Belleville estimates its residents will see a drop in their property taxes
When Belleville residents see their property tax bill next year, they can expect to see a decrease in the portion going to the city.
That’s the message from city leaders who estimate a resident with a home worth $100,000 would pay about $772 in property taxes to the city next year, down from about $799. The exact rate this homeowner would pay, however, will not be known until St. Clair County reports the equalized assessed value of all the property in the city early next year.
Most of the city’s property tax revenue goes to fund pensions for firefighters, police officers and other city employees. Other sources of revenue such as sales tax, income tax and utility tax revenue are used to fund most of the day-to-day expenses of running the city.
In December, cities are required to approve their tax levy, which is the amount of property tax funding the city wants for the fiscal year that begins May 1.
Belleville aldermen approved a $11.38 million tax levy request this month, down 3.36% from $11.78 million.
The amount of property tax revenue requested dropped partly because of a change in the way the city handles health insurance and the reduced spending due to furloughs caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Belleville recently signed up with Blue Cross Blue Shield for health insurance, according to Finance Director Jamie Maitret. The city previously was self-insured and used $450,000 in property tax revenue to help pay health insurance costs. The premiums now will be drawn from funds that are used to pay for an employee’s salary. For example, most employees’ salaries are paid through the city’s general fund, which is not supported by property taxes.
These are three largest funds scheduled to receive property tax funding:
Firefighters pension: $3.74 million, up $69,000
Police officers pension: $3.9 million, up $305,000
Library: $1.16 million, down $125,000
The firefighter and police pension funds are expected to receive 67% of the city’s property tax revenue.
Mayor Mark Eckert said the amounts the city must pay to the pension funds are determined by outside actuaries.
The city also uses property tax revenue to support the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, Social Security, tort liability, playground equipment and community assistance services once handled by the Belleville Township, which was taken over by the city.
Budget outlook
After filing the request for the $11.38 million tax levy, the next step for city officials will be to finalize the 2021-22 budget for the fiscal year that starts May 1.
It’s a budget that Eckert said will be affected by revenue sources that are likely to drop because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
One revenue source that may be lower is the amount of state income tax apportioned to the city.
“It’s going to be a very difficult budget cycle,” Eckert said. “We’re very concerned about putting together next year’s budget.”
Eckert noted that Gov. J.B. Pritzker has said that state budget cuts will be made and this could affect the city.
“Pretty slim pickings” is how Eckert described the state money that could be shared with the city.
“We’re going to feel the repercussions of that,” Eckert said.
Liquor license fees waived
The City Council has waived the liquor license fees for bars and restaurants for the new fiscal year because so many of these businesses have been hampered by coronavirus restrictions on how they serve customers.
By waiving these fees, the city expects to lose about $60,000 in revenue.
The liquor license fee waiver does not include grocery stores and convenience stores since they have been able to stay open during the pandemic, Eckert said.
Earlier this year, the city reported that revenue was down about $580,000 and employee furloughs were authorized to save money.
However, many of the employees were able to return to their jobs and the amount of revenue has stabilized.
Eckert and Maitret said the city’s sales tax revenue has held its own because grocery stores and “big box” stores have had good years while many bars and restaurants had down years.
