Johnson County commissioners approve resolutions to exceed revenue-neutral rate for county, parks and library funds

At a public budget hearing, the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners voted to adopt three resolutions authorizing property-tax levies that exceed the state'calculated revenue-neutral rate for the county, the parks and recreation taxing district and the library taxing district.

Robin Simes of the county's budget and financial planning department presented the proposed 2026 budget and explained the drivers for higher spending, including inflation, growth in demand for services and reductions in some state revenue sources. Simes said the county's proposed overall budget is $1.9 billion, including $1.39 billion in expenditures and about $500 million in reserves, and described several specific budget items and constraints. She noted, "MedEx response time goal is arriving on scene under 10 minutes 90% of the time," when describing public-safety performance targets and the pressure on emergency response as call volume rises among older residents.

The board then permitted public comment. Dozens of residents and organization representatives spoke for and against the proposed levy increases. Those opposing the change urged commissioners to hold the mill levy at the revenue-neutral rate, cited the county's roughly $500 million in reserves and raised concerns about rising assessments, fixed incomes for seniors and the pace of FTE increases. Supporters said the county's services'from mental-health crisis care to libraries and parks'would suffer without additional funding and pointed to demographic shifts and rising service demands.

Aft…