2021 City of Burnsville Budget
A budget is a reflection of a community’s priorities, and staff works to prepare a budget that aligns with the Council’s Vision, Values, and Strategic Priorities.
Your Tax Dollars at Work
The General Fund is used to account for the revenues and expenditures necessary to provide basic governmental services for the city. The principal sources of revenues are property taxes, intergovernmental revenue, and charges for municipal services. Expenditures are for organizational services, public safety, public works, parks, natural resources, recreation, leadership and community development.
Typically, more than half of the property tax dollars the City collects are used to fund Burnsville’s Public Safety services such as police, fire, emergency medical services and emergency management. Another 22% of the tax levy funds maintenance of streets and parks infrastructure, as well as natural resources and recreation programs.
There is always a lot of talk about the property tax levy so what exactly is it? It is a tax levied and based on the value of your home or property. City property tax levy increases do not always directly equate to an increase in property taxes. Property taxes are impacted by multiple factors including changes in residential and commercial property values, the amount of new construction coming on the tax rolls, property tax rates and taxes imposed by other entities.
On a very basic level, often an increase in City property taxes for a median value home is typically about the cost of a good cup of coffee per month.
Funding Sources for City Services
Your property taxes are split in a variety of ways. The City receives about 34% of your property tax and the remainder is split between your school district (approximately 43%) and Dakota County (approximately 20%) with the remaining 3% to other entities.
The City portion is used for the General Fund (primarily City services), Capital and to pay City debt.
Property Taxes fund nearly 71% of the General Fund expenses. Additional funding comes primarily from charges for municipal services and licensing/permit fees.
The City is primarily a service organization and City staff are a critical component to meeting the high standards established by the City Council for serving the community in a professional and responsive manner. The City has realigned a number of operations and continually evaluates staffing to meet ever changing community needs.