(Posted April 7, 2015)
By Kristy Zurbrick, Madison Editor
The city of London plans to put a renewal request for its 2.1-mill operating levy on the Nov. 3 ballot.
The levy expires at the end of 2016. If passed, it would be renewed for five years, starting in 2017. If the levy fails on the first attempt, the city would have two more chances to pass it next year—the May and November elections—before it expires.
Last year, the levy generated $300,000, which accounts for about 7 percent of the city’s general revenue fund.
“It would be significant if we lost that,” said Katie Hensel, city auditor.
City council opted to stick with a renewal to preserve the state rollback reduction. With rollbacks, the state pays 10 percent of property tax levies, essentially giving property owners a 10 percent tax break. For London’s 2.1-mill levy, that amounts to a total of $71,000 a year.
Last year, with House Bill 59, the state changed its rollback parameters. The state now only pays the rollback on renewal levies. Replacement levies, which bring existing levies into line with current property valuations, and new levies are no longer eligible for the rollback reduction.
The deadline to file issues with the Madison County Board of Elections for the Nov. 3 ballot is Aug. 5.
