By Joe Ragusa
BLOOMINGTON – The rising cost of labor is the primary reason why the Bloomington City Council will look at a possible increase in the city’s property tax levy next year.
The proposal is $344,000 more than last year. Because of increased property values in 2015, the tax rate will still fall slightly. A taxpayer with a property valued at $165,000 dollars will pay about a dollar less to the city on their property tax bill.
Finance Director Patti-Lynn Silva said a lot of the revenue goes towards labor.
“Our biggest labor costs are public safety and certainly we want to make sure that we’re paying for the public safety that the city needs,” Silva said. “Generally we use about 45 percent of the tax levy every year goes towards public safety-related expenditures.”
The tentative levy will be voted on Monday and then the final levy will be voted on in December.
Joe Ragusa can be reached at joe.ragusa@cumulus.com.
