City

Melvin

$2,150 a yearproperty tax on a $200,000 home here, FY27, for every local government ($25.51 per $1,000 of taxable value)¹

$850 a yearof that goes to the city ($10.05 per $1,000)

$71,802property taxes the city levies, FY27

$226,110city budget, FY27, without city-run utilities (not yet reported)²

Who runs it

The city council passes ordinances, adopts the budget and sets the city’s property tax.

Laura NelsonMelvin City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Michael BakerMelvin City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Michael J. WynjaMelvin City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Paul D. HeitritterMelvin Mayor · elected November 4, 2025
Amy S. BakerMelvin City Council At-Large · elected November 7, 2023
Chris MichelsonMelvin City Council At-Large · elected November 7, 2023

Officials are worked out from election results: every member whose four-year term is still running, plus appointments and titles Iowa Funnel has been told about. A resignation may not show yet.

Meetings and agendas

What the council is deciding: each agenda, the resolutions and ordinances on it, and a plain-language summary.

Iowa Funnel doesn’t read this city’s agendas yet. Every council and board posts its agenda at least 24 hours before it meets.

Property taxes

How the bill is collected · What each levy is for

Who gets a property owner’s tax bill in Melvin

Homes and businesses in most of Melvin pay a combined $29.59 per $1,000 of taxable value (FY27). They pay it all to the Osceola County treasurer, who passes each government its share; the city sets and gets only its own piece, $10.05. Estimate your bill.

Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn schools$11.9640%
City of Melvin$10.0534%
Osceola County$5.5619%
Northwest Iowa Community College$1.314%
Osceola County Assessor$0.401%
Osceola County Extension (ISU Extension and Outreach)$0.311%

Rates over time

Per $1,000 of taxable value: the typical combined rate people in Melvin pay, and the city government’s own piece of it.

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$25.97	$9.57
FY21	$26.86	$10.18
FY22	$25.01	$7.28
FY23	$24.58	$7.61
FY24	$26.03	$10.21
FY25	$24.75	$9.70
FY26	$25.52	$10.33
FY27	$25.51	$10.05

Show the numbers

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$25.97	$9.57
FY21	$26.86	$10.18
FY22	$25.01	$7.28
FY23	$24.58	$7.61
FY24	$26.03	$10.21
FY25	$24.75	$9.70
FY26	$25.52	$10.33
FY27	$25.51	$10.05

Compared with places this size³

Melvin’s city property tax rate of $10.05 per $1,000 is the 66th lowest of 200 Iowa cities with 130–290 people. The middle of the group is $11.56.

See all 200

#	Place	Rate per $1,000	People
1	Brayton	$25.07	138
2	Harris	$23.13	145
3	Fenton	$22.05	250
4	Soldier	$21.92	176
5	Coulter	$21.80	220
6	Chelsea	$21.61	207
7	Smithland	$21.12	184
8	Volga	$20.23	200
9	Alta Vista	$19.88	219
10	Arthur	$19.86	218
11	Coin	$19.59	171
12	Chester	$19.30	134
13	Garden Grove	$19.20	173
14	Hastings	$18.95	157
15	Swaledale	$18.62	136
16	Cumberland	$18.42	248
17	Jamaica	$18.24	196
18	Hillsboro	$17.68	158
19	Bristow	$17.39	139
20	Woolstock	$17.26	141
21	Pisgah	$17.09	248
22	Lakota	$16.84	261
23	Marble Rock	$16.78	258
24	Auburn	$16.65	253
25	Prescott	$16.53	186
26	Montour	$16.37	199
27	Geneva	$16.25	137
28	Corwith	$16.22	259
29	Deep River	$16.18	243
30	Waucoma	$16.17	235
31	Little Sioux	$15.74	170
32	Moorhead	$15.68	186
33	Onslow	$15.63	198
34	Linden	$15.62	206
35	Woodburn	$15.59	133
36	Kamrar	$15.47	178
37	Greeley	$15.23	216
38	Goodell	$15.16	139
39	Riverton	$14.94	243
40	Marathon	$14.89	221
41	Ladora	$14.74	223
42	Magnolia	$14.68	194
43	Bagley	$14.63	230
44	Davis City	$14.45	178
45	Lucas	$14.40	176
46	Halbur	$14.37	268
47	Crystal Lake	$14.36	243
48	Kimballton	$14.27	281
49	Steamboat Rock	$14.19	261
50	Westgate	$14.05	190
51	Palmer	$13.89	137
52	Stockport	$13.68	272
53	Kellerton	$13.60	241
54	Quimby	$13.58	245
55	Meservey	$13.43	212
56	Persia	$13.41	292
57	Leland	$13.31	240
58	Harcourt	$13.21	257
59	Calumet	$13.16	144
60	Ridgeway	$13.10	261
61	Farmersburg	$13.09	264
62	Portsmouth	$13.05	187
63	Clutier	$13.03	209
64	Silver City	$12.87	244
65	Delaware	$12.86	139
66	Patterson	$12.84	176
67	Martelle	$12.83	250
68	Malcom	$12.82	257
69	Clemons	$12.69	135
70	Blencoe	$12.57	223
71	Maurice	$12.56	271
72	Clearfield	$12.50	277
73	Kensett	$12.47	256
74	Millersburg	$12.40	135
75	Aurora	$12.40	165
76	Modale	$12.34	284
77	Bridgewater	$12.29	145
78	Blakesburg	$12.21	273
79	Cushing	$12.18	225
80	Hanlontown	$12.17	200
81	Stout	$12.14	194
82	Macedonia	$12.12	266
83	Webb	$12.10	139
84	Paton	$12.09	217
85	Decatur	$12.08	174
86	Kiron	$12.03	262
87	Rembrandt	$12.03	199
88	Shambaugh	$11.98	161
89	Liscomb	$11.96	292
90	Lone Rock	$11.92	143
91	New Providence	$11.88	233
92	Henderson	$11.85	140
93	Parnell	$11.78	190
94	Reasnor	$11.76	157
95	Joice	$11.72	206
96	Atalissa	$11.71	287
97	Cantril	$11.69	224
98	Wadena	$11.65	201
99	Exline	$11.60	157
100	Cincinnati	$11.57	280
101	Beaman	$11.54	155
102	Delta	$11.52	257
103	Westside	$11.45	283
104	College Springs	$11.44	172
105	Holland	$11.37	261
106	Mallard	$11.28	255
107	Renwick	$11.16	228
108	Linn Grove	$11.15	155
109	Dundee	$11.14	193
110	Randolph	$11.08	183
111	Leighton	$11.07	153
112	Rake	$11.05	179
113	Frederika	$10.99	206
114	Alexander	$10.90	165
115	Goose Lake	$10.89	250
116	Yale	$10.85	265
117	Lambs Grove	$10.78	174
118	Wallingford	$10.75	154
119	Hornick	$10.74	255
120	Woden	$10.68	183
121	Cleghorn	$10.49	235
122	Barnes City	$10.44	152
123	Lytton	$10.38	274
124	Stockton	$10.37	171
125	Rhodes	$10.36	269
126	Randall	$10.35	156
127	Dedham	$10.28	221
128	Deloit	$10.28	246
129	Protivin	$10.28	264
130	Meriden	$10.28	175
131	Drakesville	$10.24	170
132	Bronson	$10.14	294
133	Hancock	$10.13	199
134	La Motte	$10.09	235
135	Melvin	$10.05	196
136	Defiance	$10.05	248
137	Barnum	$9.96	186
138	Panama	$9.85	234
139	Grafton	$9.83	212
140	Clare	$9.81	133
141	Tingley	$9.81	146
142	Ionia	$9.65	220
143	Van Wert	$9.62	175
144	Rock Falls	$9.61	143
145	Kirkville	$9.59	159
146	Luxemburg	$9.58	240
147	Rippey	$9.42	217
148	Westphalia	$9.18	133
149	Elberon	$9.16	178
150	Dixon	$9.03	204
151	Blairsburg	$8.93	175
152	Prairieburg	$8.91	156
153	Oakville	$8.89	198
154	Luther	$8.83	147
155	Harvey	$8.71	242
156	Washta	$8.65	206
157	Moorland	$8.61	169
158	Pilot Mound	$8.54	155
159	Ollie	$8.44	196
160	Thor	$8.38	182
161	Rowley	$8.31	264
162	South English	$8.27	196
163	Thurman	$8.26	162
164	Boxholm	$8.11	177
165	Fostoria	$8.10	229
166	Low Moor	$8.10	242
167	Bertram	$8.10	267
168	Laurel	$8.10	214
169	Lineville	$8.10	194
170	Lockridge	$7.92	245
171	Mount Auburn	$7.86	162
172	Haverhill	$7.86	164
173	Grand River	$7.86	192
174	Olds	$7.86	174
175	Dickens	$7.86	146
176	Castalia	$7.86	141
177	Rose Hill	$7.86	156
178	West Chester	$7.82	147
179	Mcclelland	$7.79	147
180	Lidderdale	$7.68	162
181	Pulaski	$7.58	259
182	Fredonia	$7.55	227
183	Braddyville	$7.49	142
184	Harpers Ferry	$7.49	273
185	Alvord	$7.41	216
186	Franklin	$7.31	133
187	Weldon	$7.18	134
188	Packwood	$6.77	186
189	Libertyville	$6.60	278
190	Keswick	$6.49	238
191	Crawfordsville	$6.44	278
192	Gravity	$6.18	149
193	Oakland Acres	$5.88	178
194	Springbrook	$5.79	145
195	Maysville	$5.77	155
196	Panorama Park	$4.62	142
197	Maharishi Vedic City	$3.87	290
198	Sherrill	$2.66	176
199	Rickardsville	$2.27	204
200	New Liberty	$2.27	141

The $8.10 limit

Melvin’s general levy is $7.86 per $1,000 of taxable value in FY27, $0.24 below the limit.⁴ 647 of 934 Iowa cities have a higher general levy. All cities.

$8.10

FY23 $6.03 · FY24 $8.10 · FY25 $7.86 · FY26 $8.10 · FY27 $7.86 (before FY25, the general levy alone)

Outside the limit: $2.19 more⁵

Unified Law Enforcement$1.50 · $10,709
Liability, property & self insurance costs$0.69 · $4,903

The city’s levies, FY27

What the city raises from each levy. The general levy is capped by state law; the others are set aside for one purpose.

Consolidate General Fund$56,14378%
Unified Law Enforcement$10,70915%
Liability, property & self insurance costs$4,9037%

Budget and spending

Reading a local budget

Where each dollar of Melvin’s budget goes, FY26

Planned spending from all funds, including city-run utilities like water and sewer (“business type”), which some cities run and others don’t. Transfers between funds are left out. “Cities this size” is the average for the 198 Iowa cities closest in size (130–290 people).

Where it goes	Of each dollar	Cities this size (198)
Public Safety	28¢	9¢
Public Works	25¢	23¢
Business Type / Enterprise	18¢	34¢
General Government	16¢	21¢
Culture and Recreation	12¢	8¢
Everything else	1¢	2¢

Planned spending, FY27

All funds: property taxes, utility and other fees, state and federal money. “Business type” is city-run utilities and enterprises like water or sewer.

Public Works$85,14038%
Public Safety$60,95027%
General Government$50,82522%
Culture and Recreation$27,69512%
Community and Economic Development$1,5001%

The state’s FY27 file doesn’t include business type / enterprise yet ($49,953 in FY26), so this total is low.

Budget compared with what it spent, FY23

Function	Budget	Spent
Public Works	$72,991	$52,429
Public Safety	$63,159	$51,229
Health and Social Services	$0	$0
General Government	$44,350	$41,487
Debt Service	$0	$0
Culture and Recreation	$25,240	$43,462
Community and Economic Development	$250	$0
Capital Projects	$0	$0
Business Type / Enterprise	$34,140	$43,708

What it spent each year

FY24 left out⁶

$270,594

$240,843

State money

What the State of Iowa pays the city each year, and whether it has kept up with prices. Does state money keep pace? ⁷

What the state pays the city every year

Road Use Tax for streets, the commercial and industrial tax “backfill”, and ambulance reimbursement, paid every year by formula: $20,030 in FY25, down 27% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 42% less. Grants are below.

Show the numbers

Source	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Road Use Tax (streets)	$29,099	$19,404	$19,923	$20,030

Grants and project money

State grants and money for specific projects (roads, development, natural resources) vary with what the city applies for and wins, so they aren’t counted as the state’s regular support.

$5,000

$500

State grants$500100%

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$0
FY20	$0
FY21	$0
FY22	$0
FY23	$0
FY24	$5,000
FY25	$500

Show the numbers

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$0
FY20	$0
FY21	$0
FY22	$0
FY23	$0
FY24	$5,000
FY25	$500

Has it kept up with prices?

Each source from FY19 to FY25, after inflation.

Road Use Tax (streets)−42%$27,546 → $20,030, down 27% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 42% less

Collected by the state for the city

The local option sales tax is a city tax voters approved; the state collects it with the state sales tax and sends it back. It isn’t state aid. It’s up 32% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 5% more.

$33,232

$31,355

Federal grants, for comparison: $45,871 in FY23.

Elections

Most recent: November 4, 2025

City · 2

Melvin City Council At-Large

3 seats: the top 3 win.

Michael J. Wynja Winner3747.4%
Michael Baker Winner2835.9%
Laura Nelson Winner1316.7%

Melvin Mayor

Paul D. Heitritter Winner2565.8%
John McDougall 1334.2%

Local races from civicAPI and county auditors for Melvin; official results are on each county auditor’s site.

Related places

At the Statehouse and in Congress⁸

Lynn Evans (Sen. 3)Zach Dieken (Rep. 5)

U.S. House:District 4

Osceola County Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn schools

Notes

For a $200,000 home with the homestead credit, at the combined rate in most of the city. Some parts of the city pay a different rate (special districts, tax increment financing districts). ↩
Cities adopt their budgets each spring for the year starting July 1. ↩
FY27 rates from the Department of Management. A higher rate isn’t always a bigger bill: it depends on how much property there is to tax. Sizes: Census Bureau 2024 estimates. ↩
Iowa Code section 384.1, as changed by House File 718 (2023). Until FY25 a city’s regular general levy was capped at $8.10 by itself, and a city at the cap could add an emergency levy of up to $0.27. From FY25 the general levy and several smaller levies were combined into one “consolidated” general levy with an $8.10 limit; a city whose combined rate was above $8.10 lowers it in steps, in years its taxable value grows by more than the law allows, until it reaches $8.10. So years before FY25 aren’t directly comparable with later ones. ↩
Levies outside the limit are each set aside for one purpose and have their own rules: debt service pays back bonds voters or the council approved, employee benefits cover pensions and insurance, and some (transit, an airport, insurance costs) have their own caps in state law. ↩
The state’s FY24 spending file repeats the year before for nearly every Iowa city, so that year isn’t shown. ↩
From the city’s annual financial reports to the state (Iowa Data Hub, city actual revenues). “Today’s dollars” adjusts each year by the consumer price index for the Midwest, so a flat line in today’s dollars means the money buys the same as before. ↩
Legislative and congressional districts that cover Melvin; percentages are rough shares of its area. These lawmakers write the state laws and budget Melvin works within. ↩

Sources: City budgets and levies from the Department of Management; tax rates from the Iowa Data Hub; state payments from the Department of Revenue; prices from the consumer price index; legislative districts from Census Bureau maps.

Melvin

Who runs it

Meetings and agendas

Property taxes

Who gets a property owner’s tax bill in Melvin

Rates over time

Compared with places this size3

The $8.10 limit

Outside the limit: $2.19 more5

The city’s levies, FY27

Budget and spending

Where each dollar of Melvin’s budget goes, FY26

Planned spending, FY27

What it spent each year

State money

What the state pays the city every year

Grants and project money

Has it kept up with prices?

Collected by the state for the city

Elections

Most recent: November 4, 2025

Related places

At the Statehouse and in Congress8

Compared with places this size³

Outside the limit: $2.19 more⁵

At the Statehouse and in Congress⁸