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County hears property-value breakdown and adopts 2025 budget packet; commissioners flagged possible statewide 3% cap
Summary
County appraiser staff reviewed property-type appraised and assessed values, the finance director presented a 2025 levied-funds packet that the commission adopted, and staff warned a potential statewide 3% valuation cap on the ballot could complicate 2026 budgeting.
Atchison County elected officials received a review of property-type appraised and assessed values and adopted a new 2025 budget packet prepared by the finance director.
A county official (presented as a property valuation summary) explained classifications used in county valuation reports: "not-for-profit" refers to local 501(c)(3) properties, "exempt" generally covers municipalities and entities that successfully applied for exemption, and agricultural valuation distinguishes farmsteads (which retain an 11.5% assessment rate for a home site) from tillable/pasture land taxed on use-value. The presenter and commissioners discussed how the largest exempt values typically include Benedictine institutions, school districts and hospitals.
Finance Director Mark Seltner presented a two-page "2025 budget book" summary of levied funds (general fund, extension council, noxious weed) intended to make county budget information more accessible to the public. The board voted 3-0 to approve the 2025 levied-funds packet for posting on the county website and social media. Seltner said the digital packet includes department-level pages, appropriation tables and a debt-tracking sheet.
Seltner also previewed preliminary 2026 budget scenarios. Using a conservative 5% valuation increase in his worksheet, he said the recommended R&R (revenue-neutral rate) could fall compared with current assumptions; but the county's mill levy calculations and final valuations can change between August and November. Seltner warned that a proposed statewide ballot measure to cap valuation increases at 3% (or a rolling-average variation) was likely to appear for voter consideration and, if implemented, would take effect Jan. 1, 2026, complicating 2026 revenue estimates. He said counties will need additional modeling and contingency plans if voters approve a cap.
Why it matters: The valuation breakdown helps commissioners, staff and the public understand how assessed values and exemptions affect tax rolls. Adoption of the budget packet improves transparency; the potential state-level cap could limit revenue growth and force the county to plan for lower revenues or to adjust services in 2026.
The commission approved the 2025 levied-funds packet 3-0 and directed staff to publish the document online.
