City budget
Understanding your property taxes and home valuations
Bloomington’s deputy finance officer and city assessor help you understand two important documents that arrive in mailboxes in March - your property taxes and home valuations.
2025 Budget discussions at 2024 City Council meetings
Presentations and discussions on the 2025 budget process begin in April 2024.
April 29, 2024: Budget Update and Discussion
- Video of presentation to the City Council
- Presentation slides: Budget update and discussion
August 19, 2024: Special meeting to discuss preliminary 2025 tax levy and general fund budget
- Video of presentation and discussion with the City Council
- Presentation slides: Special meeting
September 9, 2024: Request to approve preliminary 2025 tax levy
- Video of presentation and discussion with the City Council
- Presentation slides: Preliminary 2025 tax levy and general fund budget
Sept.-Nov. 2024: Department budget discussions
- September 30, 2024
- Fire Department and Strategic Priorities Fund presentation
- October 14, 2024
- Budget and Rate Discussion: Utility Funds presentation
- Community Development Department presentation
- October 21, 2024 Special City Council Meeting
- Public Health presentation
- Finance presentation
- Internal Services Team presentation
- City Manager and City Council
- Human Resources (HR)
- Office of Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (OREIB)
- City Clerk (Elections, Business Licensing, and Cemetery)
- Community Outreach and Engagement Division (COED)
- Employee Benefits Fund presentation
- Information Technology Fund presentation
- Communications Fund presentation
- October 28, 2024
- Parks and Recreation Department presentation
- Police Department presentation
- Legal Department presentation
- November 18, 2024
- Public Works General Fund, Fleet, Facilities presentation
- September 30, 2024
November 18, 2024: 2025 Utility rates public hearings
- Video of presentation to the City Council (Items 4.8-4.11)
- Ordinance to Increase Water and Wastewater Rates
- Ordinance to Increase Solid Waste and Refuse Collection Fees
- Resolution to Change Storm Water Charges
- Resolution Approving 2025 Utility Fund Budgets
- Video of presentation to the City Council (Items 4.8-4.11)
November 18, 2024: Non-property tax budget requests
- Non-property tax budget requests for the following 10 funds on the consent agenda at the November 18, 2024 City Council Meeting for the Council’s approval. These funds do not receive property tax support.
- Special Revenue Funds: Fund 2250 - Opioid Settlement; Fund 2300 - South Loop Revolving Dev.; Fund 2350 - Creative Placemaking; Fund 2600 – Cemetery; Fund 2700 – DWI Forfeiture; Fund 2710 – Enhanced 911; Fund 2720 – State Drug Forfeiture; Fund 2725 – Federal DOJ Drug Forfeiture; Fund 2726 – Fed. Treasury Drug Forfeiture;
- Enterprise Fund: Fund 6700 – Police Contractual Overtime November 25, 2024: Special meeting to discuss 2025 general fund budget
- Non-property tax budget requests for the following 10 funds on the consent agenda at the November 18, 2024 City Council Meeting for the Council’s approval. These funds do not receive property tax support.
November 25, 2024: Special meeting to discuss 2025 property tax levy and general fund budget
- 2025 Tax Levy and Budget Discussion video and presentation slides
December 2, 2024: Internal Service Funds budgets
- Internal Service Fund budgets requests for the following eight funds will be included on the consent agenda at the December 2, 2024 City Council Meeting for the Council’s approval.
December 9, 2024: Continued discussion of 2025 property tax levy and general fund budget
December 16, 2024: Truth-in-taxation public hearing and set Final 2025 tax levy
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2024 Budget discussions at 2023 City Council meetings
Presentations and discussions on the 2024 budget process began in April 2023.
April 3, 2023: Budget Update and Discussion
- Video of budget presentation to the City Council
- Presentation slides: Budget Update and Discussion
August 21, 2023: Special meeting to discuss preliminary tax levy and general fund budget
- Video of presentation to the City Council
- Presentation slides: 2024 Preliminary Tax Levy and Budget
September 18, 2023: Approve preliminary 2024 tax levy
- Video of presentation to the City Council
- Presentation slides: 2024 Preliminary Tax Levy and Budget
October 9, 2023: Department budget discussions
- Public Safety: Video of presentations to the City Council and presentation slides (Police Department and Fire Department general fund budgets)
October 16, 2023: Department budget discussions
- Community Services: Video of presentation to the City Council and presentation slides (2024 Community Services department fund budgets)
- Utility Funds: Video of presentation to the City Council and presentation slides (2024 Utility fund budgets)
- Parks and Recreation: Video of presentation to the City Council and presentation slides (2024 Parks and Recreation department fund budgets)
October 30, 2023: Budget discussions
- Public Works: Video of presentation to the City Council and presentation slides (Public Works department fund budgets)
- Strategic Priorities Fund and One-Time Public Safety State Aid: Video of presentation to the City Council and presentation slides (Strategic Priorities and Public Safety)
November 13, 2023: Non-property tax budget requests
- Non-property tax budget requests for the following 9 funds on the consent agenda at the November 13, 2023 City Council Meeting for the Council’s approval. These funds do not receive property tax support.
- Special Revenue Funds: Fund 2700 – DWI Forfeiture; Fund 2710 – Enhanced 911; Fund 2720 – State Drug Forfeiture; Fund 2725 – Federal DOJ Drug Forfeiture; Fund 2726 – Fed. Treasury Drug Forfeiture; Fund 2300 - South Loop Revolving Dev.; Fund 2350 - Creative Placemaking; Fund 2600 – Cemetery
- Enterprise Fund: Fund 6700 – Police Contractual Overtime
- Non-property tax budget requests for the following 9 funds on the consent agenda at the November 13, 2023 City Council Meeting for the Council’s approval. These funds do not receive property tax support.
November 13, 2023: Budget discussions
- Utility funds budgets and rates discussion (continued from October) video of presentation and slides.
- Information Technology fund budget video of presentation and slides.
- Community Development fund budgets video of presentation and slides.
- Legal Department fund budgets video of presentation and slides.
November 20, 2023: Special meeting to discuss 2024 general fund budget
November 27, 2023: 2024 Utility rates public hearing
- Video of presentations to the City Council (Items 4.3-4.6)
- Presentation slides: Utility rates public hearing and fund budgets
- Utility Funds, Internal Service Funds budget resolution
December 4, 2023: Truth-in-taxation public hearing
- Video of presentation to the City Council (Item 4.1)
- Presentation slides: Truth in Taxation Public Hearing
December 4, 2023: Remaining Internal Service, Recreation Facility Enterprise, and Special Revenue Funds budgets
- Remaining Internal Service Fund budgets were approved on the consent agenda. The other five Internal Service Funds were previously presented to the Council in October and November 2023 as part of departmental budget presentations.
- Internal Service Funds: Fund 7300 – Insurance; Fund 7400 - Employee Benefits; Fund 7500 - Accrued Benefits.
- Budgets for the remaining Recreation Facility Enterprise Funds and Special Revenue Funds were approved on the consent agenda.
- Recreation Facility Enterprise Funds: Fund 6400 - Golf; Fund 6450 - Ice Garden; Fund 6500 - Center for the Arts; Fund 6550 - Aquatics.
- Special Revenue Funds: Fund 2100 - Communications; Fund 2150 - Parks & Recreation; Fund 2800 - Fire Pension.
- Remaining Internal Service Fund budgets were approved on the consent agenda. The other five Internal Service Funds were previously presented to the Council in October and November 2023 as part of departmental budget presentations.
In the November 20, 2024 Council Minute, Councilmember Dwayne Lowman discusses the solid waste contract renewal that begins in 2026, and provides an update on the City’s budget discussions.
In the October 30, 2024 Council Minute, Councilmember Dwayne Lowman fills in for Mayor Busse to give an update on the Council’s budget discussions, and to thank everyone who came out for a recent buckthorn bust and Parks and Recreation’s fourth annual Trick or Treat Trail.
In the October 2, 2024 Council Minute, Mayor Tim Busse discusses the airport parking moratorium that the City Council enacted on Monday night, an update on the partial redevelopment of the Southtown shopping center site, and the first in-depth council discussion regarding the proposed 2025 budget.
In the September 11, 2024 Council Minute, Mayor Tim Busse discusses the 2025 preliminary tax levy and budget presented to City Council on Monday, gives an update on the City’s Opportunity Housing Ordinance, and congratulates the Hatch Bloomington pitch competition winner Scramblin’ Egg.
2025 Budget information and outreach event calendar
Throughout summer and fall 2024, staff will be hosting information tables seeking community feedback on the 2025 budget.
- Saturday, June 15, 2024, Juneteenth Celebration
- Center for the Arts, 2:00-7:00pm
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024, Midweek Music & Market
- Civic Plaza, 5:00-8:00pm
- Saturday, August 17, 2024, Learning Link Up
- Valley View Field, 12:00-3:00pm
- Saturday, August 17, 2024, On the One Music Festival
- Bloomington Central Station Park, tabling from 4:00-7:00pm
- Saturday, September 14, 2024, Farmer's Market
- Civic Plaza, 8:00am-1:00pm
- Sunday, September 22, 2024, Bloomington Pride Festival
- Civic Plaza, 4:00-7:00pm
- Saturday, October 12, 2024, Fire Open House
- Fire Station #1, 10 W 95th St., 10:00am-1:00pm
Annual budget books and budget in brief
The Budget in Brief is a 30 page summary of the Annual Budget Book.
The Annual Budget Books for the past five years are linked below. More financial reports are available at blm.mn/financialreports.
About deputy finance officer Kari Carlson
- Oversees the City's annual budget process which includes 30 individual funds. All budgets must be approved by the City Council by the end of the year.
- Leads budget public participation efforts.
- Assists departments with analysis of their current year budget requests as well as produces long-term financial models for funds to forecast future working capital balances.
- Works closely with the city manager, assistant city manager and department heads to provide options to the City Council for funding programs, initiatives, and projects as well as identifying spending areas that can be reduced along with strategies to fund future capital projects and large equipment purchases. Serves as advisor to the Executive Leadership Team on budget related matters
- Files the preliminary and final property tax levy with Hennepin County, compiles and submits annual reports to the Government Finance Officers Association, submits annual reports to the Office of the State Auditor.
- Supervises and supports the Grant Coordinator Accountant who coordinates and ensures compliance with the City's grant administration policy.
- Supervises and supports the Auditor who conducts sales tax audits of local businesses to ensure proper collection of revenues and compliance with various codes.
Voice your opinion at Let's Talk Bloomington, the City's website for community conversations.