Gage County Board set to consider budget approval this week
Slight increase in property tax request planned this year
By News Channel Nebraska
BEATRICE – Gage County government will request a slight increase in property tax money this year, but well below what the percentage increase in property valuation was.
The county property tax request this year would total just under $11.22 million…..compared with $11.05 million the year before….an increase of 1.48 percent. Gage County Board Chairman Erich Tiemann says the overall budget of $62.8 million appears inflated from last year’s nearly $48.5 million.
"There's a larger amount proposed for 2025 out of inheritance. The reason that number if larger is because of transfers. As some of these projects come in, we have to have a dollar amount sitting in cash, so we can transfer in and out. That makes the budget look bigger, but that money is actually going to go out, and be reimbursed. It looks like we're spending stuff twice, but we're not. It's through the transfers. So, it artificially makes the dollar amount look larger."
The transfers are for federal grant money, either received or possibly to be received in the future for road and bridge projects.
No one from the public attended either of the county hearings on the overall budget and tax request. Formal approval of both are planned this Wednesday, at the county board’s regular meeting.
Property valuation increased in Gage County this year, by 11.66 percent. The tax rate of the county from general operations would decrease, from about 29.34 cents to 26.66 cents. When accounting for tax support to fire districts, townships and other local entities, the overall tax rate in the county would be about 37-point-56 cents per hundred dollars of valuation.
This summer, Gage County received word of a $5.4 million congressional appropriation for two road projects, totaling about 18 miles of work. The county was not selected for a federal RAISE grant, but had another application pending through the Bridge Investment Program…which if received, would provide 80-percent federal funding with a 20-percent local match.