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Innis commission asks staff to model higher voter-approval tax rate to pay for streets, but stops short of a vote
Summary
City staff told the commission that an unused increment could raise about $500,050 by increasing the combined property tax rate from 0.664 to 0.680708. Commissioners directed staff to prepare budgets both at the current rate and with the higher voter-approval rate and to return with detailed decision-package costs before public hearings.
The Innis City Commission on July 29 directed city staff to model the fiscal impact of adopting a higher voter-approval property tax rate that would use an unused increment in the truth-in-taxation worksheet, while also keeping a plan that maintains the current rate.
City staff told the commission the updated worksheet from the county assessor/collector showed the city’s current combined tax rate at 0.664 and that, with the unused increment included, the full voter-approval rate could reach 0.680708. "We could go all the way up to 0.680708 in terms of the full impact to the property tax rate," staff said during the presentation, and estimated that change would generate roughly $500,050 in additional revenue compared with holding the rate at 0.664.
Why it matters: Commissioners said the additional revenue could be used for deferred infrastructure needs — particularly street repairs — and highlighted the city’s falling sales tax receipts, which have reduced funding available for streets. Several commissioners pressed staff for concrete figures showing what every cent of rate change would yield and asked for decision-package-level costs so the public can weigh trade-offs ahead of required public notices and hearings.
Commissioners and staff agreed on next steps: prepare the proposed budget and required public-notice materials using both the current rate and the higher voter-approval ‘‘not to exceed’’ rate, and return with a follow-up budget workshop that includes line-item decision packages for infrastructure. Staff also committed to present scenarios modeling increases to the senior homestead exemption (for example, $500, $1,000 increments) and the revenue impact of each.
No final tax-rate vote: The commission did not adopt a new rate at the workshop. Instead, after identifying a numeric discrepancy in the initial worksheet the night before, the body recessed to allow staff time to correct calculations and later reconvened. A motion to recess and reconvene the following evening passed by voice vote so all commissioners could be present for the continuation.
What staff described: Staff explained the difference between the no-new-revenue rate (shown on their worksheet at roughly 0.402126 M&O and 0.236739 I&S for a combined 0.638865) and the voter-approval calculation that includes previously unused increments. Staff underscored that water and wastewater staffing and operations are funded through enterprise funds and not through the general ad valorem rate.
Next procedural steps: Staff said it will return at the next workshop with the not-to-exceed rate language the city must publish for the August public hearing calendar (notices required in advance), decision-package costs tied to the higher rate, and modeled effects on revenues if the commission increases senior exemptions. The public hearing on the tax rate is scheduled as part of the August meeting calendar; final budget adoption is expected in September.
