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Burton council adopts 2025 property tax rate despite public opposition
Summary
After a public hearing in which eight residents spoke against the proposal, the Burton City Council approved Ordinance 20250909 setting the 2025 property tax rate at $0.3363 per $100 valuation. Minutes record one councilmember opposed the motion; the ordinance passed.
The Burton City Council approved Ordinance 20250909 on Sept. 9, 2025, adopting a property tax rate of $0.3363 per $100 valuation for the 2025–2026 fiscal year. The ordinance breaks that rate into a maintenance and operations portion of $0.043823 per $100 and a debt-service portion of $0.292477 per $100.
The proposal drew extended public comment during a tax-rate public hearing. "Cathy Liles, Gayle Weeren, Ned Ross, Chuck Johnson, Debra Johnson, Tiffany Eckhardt, Peter Horn, & Susan Kiel all spoke at length against the proposed tax rate and were critical of the city staff and mayor," the minutes state; the hearing was closed at 6:00 p.m. The record does not include verbatim excerpts of residents' remarks.
Council voted to approve the ordinance after the hearing. The minutes record Councilmember Paul McLaughlin as supporting the motion and Councilmember Jeff Eckhardt as opposing it; the motion passed. The council did not record a complete roll-call tally in the minutes for that vote.
The ordinance text included in the meeting packet states in part: "there is hereby levied ... an operating tax of 0.043823 and a debt service of 0.292477 per each $100.00 valuation of property, said tax being so levied ... equaling $0.3363." The ordinance sets taxes to become delinquent on Feb. 1, 2026.
City officials also noted that the No New Revenue and No Voter Approval calculations were included in the secretary's worksheet; the secretary's report indicated the city believes it can cover 2026 payments using proposed 2025 tax revenue and some savings, referencing a handout provided to council. The minutes do not record any motions to change the presented rates or to delay adoption.
Council did not take further action on related budget adjustments during the meeting. Any additional deliberations or formal appeals will need to be recorded at a future council meeting.
