Ames City holds required public hearing on proposed 2026–27 property tax levy; no public speakers

The Ames City Council opened a statutorily required public hearing on the proposed property tax levy for fiscal year July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027, on March 24, 2026, heard a staff presentation on valuation changes and rollback calculations, and closed the hearing after no members of the public spoke.

Corey, a city staff presenter, said the city collected "about $37,600,000" in property taxes last year and explained how valuation changes affect the levy rate. "The effective tax rate of $9.72" was cited as the rate that would apply if the city collected the same dollars as the current year but values changed, and Corey said the proposed levy would result in roughly a $10.27 rate. He illustrated the effect on a sample $100,000 residential property: under the current fiscal year the city portion would be $489 and under the proposed levy the city portion would be $503, a 2.86% increase.

Corey said the average residential valuation increase is closer to 8%, and cautioned that mailed notices use a sample 10% increase that may confuse some property owners: "We do not believe that properties went up 10% ... it's about, 8%." He also showed tables indicating the city accounts for about one-third of the total levy on a typical property tax bill and noted different school-district codes that appear on mailed notices.

Council members asked about the rise in industrial valuations. A council member noted that some properties had not been assessed on schedule; Corey confirmed late assessments were corrected and included in the current calculations. The Chair relayed information from the conference board that "some properties hadn't been visited for over 10 years, industrial properties that is," and clarified the current county assessor had not been in office when earlier visits were missed.

To help residents estimate impacts, Corey demonstrated the City of Ames finance web page and the "City of Ames residential property tax calculator," which allows users to enter their 2024 and 2025 assessments (from the county Beacon site) and view the city-only portion of the tax bill and a breakdown of services funded by those dollars.

After the presentation the Chair declared the public hearing open and invited public comment; "Seeing and hearing none," the Chair then declared the hearing closed. Corey told the council that, as part of the consent agenda at a subsequent meeting, the council will set a second public hearing on the overall budget for April 14; once the budget is approved by the council it will be submitted to the county and then to the state for final processing.

A motion to adjourn was moved and seconded, and the Chair declared the meeting adjourned.