Which Bill Do You Cut When Taxes and Utilities Both Go Up?

Gas. Groceries. Utilities. Taxes. How Much More Can Elgin Families Take?

For many Elgin families, the problem is no longer whether something costs a few dollars more. It is what gets pushed aside when several bills rise at the same time. Gas, groceries, electricity, insurance, housing and everyday necessities already compete for the same paycheck, and now the September 1 City Council agenda moves Elgin another step toward a higher property tax rate while a five-year utility rate plan points toward higher water and wastewater costs as well. On the same night residents get their first advertised public hearing on the 2027 budget and tax rate, Council is also scheduled to take its first approval votes, even though a second public hearing is still scheduled for September 15.

That is why this meeting is not just about tax-rate formulas or government accounting. For the family already deciding whether to fill the gas tank completely or buy everything on the grocery list, another $20, $30 or $50 disappearing from the household budget matters. For a senior living on a fixed income, a renter whose landlord eventually passes along higher property costs, or a homeowner already watching insurance and utility bills climb, these City decisions eventually become real monthly expenses. The question residents should be asking before these decisions become final is simple: how much more can Elgin households realistically absorb?

The First Public Hearing Is Also the Night of the First Vote

The September 1 agenda begins with public hearings on the proposed FY 2026-27 budget and property tax rate. Both agenda summaries clearly say the hearings are for public input and that no action is required during those specific items. A resident reading only that portion of the agenda could reasonably believe September 1 is the first opportunity to speak, September 15 is the second, and Council would make its decision after hearing from the public twice. That is not quite how the rest of the agenda is structured.

Later that same night, both the budget and tax rate return under New Business. This time Council is being asked to approve the budget ordinance on first reading and approve the property tax ordinance on first reading. The second advertised public hearing is not until September 15, which is also when the second reading and final approval are scheduled. So while September 1 is not the final decision, Council members could already have cast their first official votes before residents arrive for the second public hearing.

Why That Matters When Families Are Already Stretched

A tax increase can look small when it is reduced to a few cents on every $100 of property value. A utility increase can look manageable when it is presented as another few dollars on a monthly bill. But households do not pay those bills one at a time in a government presentation, because they arrive alongside the mortgage or rent, car payment, insurance, electricity, groceries, gasoline, prescriptions, school expenses and everything else it takes to keep a family running. Eventually, enough “small” increases become a very large problem.

That is the part of this conversation Council needs to hear directly from residents. A family that has an extra $100 going out every month because several expenses increased did not magically receive another $100 in income to cover it. That money has to come from somewhere, which can mean fewer groceries, delaying a car repair, putting off a medical appointment, cutting back on activities for children or leaning harder on a credit card. Municipal budgets deal in millions of dollars, but taxpayers experience those decisions twenty dollars at a time.

The 68.6-Cent Tax Rate Can Still Change

Council previously directed the City Manager to move forward using a tax rate of $0.685873 per $100 of taxable value, or about 68.6 cents. That is the rate currently written into the ordinance scheduled for first-reading approval September 1. It is important, however, for residents to understand that this rate has not been finally adopted. Council still has the ability to raise it or lower it before the budget process is completed.

That means public participation right now is not simply ceremonial. If residents believe City spending should be reduced so the tax rate can come down, they still have an opportunity to make that argument. If Council believes the higher revenue is necessary, residents should ask members to explain specifically what taxpayers are receiving in return and why those costs cannot be reduced elsewhere. A proposed rate is exactly that, proposed, until Council takes its final vote.

Even the Agenda Could Leave Taxpayers Confused

The September 1 agenda also contains two different tax-rate figures that deserve a clear explanation before residents are asked to support anything. The first page refers to $0.719777 per $100 as the proposed rate and uses that figure to show a substantial increase in the estimated City tax bill on an average homestead. Yet the actual ordinance Council is being asked to approve contains the lower $0.685873 rate. The $0.719777 number appears elsewhere in the City's documents as the voter-approval tax rate.

There may be a straightforward technical explanation, but taxpayers should not need a finance degree to figure out which number applies to them. If residents are being asked to attend a public hearing and comment intelligently on the tax rate, the City should clearly state which rate it is recommending, what that rate would generate and approximately what it means for a typical homeowner. People can disagree about whether a tax increase is necessary, but they should at least be working from the same number.

Then There Is the Water and Wastewater Bill

Property taxes are not the only potential increase sitting on the horizon. Council recently accepted a five-year utility rate study that recommends changes and increases to Elgin's water and wastewater rates over the coming years. September 1 is not the meeting where those utility rates are finally adopted, so the outcome is not yet a higher water bill simply because the study was accepted. But the direction of the discussion matters when residents are trying to understand what their total cost of living in Elgin could look like in 2027 and beyond.

That is where these separate City discussions begin to collide in a family's kitchen. The homeowner does not open one wallet for City property taxes and another wallet for the water bill. Both come out of the same household income, and both compete against groceries, gas, electricity and every other necessity. When government looks at each increase separately, it can easily miss the cumulative effect experienced by the person actually writing the checks.

What Happens When There Is Nothing Left to Cut?

For some households, an increase means eating out less or putting off a vacation. For others, there is no vacation to cancel and very little discretionary spending left to remove. Those families begin making harder choices about food, transportation, medical expenses, childcare, repairs and which bills can safely be paid late. That is why affordability should be part of the City's budget discussion just as much as staffing levels, equipment purchases, capital projects and department requests.

Council members should hear from the people making those choices before deciding how much additional money City government can reasonably ask them to provide. A balanced City budget is important, but household budgets have to balance too. When government increases several costs at the same time, families do not have the option of simply creating more revenue. They either earn more, borrow more or spend less somewhere else.

This Is Why September 1 Matters

There is little value in filling the Council Chamber after the tax rate has been adopted and the new bills are already on their way. The time to tell Council that another increase would strain your household is while Council still has the ability to change the numbers. September 1 is the first advertised public hearing, but it is also the night Council is scheduled to take its first approval votes on the budget and tax rate. Residents who wait for the second hearing need to understand that Council may already have voted once by then.

The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Elgin Public Library Annex Council Chambers, 404 N. Main Street. Because these are formal public hearings, residents may speak on the budget and tax rate during the hearing without completing the normal public-comment form. Written comments can also be sent to Council, but the agenda says they will be distributed rather than read aloud during the meeting. If you want Council to hear what another increase actually means inside your household, showing up and saying it yourself carries a very different weight.

Your Household Budget Deserves a Seat at the Table

This discussion should not become an argument that every tax increase is automatically wrong or that the City does not need money to provide services. Streets, police, water systems, wastewater treatment, employees, equipment and infrastructure all cost money, and those costs have increased too. The question Council has to answer is how much of that burden taxpayers can reasonably carry and whether every dollar being requested is necessary before asking residents for more. That decision deserves more than an empty Council Chamber.

If your grocery budget is already tight, tell them. If another increase in the water bill worries you, tell them. If your property taxes, insurance and utilities are reaching the point where you are wondering what expense you will have to cut next, Council needs to hear that before these votes become final. The numbers on the September 1 agenda may belong to City Hall, but the money that pays them comes out of your household.