Marion City holds public hearing on proposed FY2027 property tax levy; council sets April 23 budget hearing

Marion City held a special council meeting on March 24, 2026, for a public hearing on the proposed fiscal year 2027 property tax levy. City staff presented a slide‑package that combined the county mailer residents received with Marion’s proposed levy changes, explained how state rollback and reassessment year calculations affect taxable valuation, and answered public questions about the mailing and the ‘‘effective rate.’’

The presentation emphasized that the city’s proposed levy rates would be lower in several categories and that one major driver of the reduction is debt service: "We are proposing that we would not issue any debt for our projects in fiscal year 27," Brian, a city staff presenter, told the council, citing a DA Davidson debt‑service model. Staff showed an estimated drop in city debt‑service expenditures from about $11.46 million to just over $9 million and said that, all else equal, the planned pause in new borrowing contributed to a roughly 23¢ decrease in the debt service levy rate.

Why it matters: the meeting explained how three moving parts — assessed valuation, the state rollback percentage, and the levy rate — interact. Ryan, a city staff member, summarized the legal context: "A couple years ago the state ... mandated that a separate hearing be done on just the property tax rate," and the form residents received is prepared at the county/state level. Staff told the council the residential rollback used for FY27 fell from 47.3% to 44.54% (a reassessment year effect) and that commercial rollback remains set at 90% (with the first $150,000 taxed at the residential rate).

Staff presented concrete examples to help residents estimate impact: under a constant‑valuation assumption the city portion of taxes on a $300,000 home would fall by about $176, and on a $1,000,000 commercial property the city portion would fall by about $357. Staff also told the council that the city’s levies (general operations, transit pass‑throughs, liability, employee benefits and debt service) together make up about 35% of a typical total property tax bill, a figure the mayor repeated during questions.

Public comment focused on clarity and timing. Dan Hoover (a Marion resident) asked whether the mailer’s columns showed the proposed effective rate and who calculates it; staff answered that the effective rate is a state calculation that shows the rate that would have produced the same tax dollars as the prior year and reiterated that the city’s proposed rate is lower. Other residents asked for simpler language in future county mailers, asked for a definition of TIF (tax increment financing), and pressed for clarity about which assessed valuation year is used (staff confirmed FY27 tax bills are based on assessed values as of Jan. 1, 2025).

Written comment: the city clerk noted receipt of a letter from Rose Gorton opposing any increase in property tax rates; the letter was entered into the record and was sent to the other taxing districts as well, staff said.

Administrative action: after closing the public hearing, the council met in a second portion of the special session and moved to approve Resolution No. 32791 to set a public hearing on the full FY2027 budget for April 23, 2026; the motion was moved, seconded and approved (the transcript records the motion and that it "is approved" but does not include a roll‑call tally).

What’s next: the council’s April 23 meeting will include the public hearing on the entire FY2027 budget. Residents who want further detail on school‑district levies, TIF or voucher impacts were directed to the respective taxing bodies, which hold separate hearings and control those levies.