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McHenry council leans to add separate NISRA levy; police pension increase pressures next budget

McHenry City Council · November 4, 2025

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Summary

Finance Director Carolyn Lynch presented the city's levy choices and said a police pension actuarial increase of roughly $400,000 will require adjustments; councilors debated options and signaled consensus to add a separate $183,000 NISRA levy line.

Finance Director Carolyn Lynch presented the City Council with the city's options for the 2025 property tax levy (for collection in 2026), explaining the legal context and implications for city operations and capital needs.

Lynch summarized the constraints: property tax is the city's second-largest revenue source, PTELL (property tax extension limitation) limits typical increases tied to CPI or 5 percent, and the police pension actuarial report shows a roughly $400,000 required increase for the police pension contribution in FY26'27. “One of these known expenses is we just received the police pension actuarial report, which is set to increase by over $400,000 for fiscal year 26 27,” Lynch said.

Lynch presented three options for the council's consideration: (1) increase by PTELL/new growth (roughly 3.7%), (2) increase only by new growth (~0.8%), or (3) add a separate levy line for NISRA dues ($183,000). She said the exact new-growth figure would be finalized when the county publishes the final EAV and asked council for a consensus on direction so staff could prepare an ordinance for the Nov. 17 meeting.

Councilors debated whether NISRA's services justify a separate levy and whether the city could provide similar services at lower cost. Lynch supplied participation data for the city's residents: for 2023'24 the city had about 62 individuals participating and roughly 480 program registrations supported by NISRA. Lynch offered to obtain more detailed participant and program counts and to invite NISRA staff to answer additional questions.

After extended discussion, multiple aldermen expressed support for creating a separate levy line for NISRA dues (option 3) so the dues are visible and tracked separately from the general fund. Council direction recorded in open session: staff will prepare levy documents reflecting a new NISRA line of $183,000 and return with the precise dollar amounts for formal action on Nov. 17, with a public hearing on Nov. 15.

Outcome: council recorded a consensus to pursue Option 3 (create a new NISRA levy line for $183,000) and to set exact figures at the Nov. 17 meeting; no final levy ordinance was adopted on Nov. 3.

Provenance: topicintro block_135 (property tax levy presentation 00:32:01); topfinish block_200 (consensus and next steps 01:07:20).