Jessica, an assessor with the Board of Assessors, laid out the tax-classification process and timeline, telling the Springfield City tax-classification committee that the Department of Revenue (DOR) must certify assessed values before the city can finalize tax rates.

The presentation clarified that Springfield’s fiscal year runs July 1 through June 30, the valuation date is Jan. 1, 2025, and the DOR’s certification of assessed values and new growth is required to generate the “penny sheet” with the final rates. "The City Council must determine the percentage of the tax levy to be paid by each class," Jessica said, and final figures will be available after DOR review.

Committee members asked for concrete counts and dollar estimates for new growth and parcel additions; Jessica said she will provide the number of new parcels and the revenue estimate at the committee’s next meeting. Chair (finance committee chair) confirmed the committee’s next public session is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 3 p.m., with a City Council hearing on tax classification set for Monday, Nov. 24.

Because Springfield reached the statutory maximum shift last year, staff cautioned that the committee has no additional legal room to move more of the levy onto commercial/industrial/personal-property (CIP) classes absent a change in law; the committee’s role at this stage is to recommend the tax factor the Council will vote on. The meeting closed with staff action items: circulate a fact sheet explaining key terms, and provide parcel, exemption and DOR-certification timing data prior to the Nov. 18 meeting.