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North Bend council holds public hearing on 2026 property tax levy, continues action to Nov. 18
Summary
Council opened a public hearing on the proposed 2026 property tax levy on Oct. 21 and voted unanimously to continue the hearing to Nov. 18 for final action; the finance director presented preliminary levy amounts and a preliminary assessed valuation from the King County assessor.
The North Bend City Council opened a public hearing on Oct. 21 to consider ordinance AB25-112, which would establish the city’s 2026 property tax levy, and voted unanimously to continue the hearing until the Nov. 18 council meeting to allow time for additional public input and final deliberation.
Finance Director Martin Cha reviewed the two components of the levy as presented in the staff report: a regular levy (the amount presented verbally during the meeting) and an excess levy for debt service on 2011 fire station bonds. Mr. Cha noted the regular levy figure as presented in the packet and that it includes the 1% increase permitted under state law. He also said the King County assessor’s preliminary 2026 assessed valuation for the city is listed in the packet as "3,451,000,000" (preliminary). The ordinance before council would set the total levy amount and instruct the King County assessor on debt-service figures and levy rate computation.
Using a hypothetical $1,000,000 home, Mr. Cha said the city portion of the tax bill would be roughly $800 in 2026 under the numbers presented; he emphasized the figure is the city share only and that the overall property tax bill includes county and other district levies. The finance committee reviewed the item on Oct. 14; the committee discussion and staff packet present the option to include or omit the 1% levy lid increase and to continue the hearing for final adoption at a later meeting.
Council members asked clarifying questions about the two-part structure of the levy (regular operating levy and the voter-approved debt-service portion for the fire-station bonds). Council also confirmed the action requested that night was to keep the public hearing open; council did not adopt the levy on Oct. 21. The motion to continue the public hearing to Nov. 18 passed unanimously.
Next steps: Staff will finalize packet figures, file the ordinance with the King County assessor after adoption, and return to council on Nov. 18 for possible adoption and a final decision on whether to use the 1% allowable increase.
