $411.5 million budget for county and HRA operations includes adding the equivalents of 15 full-time positions, with 11 contributing to the tax levy increase.
Commissioners rejected one recommended staff addition, opting to trim the proposed levy by nearly $116,000. The funds would have hired an adult detention center sergeant to oversee programs and coordinate volunteer efforts. “This is already being done,” Commissioner Mark Thein said of the position that was cut in the past to create a new captain position in the Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff Kevin Torgerson said the new sergeant was sought to oversee three deputies who are coordinating volunteers and 19 detention center programs designed to rehabilitate detainees. While the commissioners didn’t support the new hire, they did agree to dedicate $38,000 in county tax funds to offset the costs of a school resources officer in Byron. A one-year agreement is expected to cut the school district’s expenses in half, rather than dropping the contract next year amid district financial challenges.
Torgerson said the added funds are needed to help fund the deputy assigned to the district through 2025, but further county support isn’t expected to be sought. While the approved preliminary tax levy caps the amount the county can collect from property taxes next year, it doesn’t set the final budget. ADVERTISEMENT Commissioners are expected to approve the county budget at the end of the year, following a Dec.
5 truth-in-taxation hearing. Changes to the budget could reduce the required property tax levy, but the amount collected is not allowed to increase..
