Discussion of Taxes at Public Hearing Turns Heated

SIGOURNEY – A public hearing was held on March 25, prior to the weekly Keokuk County Board of Supervisors meeting, to discuss the proposed property tax levy for Fiscal Year 2025. The county has proposed a levy of 267 per $100,000 of urban property (down  11.88% from last year’s rate of 303) and 432 per $100,000 of rural property (down 13.94% from last year’s rate of 502). The county expects to take in more money overall, due to increases in property values. Letters were sent out throughout the county prior to the meeting, informing the public of the levy amount. 

A farmer attending the public hearing asked why taxes were being increased. County Auditor Christy Bates stated that the rates were lower. The farmer countered that he was still going to pay more, due to raises in property evaluations. Bates stated that evaluations are affected by tax rollbacks, the expected productivity of land, and Iowa Department of Revenue Guidelines. Supervisor Mike Hadley stated that the state legislature is enacting changes to property taxes including mandating the consolidation tax levies into a general fund levy and limiting growth, which he sees as home rule slipping away.

The farmer asked what his taxes were going towards. Hadley stated that insurance, road rock, and fuel prices had all gone up in the past year. Supervisor Derek Wood brought up the expensive snow removal back in January, which he thinks is a once-in-25-year event. Wood noted that the snow removal was successful partially because of farmers doing what they could and using their equipment to clear snow.

The farmer began complaining about the existence of welfare, which he called unconstitutional and said could not exist ethically, and about a school district in Eastern Iowa that spent $8,000,000 on a new football field. He asked if any countywide welfare programs existed. The supervisors stated that there is a $300 per year county assistance program. Hadley joked that they want people to work in Keokuk County. The farmer was glad it was only $300, but stated he felt it was still wrong.

After finding out the man sitting across from him, an Apex Clean Energy employee, works with the government, the farmer called him evil and said he violated foundational ethics. The farmer turned to the woman sitting next to him and asked why she was there. The woman, Tammy Kesterson, stated she was there to talk about protecting children. The farmer loudly stated that the best way to protect children is to outlaw no-fault divorce. When Kesterson stated she thought leaving children in homes where one parent abuses the other was bad for kids and stated she supported no-fault divorce, the farmer called her “sick” and “the reason the country is the way it is” before storming out of the meeting. As he left, he stopped and shouted that the Apex employee was an evil “son of a (female dog)” for taking public money.

A woman attending the public hearing stated that the county needs to raise taxes so it can pay Sheriff Casey Hinnah more, because, according to her, there will soon be buses arriving in the county and dropping off “people we do not want.” She claimed that Hinnah and his deputies are not paid a living wage and that Keokuk County is 98th in the state for law enforcement pay. ​​Sheriff Hinnah was paid $93,190 in Fiscal Year 2024 and will be paid $95,986 next year, which is the 85th highest in the state. The median pay for sheriffs in Iowa is $108,055. Bates stated that she agreed sheriff's department employees deserve more, but that the state has limited county growth to 3%, preventing them from paying law enforcement more.

Bates stated the tax explainer letters sent out before the meeting had misled people, who did not understand what the letters said. These letters are required by a state bill that passed in 2023, designed to keep voters informed. Wood pointed out the high cost of sending out letters, stating that it would likely end up costing the county $8,000-$9,000 and that he had heard Polk County spent more than $100,000 on letters. Hadley called the letters crazy and said that they were sent out to every partial parcel, resulting in him receiving nine different letters.

During the meeting proper, the board spoke with Tammy Kesterson from the Iowa Child Welfare Decategorization Project about designating April as Child Abuse Prevention Month. Kesterson stated that, while physical abuse and sexual abuse were both going down, the overall rate for child abuse was going up, due to rising levels of neglect. Kesterson explained that neglect, in the form of insufficient food or housing, was the most common form of child abuse. Kesterson stated that stressors, often financial in nature, are the reason for the rate going up. She noted that childcare costs are very high, to the point where tuition for an infant can be higher than the tuition at a state university.

Kesterson explained that Decat had helped in Keokuk County in the past through the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, which gave out books to 210 children in 2023, and through the Keota Afterschool Program, which increased attendance, improved grades, and prevented behavioral problems among students. She stated the county can help fight child abuse by donating food and diapers to food banks. She stated that families who grew up middle class often have a stigma around welfare and charity and do not seek help they need. Hadley asked how to fix child abuse. Kesterson called education “the great equalizer.” The board named April Child Abuse Prevention Month.

The board talked about the need for an ordinance regulating how close wind turbines can be built to towns in Keokuk County. Currently, there are plans by Apex Clean Energy to build a wind farm in Jefferson, Keokuk, and Wapello Counties. Eleven properties in Southeast Keokuk County have talked with Apex about building on their land. Wood noted that people who oppose building wind turbines are more vocal than those who support building them and that public opinion is mostly against putting up wind turbines. Hadley stated that the county has the power to stop the wind farm from being built in Keokuk County by placing heavy restrictions on where they can be built. Wood noted that the real problem is placing transmission lines, which are often more expensive than the actual turbines. Wood pointed out that the Iowa legislature might pass new laws affecting wind turbines, and suggested waiting until after the legislative session to write ordinances, to avoid wasting the time of County Attorney Amber Thompson. The board decided to talk about the ordinance again in a month.