Dakota County Taxes to Drop More than Expected

The typical homeowner will pay less in Dakota County taxes thanks to a lower-than-expected tax levy.

The Dakota County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved a $128.38 million 2014 levy that is .6 percent less than the 2013 levy—and .1 percentage point less than the preliminary levy approved in September. In all, the levy dropped more than 720,000 from the previous year.

That means the owner of a median value home will pay $549.10 in county taxes—$11.46, or 2.01 percent, less than 2013. The county did not specify the value of a median home.

The reduction is made possible, in part, because of increased state aid and federal reimbursements. The county also expects to save about $841,000 because of a new law that no longer requires local governments to pay most state sales taxes. In addition, non-levy revenues are up.

While the levy is decreasing, the budget as a whole will actually climb a bit. The operating budget is growing $7.8 million or 3.5 percent—although that still represents a $32.1 million decrease since 2009.

The new budget includes 20.7 new full time equivalent employees—which, similar to the operating budget, is down from the 112.88 that the county had in 2009.