photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World File Photo

The Douglas County Courthouse is pictured in September 2018.

Douglas County commissioners at their meeting on Wednesday will start the formal process to spend more property tax dollars in 2024 than they did in 2023.

At the meeting, commissioners are expected to set a hearing date to receive public comment on the county’s entire budget, as well as a hearing for public comment on the county’s decision to exceed the revenue-neutral rate — the tax rate that would keep property tax revenues steady compared to the previous year’s budget.

After having initially aimed for a flat mill levy, Douglas County commissioners instead crafted a preliminary budget that trimmed the mill levy from 46.219 to 44.219 mills, thus reducing the size of the budget by $3.81 million. But despite that reduction, Douglas County is budgeting to spend more in property tax dollars than it did in the 2023 budget — roughly $27 million more. State law requires the county to hold a hearing to give the public a chance to weigh in on that decision.

Commissioners previously said they intended to hold a hearing on the budget and the decision to exceed the revenue-neutral rate on Aug. 30, but commissioners will formally set the date at Wednesday’s meeting. The meeting also will provide details about how much property tax money the county will spend above last year’s totals.

The original budget proposal for 2024 totaled around $194 million, but after the commission trimmed the mill levy, the proposal now totals $190.7 million. Under the new proposal, the owner of a $200,000 home would pay $46 less in property taxes for 2024 than they would have under the original proposal.

The decision to reduce the mill levy doesn’t necessarily mean that property owners’ tax bills will decline from last year. That will depend, in part, on whether and how much their property values have increased in the last year.

Separately, commissioners will look to set the mill levy for Consolidated Fire District No. 1, which provides fire service to a large part of rural Douglas County. County Administrator Sarah Plinsky has recommended that the mill levy remain flat at 5.5 mills. The agency’s total budget request of $2.135 million is an increase of $238,514 from its 2023 budget. The fire district’s budget also plans to exceed the revenue-neutral rate, so it also will require a public hearing about that issue.

In documents Plinsky provided to commissioners, the pay plan for the fire district’s personnel includes increases of $10,022 for merit-based raises and $5,872 for market-based pay adjustments.

The document also noted that the agency is in the process of building its equipment reserve fund. It set aside $150,000 last year and plans on doing the same for 2024. The reserve fund is designed to cover future expenditures for items such as vehicles, equipment and infrastructure, according to the agenda packet.

In other business, commissioners will:

• Hear a report detailing the scope of planned renovations for the commission’s chambers in the Douglas County Courthouse. According to the agenda packet, the upgrades are necessary because the County Commission will be expanding from three members to five beginning in January 2025.

Lawrence-based architectural firm TreanorHL was contracted out as project manager and was asked to conduct a study that would identify the most important needs while maintaining the building’s historic integrity.

• Consider approving a conditional use permit for equipment storage at 1805 East 200 Road, southwest of Lecompton. The Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission has recommended that the request be approved.

According to a letter in the agenda packet, the property owners want to use the property to store mowing equipment for a landscaping business, Right Way Solutions. A storage building already exists on the north side of the property, but a conditional use permit is required for storing the equipment there. A report from zoning staff notes that the proposed use will generate more traffic near the property, but neither the county engineer or zoning staff identified the increased activity as as cause for concern.

The commission’s meeting begins at 4 p.m. with a work session outlining the county’s 2024-28 capital improvement plan. It’s being held for informational purposes only, and no action will be taken. The work session will be followed by the regular business meeting at 5:30 pm. A Zoom link can be found on the county’s website, douglascountyks.org.