Aurora council adopts 2025 budget; tax rate falls while homeowners face small increase

The Aurora City Council on Dec. 3, 2024 approved an ordinance adopting the city's annual budget for the 2025 fiscal year, 10-2, after a public hearing held under 65 ILCS 5/8-2-9.1. The ordinance (240886) adopts the budget for the fiscal year beginning Jan. 1, 2025, and ending Dec. 31, 2025.

City Chief Financial Officer Chris Minnick told the council that the tax rate is expected to fall roughly 1.1 percent, but that rising property valuations mean an average homeowner will likely see a small increase in their bill. "We estimate that, over the course of the year, that would be about $87 for a home valued at $300,000," Minnick said during the hearing.

Why it matters: the council's budget sets spending and levies for police, fire, public works and parks for 2025. Council discussion centered on the interplay between the lower rate and higher assessed values, and on required pension contributions that increase the city's levy obligations.

Key details and council discussion

- Statutory basis and hearing: The public hearing was conducted under 65 ILCS 5/8-2-9.1, the Illinois statute governing municipal budget hearings, and staff presented the ordinance that would adopt the annual budget in lieu of a separate appropriation ordinance.

- Tax rate and homeowner impact: Minnick said the city's tax rate is expected to decline about 1.1 percent and estimated the current rate is "just under $1.70 per $100 of EAV" and would move to about $1.67 per $100 of EAV. He cautioned valuations are not final until the spring: "Keep in mind, we're estimating at this point, we don't get the final valuation of the city until March or April." Minnick estimated the projected net effect as roughly $87 on a $300,000 home.

- Pension funding increases: Minnick attributed the chief drivers of levy increases to statutorily required pension contributions. He told the council the most recent actuarial valuations produced about a $2,000,000 increase in the police pension requirement and about a $1,100,000 increase for the fire pension fund, a combined roughly $3,100,000 funding increase tied to state-prescribed actuarial assumptions. "As a result of the actuarial valuation ... there is an approximately $2,000,000 increase in the funding requirement for the police pension, and I believe it's about $1,100,000 ... for the fire pension fund," Minnick said.

- Council comments: Alderman Franco defended those obligations as necessary, saying "those are need things. Those are either out of our control or things that we have to have," referencing pension and public safety facility costs. A member of the council who had urged more detail on parks funding and requested a Phillips Park master plan told the council she would vote no because the master plan had not been provided for community review; that member indicated parks funding decisions affected her vote.

Votes and formal action

- The council adopted Ordinance 240886, "an ordinance adopting an annual budget for the fiscal year beginning 01/01/2025 and ending 12/31/2025," by a roll-call vote of 10 in favor and 2 opposed. The two recorded no votes were Alderman Maciakos and Alderman Lash; the minutes and transcript show other members voting in the affirmative.

- Earlier in the meeting the council closed the public hearing by roll call, 12-0.

What the ordinance does next

- The ordinance establishes the city's spending plan for the 2025 fiscal year. The adopted budget document (referenced in council materials) contains department decision packages, program descriptions and line-item allocations; the council did not alter the ordinance text on the floor during the Dec. 3 session.

Quotes

"We estimate that, over the course of the year, that would be about $87 for a home valued at $300,000," Chris Minnick, chief financial officer.

"Those are need things. Those are either out of our control or things that we have to have," Alderman Franco.

Mayor Ehrman praised the finance team and asked the council to acknowledge staff: "You guys do a yeoman's job," he said, asking members to applaud the work of the finance staff who prepared the budget.

What was not decided

- Council members did not adopt or present a Phillips Park master plan during the meeting; one member said the absence of a shared master plan informed her decision to vote no. The transcript does not show the adoption of any new parks master plan or a directive to immediately add one to the budget.

Next steps and timeline

- The adopted budget takes effect Jan. 1, 2025, for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2025. The city will receive final assessed valuations from the county in March or April 2025, which could affect final levy calculations and individual property bills.

(For the public hearing the council cited 65 ILCS 5/8-2-9.1; Ordinance number as read into the record: 240886.)