Village Board Passes Annual Tax Levy

The Lake Zurich Village Board approved a 4.21 percent increase in its property tax levy this week.

The increased levy is estimated to bring in $320,863 more in property taxes to the village next year, which officials say will in part fund required contributions to police and fire pension funds.

For the owner of a home valued at $250,000, the increase could mean about $20 more for the year, the village’s finance director Jodie Andrew said. However, that amount may change depending on the home’s EAV and other factors.

“If all other things remain equal, it would be about $20,” said Jodie Andrew, the village’s director of finance.

In all, the levy is expected to bring in $7.9 million to the village, which helps support the general fund, liability insurance, the police pension fund, pensions for municipal workers, and fire department pensions.

“The majority of (the increase_ is actually going to be used for (police and fire pensions),” Andrew said. “There is legally an amount that we have to give. They both went up, especially the fire pension, which will eat up the majority of the increase.”

The village’s portion of the tax bill you will receive is only a small portion compard to the entire tax bill. Last year it was 9 percent, Andrew said. Other governmental entities, such as the school district and the county make up the remainder.

The village passes a levy each year, in order to have the county clerk extend property taxes on real estate within the village’s boundaries.

“This is an annual thing that is done,” Village President Suzanne Branding said. “It’s not a special thing. We do this every year.”