Stormwater fee hike to allow property tax cut, officials say

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) - The City Council is raising the stormwater fee by 50 percent but lowering the Sioux City property tax rate at the same time.

The Sioux City Journal reports (https://bit.ly/2lenzoT ) that the council voted Thursday for the revenue adjustment.

The city finance staff is still calculating what the impact. The tax levy is being lowered but a state-mandated increase is scheduled in the percentage of the assessed valuation subject to taxation.

Finance director Donna Forker told the council that residential and commercial property owners will save more on their property taxes than they’ll pay on the stormwater fee. Forker says that’s because the stormwater fee base is broader than the property tax base.

Religious organizations, charities and other nonprofits are exempted from property taxes but must pay the stormwater drainage fee.

___

Information from: Sioux City Journal, https://www.siouxcityjournal.com