Green Isle council certifies 2025 tax levy after final budget presentation

The Green Isle City Council on Dec. 9 certified the city’s 2025 tax levy after a final-budget presentation by ABDO consultant Jesse Stz.

“This is the final budget meeting for the 2025 budget and tax levy,” Jesse Stz said, introducing the packet and summary of changes. The levy was presented as an increase of $14,379 — a 2.14% rise from 2024 — and will be certified with the county for collection in 2025 once the council’s action is recorded.

Council members were told the current levy is $24,000 lower than the preliminary amount adopted in September; staff reduced the community school department expenditures to arrive at the lower final figure. Stz also said the fire-truck special levy is zero for 2025 because the related debt is being retired in 2024 and those levy dollars were repurposed to a capital levy for future fire equipment reserves.

The budget materials show general-fund revenues and expenditures at $727,000, an increase of $2,585 from 2024. Tax-capacity changes and property-value shifts mean residential homestead properties in higher-value bands will see modest percentage effects: in the packet staff noted roughly a 1% increase on a homestead valued at about $126,000, and larger percentage decreases on lower-valued homesteads reflecting changes to the homestead market value exclusion used for taxes payable in 2025.

Council discussion was limited; Stz said enterprise fund budgets remain unchanged from the prior meeting and that the city has time to finalize any administrative items before certifying with the county. With council approval, the levy will be forwarded to the county for collection in 2025.

The council moved on to other agenda items after the levy certification; the next council meeting is scheduled for Dec. 26 at 7 p.m.