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Finance presents FY2027 tax and utility proposals; council weighs using one‑time funds to lower levy
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Summary
Finance staff recommended modest tax and utility adjustments and reported a $93,722 reduction in the 5 Flags subsidy after updated management projections; council discussed whether one‑time internal TIF repayments or reserves should reduce the levy and asked staff for detailed scenarios before the final hearing.
DUBUQUE, Iowa — The finance department presented the city’s recommended FY2027 budget April 15, outlining proposed utility fee increases, updated projections for the 5 Flags subsidy and a proposed legislative-anticipation reserve as lawmakers consider property tax reform.
Jennifer Larson, chief financial officer, said the FY27 recommended property-tax support equates to roughly $11.20 to the average homeowner in the city’s initial recommendation. The budget included proposed utility fee changes: a 3% water increase and proposed 9% increases to sanitary sewer, refuse and stormwater; staff presented a $6.77 average monthly increase to a representative residential bill.
Larson said the city received late updated financials from OVG (the arena/theater manager) that reduced the recommended 5 Flags subsidy by $93,722; the revised general-fund subsidy recommendation is $1,201,155. She explained the reduction stems from OVG’s recent operating projections and improved gross income forecasts for the venue.
Council members debated whether to use one-time internal TIF loan repayments or reserves to lower the levy. Staff proposed creating a state-legislative-anticipation reserve of $2,642,369 sourced from repayment of internal Greater Downtown TIF loans to prepare for possible state property-tax reform. Finance staff cautioned that using one-time funds to pay recurring expenses would create structural gaps in future years.
Council members asked for a clearer schedule showing assessed-value groupings and the distribution of levy burden across residential, commercial and industrial classes. Staff agreed to provide the requested schedules and model scenarios at the next meeting and the April 28 final public hearing.
In utility-billing discussion, Chris Valle (utility billing supervisor) described customer-enablement efforts: paperless billing, autopay growth, a reduced-fee program (50% base-rate discount) covering about 3% of customers, a community-impact service program for volunteer hours applied to bills (about $22,580 applied since Jan. 2025), recent delinquency and collections activity, and the rollout of Tyler Notify for pre-disconnect alerts and lead-service-line notifications.
Public testimony praised the finance presentation for improved clarity, and council asked staff to return with the detailed calculations, including the administrative-overhead worksheet cited earlier in the meeting. The council will consider the revised recommendation and any changes at the scheduled follow-up hearings.
