St. Charles residents can hear about proposed tax hike at Dec. 4 meeting

St. Charles homeowners could see a 3% increase in their property tax bills next year, after a vote at tonight’s city council meeting.

Residents are invited to attend a public hearing on Dec. 4 beginning at 7 p.m. at City Hall, where city officials will present the details of the proposed tax levy before voting on them during the subsequent meeting.

City Council members approved a preliminary estimate of the city’s 2023 property tax levy in a 7-3 vote at a Nov. 6 meeting. Alderpersons David Pietryla, Bryan Wirball and Ron Silkaitis voted no.

The proposed increase equates to about $24 annually, or about $2 per month for the owner of a home valued at $300,000, assuming there is no change to the home’s assessed value.

The actual tax levy ordinance will be presented for approval at tonight’s City Council meeting after the official public hearing. If approved, the increase will be reflected in residents’ tax bills during the 2024 calendar year.

City Finance Director Bill Hannah presented the preliminary estimate to Government Operations Committee members during their Oct. 16 meeting. Hannah said one reason for the increase is the required city contributions to the police and firefighters’ pension funds will be increasing by $294,481 and $270,120, respectively, for a total increase of $566,601 over last year.

The total annual debt service on the city’s general obligation bonds for the 2023 levy year is $9,852,931, down 3.1% from 2022. That combined with this year’s estimated property tax levy of $14,612,813 gives a total estimated 2023 tax levy of $24,465,744.

The City’s portion is about 10.4% of residents’ total property tax bills issued by the County.

For more information on St. Charles real estate taxes, visit the city’s finance department webpage. To view details of the preliminary 2023 tax levy, and for more information on the public hearings, see the agenda item for tonight’s City Council meeting.