KCTV5 reports that Johnson County leaders said “the proposed (2027) budget includes no property tax increase,” but don’t get your hopes up. County leaders aren’t being honest, and the media should know better than to take a Johnson County leader’s word for anything on property taxes.
The proposed budget estimates property tax revenue of $390.5 million this year and $410.6 million next year. That’s a $20 million increase of a little over 5%.
Johnson County Executive Penny Postoak-Ferguson says county mill rates won’t increase, but people don’t pay their taxes with mill rates. They pay in dollars, and Johnson County plans to take in an additional $20 million. That’s a tax increase.
FYI for media: Ask elected officials if they are revenue-neutral on property taxes. If they offer up a word salad instead of ‘yes,’ they are raising property taxes and hoping you will mislead voters into thinking there is no tax increase.
The media should also be aware of other budgetary deceptions, such as the budget amount. Not all local governments do this, but Johnson County includes budget reserves in the total. The County says it has a $1.9 billion budget, but that includes $530 million it plans to keep in reserve. Next year’s proposed spending is $1.4 billion.
This is important for two reasons. First, the county has $530 million in the bank that it is not spending, so county commissioners could easily reject the proposed $20 million property tax increase. (Yes, I know commissioners will say a chunk of the $530 is dedicated for future spending, but there is an ocean of difference between “legally obligated” to spend reserves versus “we’d like to” spend.)
Including reserves in the expenditure total can also distort the change in spending. Based on the county’s definition, the budget would be 35% more than was actually spent in 2020. Actual expenditures net of transfers, however, are almost 47% higher.
President Ronald Reagan used the phrase “Trust, but verify” when dealing with nuclear disarmament of the Soviet Union. On government budget issues, just go straight to verify.
