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Board opens separate public hearing, explains why advertised $13.45 rate can be misleading
Summary
At a required standalone public hearing, trustees explained that the advertised $13.45 per $1,000 is a maximum levy and that Iowa’s rollback (described in the meeting as about 58%) changes the tax calculation, so homeowners may see different amounts depending on assessed value and state adjustments.
The Ogden Comm School District board opened a separate public hearing on the proposed property tax rate and answered questions about how the advertised levy translates to homeowner bills. The hearing was held as a standalone meeting as required by statute for tax-rate hearings.
A board member noted that the advertised maximum — presented in the meeting as $13.45 per $1,000 of assessed value — often confuses taxpayers because of a state rollback. "Sometimes people get confused because they'll look at their assessed value... they'll simply take that 200,000 times that 13.45," the committee member said, adding that the rollback reduces the taxable portion of assessed value (the meeting described the rollback as about 58 percent).
The board clarified that the $13.45 figure is the maximum the district could levy and not necessarily the actual rate that will be set. "This would be the maximum rate that we would set," another participant said. Several trustees emphasized that other jurisdictions (city, county) also levy property taxes and that changes in assessed values or state policy can raise a homeowner's tax bill even when the school levy falls.
No formal action was taken to adopt a final tax rate at this meeting; the public hearing was informational and was closed at the end of the session. The board directed that the budget and certified levy figures be published as required and scheduled a public hearing on the certified budget for April 13, 2026.
