Village budget raises tax rate 2.82%

The Saukville Village Board on Tuesday passed a 2019 budget that increases the tax levy by 1.146% and the tax rate by 2.82%.

The total tax levy, including debt and tax incremental financing, totals $3 million, up $34,089.

The tax rate on this month’s tax bills will be $7.139 per $1,000 of assessed value, up 19.6 cents over last year.

That means the owner of a $200,000 house will pay $1,427.80 in village property taxes, $38 more than in 2018.

The increased tax rate is mainly due to a drop of $6.98 million in village property valuation, which translates to a $48,632 drop in tax revenue, officials said.       

 
The drop in valuation was due to three factors:

A successful taxation appeal made to the state by Charter Steel affecting the village tax rate this year by $2.38 million.

A new tax exemption by the state on machinery tools that reduced personal property values by more than $3.43 million.

A decrease in the state equalized tax ratio of the village from 100.78% to 95.46% because property has been selling for more than its assessed value.

Total village spending goes up 2.16%, about $170,000, to $3,582,558 million while revenue rises 1.23%, about $37,500, to $1,785,699 from 2018 under the new budget.

The main spending increases are  in public safety where unionized police personnel get a 2% pay increase and a $21,681 increase in health care premiums.

The budget includes a 1.64% increase, or $54,988, in the village operating budget and a 0.5% increase, or $938, in the capital budget. Under the state spending limit law, the village was eligible to increase its operating budget by 2.8%.

Debt payments increase almost 2.53% to $1.1 million to pay for 2017 projects on Church and Center streets and a 2017 trust fund loan for equipment.