Kankakee finance officials tell council proposed levy will lower city property tax rate; recommend levy to full council

Comptroller Rogers told the city's budget committee that a total equalized assessed valuation (EAV) of $25,000,000 will let Kankakee collect more revenue at a lower rate, and that the combination of higher property values and recent pension obligation bonds will produce a 0.36% reduction in the city's property tax rate for 2025.

The committee recommended the tax levy as presented to the full City Council. The recommendation came during the Budget Committee report presented January 21, 2025, which also included a monthly financial review and a presentation on consolidating federal grant procedures.

Nut graf: The levy recommendation, if adopted by the council, follows issuance of pension obligation bonds and reflects an increase in EAV that the comptroller said will allow the city to raise collected revenue while lowering the tax rate. The budget committee also flagged one-time timing differences that are temporarily raising cash balances.

Comptroller Rogers said the recent pension obligation bonds lowered the police and fire pension payments due this fiscal year, contributing to the projected 0.36% decrease in Kankakee's property tax rate. Mayor Curtis placed that change in historical context, saying the city's property tax rate fell from about 8.3% in 2017 to roughly 4.32% in 2025, which he characterized as a roughly 48% reduction over eight years and savings of about $1,000,000 to city taxpayers over that period.

Rogers also told the committee the city expects to receive about $550,000 more in ambulance fees later in the fiscal year; she described that amount as a timing issue rather than an unexpected revenue source. Rogers reported the city's cash balances were elevated in part because proceeds from the pension obligation bonds had not yet been fully invested with the state.

ECDA Director Barbara Brewer Watson presented a plan to consolidate the city's procedures for accepting federal grant funds into a single ordinance so that HUD and other federal partners can locate requirements in one place. The Budget Committee discussed the draft and recommended it to the full council.

Ending: The Budget Committee's recommendation sends the levy and the consolidated federal-grant procedures to the full City Council; council action on the levy will occur at a subsequent meeting.