Village property taxes on rise in Lombard

Lombard homeowners can expect the village's portion of their property tax bills to rise next year.

The village's proposed tax levy is expected to increase 4.57 percent, according to a report prepared by Finance Director Timothy Sexton.

The village aims to collect $8,205,437 in property taxes an increase of $358,647 from what it received last year, according to the report.

But assessed values of homes in the village declined an estimated 7 percent, according to the York Township assessor.

So to generate the extra $358,647 from 7 percent less taxable home values, the village board voted Thursday to increase one of the three components that make up the levy by the largest amount allowed under Illinois tax cap laws.

“Make no mistake we're voting for a tax increase here,” said Trustee Zachary Wilson, chairman of the finance committee.

The owner of a home valued at $300,000 will pay the village $471.41 in village property taxes under the proposed levy. That's about $15 more in property taxes than the same homeowner paid last year, Sexton said.

That amount is adjusted for some tax money the village paid the Helen Plum Memorial Library, which gained the power to tax Jan. 1, and is levying property taxes for the first time this year.

The village receives between 7.5 percent and 8 percent of the total property tax bill Lombard residents pay, Sexton said. The majority funds public schools, and the county, forest preserve district and other taxing bodies also receive small percentages.

Wilson said he and other finance committee members preferred a smaller increase in the levy.

“I think what we need to do is show a little leadership and let the other taxing bodies know we're willing to stop the runaway spending,” Wilson said. “We think the village staff is spending too much money.”

Sexton said the village needed to increase the levy as much as possible under tax cap laws to gain the most possible funding for expenses out of the its control, such as police and fire pensions, liability insurance and Social Security.

Even with the full 4.57 percent increase in the tax levy this year which leads to a higher amount from which to base future tax levy increases projections show property taxes will not fully fund Social Security costs for village employees by fiscal year 2018. Sexton said that will require the village to find additional funding sources.