Property tax savings, license plate cameras among highlights of North Liberty's 2025 budget

North Liberty’s budget for fiscal year 2025 grew by a little more than $1 million to accommodate a new animal control officer and more license plate readers, while property taxes will see a slight dip.

The city’s general fund budget rose to roughly $18.8 million, an increase of 5.7%.

The budget increased in these specific areas:

• Public safety: $60,000 in additional costs for the services and commodities category for the Flock Safety-branded license plate cameras
• Fire department: $150,000 added to the personnel account for a full-time fire marshal position and increased part-time coverage totaling 100 hours per week
• Animal control: $15,000 added to convert the animal control officer from part-time to full-time
• Community relations: $60,000 for a new full-time event assistant

The city no longer has to pay rent to house its various offices and staff, having recently moved from a converted physician’s office to a purpose-built, state-of-the-art space. The custom-built city hall will save North Liberty $175,000 per year.

Residents see double savings on property taxes

Property taxes in North Liberty decreased by eight cents to $11.37 thanks to an expanding tax base.

Coupled with the state’s enforced reduction in the amount of a home’s value that can be taxed, the city projects that residents who live in a median property value home will save more than $200 in property taxes in the coming fiscal year.

In years past, cities across the state could tax roughly 54% of that total assessed value per $100,000 at its chosen tax levy rate. In Fiscal 2025, the city may now only tax 46.34% per $100,000 of the property value at that $11.37 rate.

The median property value in North Liberty is $232,000, according to the city’s budget report. That means homeowners with a property value of at least $250,000 will save $232 on property taxes.

City projects tax, utility fluctuations in future years

North Liberty's new budget features a range of projections through at least the next five years.

Water rates, for example, remained steady for three years between the Fiscal 2023 budget and the budget for the coming year. But incremental, 3% increases are on the horizon. Next year, the city projects the water base rate will increase by 3% and will continue to rise by 3% annually over the next decade.

The general fund is also expected to grow, surpassing $20 million by Fiscal 2027.

Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached atrhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.