New Richland council adopts preliminary 2025 budget, sets Dec. 9 Truth-in-Taxation hearing

The City of New Richland council voted unanimously to adopt Resolution 24-17, the city’s preliminary 2025 budget schedule, and set a Truth-in-Taxation hearing for Dec. 9 at 6:30 p.m.

City Administrator presented the draft budget framework and highlighted revenue assumptions the council should review before final adoption. Administrator and council members flagged ambulance billing and collections as a key uncertainty affecting projected revenues and the tax levy. "If that revenue number goes down then we have to add that number onto the tax revenue and that brings that number up," the Administrator said, urging a closer review of ambulance billing performance and the billing contract.

Council discussion included options to examine the ambulance budget and past billing data in more detail at a future meeting. The Administrator said staff would bring the last three years of ambulance budgets and billing numbers and would consider consulting auditors or contract advisors to understand write-offs and net collections.

A motion to adopt Resolution 24-17 passed on a unanimous voice vote. The resolution, as presented in the meeting, directs staff to forward the preliminary budget schedule to the county and sets the required public hearing for Dec. 9, 2024, at 6:30 p.m.

Next steps: staff will provide more detailed ambulance revenue and billing figures for council review and prepare the formal Truth-in-Taxation notice and hearing materials.