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DuPage County supervisor of assessments proposes a reduced 2026 request; postage and advertising remain largest uncontrollable costs
Summary
Supervisor of Assessments AJ Croker presented a smaller FY2026 request—about $130,000 less than the previous year—while flagging postage and advertising as unpredictable line items tied to township assessment activity.
AJ Croker, DuPage County Supervisor of Assessments, presented his office’s proposed budgets for FY2026 to the county board on June 1 and said the department is requesting roughly $130,000 less than in 2025 (about a 7.5% reduction in the request).
Croker described the office’s role in the tax cycle — administering homestead and non‑homestead exemptions, supporting the nine township assessors in the county with statistical analysis, and acting as statutory clerk for the Board of Tax Review. He said the department has 15 employees and that the board of tax review’s expenses remain relatively flat year to year.
Croker and staff explained the department’s two largest expense lines are postage (for change‑of‑assessment notices and exemption mailings) and advertising (statutorily required publications when assessments change). Those two items are driven by township assessment activity and are therefore difficult to predict from year to year; Croker specifically noted the general reassessment in 2023 pushed notices into the next fiscal year and affected 2023 actuals.
Croker said the office plans to trim headcount by one position overall while filling two currently open slots, and he offered to answer board questions about timing and the county’s reimbursement from the Illinois Department of Revenue for certain eligible costs, which is paid monthly when the office meets the state’s metrics.
Board members thanked Croker for a concise presentation and asked follow‑up questions about the department’s postage and advertising assumptions. Croker said the items are largely reactive to township assessor activity and that the office would continue to manage costs while complying with statutory notice requirements.
No board vote was taken on the presented supervisor of assessments budget during the meeting excerpt; Croker said he would take questions and provide any additional detail the board requested.
