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Public-safety tax exceeds expectations but county faces bond balloon and jail staffing questions
Summary
Finance staff said the public-safety tax is generating more revenue than expected, allowing the county to pay interfund loans ahead of schedule, but a balloon bond payment due in 2029 and jail staffing and population rules complicate long-term planning.
LEE COUNTY, Ill. — County staff told the Finance Committee that receipts from the half-cent public-safety sales tax have outpaced earlier projections and allowed the county to pay down an interfund loan for the new Law Enforcement Center ahead of schedule. However, staff warned of a large balloon bond payment coming in 2029 and described operational challenges tied to jail population and staffing rules.
Jeremy (staff member) said the public-safety fund will generate enough revenue to retire a remaining interfund loan balance (about $615,000) this fiscal year, which is ahead of the original schedule. "That fund is going to generate enough revenue to pay our bond payments," staff said.
Committee members discussed the bond structure: there are two bonds tied to the Law Enforcement Center. One bond has a balloon payment that staff estimated at a little over $3.4 million and comes due in 2029; the other bond will be paid off by 2037. Jeremy and Reed emphasized the choices facing the county: whether to save surplus public-safety tax revenue to cover the balloon payment or to use excess revenue to support operations now.
The meeting also covered jail population and reimbursement options. The facility has capacity for about 96 inmates but current daily population has fallen from a historical high (around a daily average in the mid-50s) to approximately 30 on the day referenced. Staff discussed limited prospects for reliably housing federal inmates as a way to increase occupancy because of staffing-study costs and modest federal per-diem reimbursements. Committee members noted the state Safety Act and related changes have reduced daily population and bond-fee revenue streams.
Finally, staff updated the committee on public-safety contract revenue: the sheriff’s office has renegotiated or added municipal contracts and school/college resource agreements that require additional deputies; these contracts are intended to be roughly cost-neutral and have led to hiring additional deputies to meet contract obligations. Jeremy said public-safety reimbursements are likely to exceed the 2025 budgeted number and that some municipalities pay monthly while others make annual payments.
