Local taxes › Pottawattamie County › Carson

City

Carson

$2,930 a yearproperty tax on a $200,000 home here, FY27, for every local government ($34.78 per $1,000 of taxable value)¹

$1,030 a yearof that goes to the city ($12.22 per $1,000)

$460,055property taxes the city levies, FY27

$775,650city 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.

Bret SherkenbachCarson Mayor · elected November 4, 2025
Drake R. ColvinCarson City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Drake RollerCarson City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Tate BrandonCarson City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Marlene RichardsonCarson City Council At-Large · elected November 7, 2023
Troy GravesCarson 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 Carson

Homes and businesses in most of Carson pay a combined $34.78 per $1,000 of taxable value (FY27). They pay it all to the Pottawattamie County treasurer, who passes each government its share; the city sets and gets only its own piece, $12.22. Estimate your bill.

Everyone else$15.7745%
City of Carson$12.2235%
Pottawattamie County$6.7920%

Rates over time

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

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$37.79	$14.42
FY21	$37.41	$13.59
FY22	$35.60	$11.81
FY23	$35.08	$11.73
FY24	$36.28	$12.98
FY25	$36.27	$13.22
FY26	$34.89	$12.19
FY27	$34.78	$12.22

Show the numbers

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$37.79	$14.42
FY21	$37.41	$13.59
FY22	$35.60	$11.81
FY23	$35.08	$11.73
FY24	$36.28	$12.98
FY25	$36.27	$13.22
FY26	$34.89	$12.19
FY27	$34.78	$12.22

Compared with places this size³

Carson’s city property tax rate of $12.22 per $1,000 is the 74th lowest of 182 Iowa cities with 520–1,200 people. The middle of the group is $12.82.

See all 182

#	Place	Rate per $1,000	People
1	Exira	$24.81	766
2	Dayton	$22.51	766
3	Charter Oak	$21.32	521
4	Correctionville	$19.84	759
5	Villisca	$19.74	1,106
6	Allison	$19.06	937
7	Dumont	$19.04	614
8	Seymour	$18.78	646
9	Dexter	$18.69	631
10	Fonda	$18.52	636
11	Kanawha	$18.11	638
12	Swea City	$18.04	545
13	Greene	$17.91	971
14	Alden	$17.90	738
15	New Hartford	$17.69	555
16	Lansing	$17.67	959
17	Strawberry Point	$17.58	1,141
18	Rockwell	$17.54	1,044
19	Walnut	$17.46	728
20	Murray	$17.44	609
21	Gowrie	$17.17	943
22	Colo	$17.14	856
23	Mapleton	$16.90	1,114
24	George	$16.89	1,106
25	Adair	$16.84	792
26	Eddyville	$16.82	965
27	Elk Horn	$16.78	631
28	Oxford	$16.70	715
29	Buffalo Center	$16.58	839
30	Bancroft	$16.52	677
31	Eldon	$16.42	788
32	Early	$16.35	571
33	Truro	$16.34	515
34	Aplington	$16.34	1,088
35	Panora	$16.14	1,096
36	Mechanicsville	$16.12	974
37	Armstrong	$15.87	847
38	Ruthven	$15.84	710
39	Minden	$15.77	581
40	Walker	$15.74	671
41	Newell	$15.49	850
42	Riceville	$15.31	807
43	Neola	$15.30	917
44	Sidney	$15.19	1,048
45	Gilbertville	$15.15	792
46	Stanwood	$15.12	612
47	Stratford	$15.03	688
48	Griswold	$15.01	975
49	Readlyn	$14.99	857
50	Wyoming	$14.81	526
51	Hopkinton	$14.79	622
52	Essex	$14.76	721
53	Dunlap	$14.56	1,030
54	Garnavillo	$14.52	751
55	Maxwell	$14.50	862
56	Clermont	$14.30	571
57	Moulton	$14.25	596
58	Mcgregor	$14.20	725
59	Olin	$14.19	652
60	Primghar	$14.18	893
61	Sheffield	$14.16	1,123
62	Elgin	$14.05	676
63	Ossian	$13.88	777
64	Redfield	$13.73	719
65	Victor	$13.72	852
66	Edgewood	$13.64	908
67	Sioux Rapids	$13.63	722
68	Donnellson	$13.63	859
69	Gladbrook	$13.58	775
70	Rockford	$13.52	722
71	Janesville	$13.43	1,052
72	Glidden	$13.43	1,140
73	Calmar	$13.39	1,100
74	Boyden	$13.39	694
75	Baxter	$13.32	983
76	Anita	$13.28	953
77	Van Horne	$13.27	768
78	Conrad	$13.23	1,098
79	Keota	$13.21	888
80	Shellsburg	$13.20	987
81	De Soto	$13.18	937
82	Quasqueton	$13.12	587
83	Farmington	$13.10	583
84	Anthon	$13.05	534
85	Treynor	$13.03	1,104
86	Odebolt	$13.00	967
87	Coggon	$12.99	691
88	Earlville	$12.90	713
89	Brighton	$12.88	592
90	Danville	$12.87	910
91	Underwood	$12.85	973
92	Malvern	$12.79	1,056
93	Montrose	$12.78	734
94	Goldfield	$12.73	617
95	Wellsburg	$12.68	709
96	Delmar	$12.68	541
97	Badger	$12.67	540
98	Stanton	$12.62	664
99	Hospers	$12.58	703
100	Everly	$12.51	570
101	Hazleton	$12.48	711
102	West Point	$12.39	903
103	Hinton	$12.38	959
104	Preston	$12.38	940
105	Alburnett	$12.30	672
106	Hubbard	$12.30	837
107	Moravia	$12.27	625
108	Hedrick	$12.22	717
109	Carson	$12.22	772
110	Wheatland	$12.18	765
111	Schaller	$12.14	702
112	Winfield	$12.04	1,006
113	Elkhart	$12.00	1,079
114	Afton	$11.96	864
115	Lowden	$11.93	767
116	Tabor	$11.88	983
117	Albert City	$11.88	627
118	Aurelia	$11.84	970
119	Merrill	$11.64	713
120	Morning Sun	$11.50	702
121	Battle Creek	$11.49	683
122	Wall Lake	$11.43	739
123	West Bend	$11.42	770
124	Dakota City	$11.39	764
125	Marcus	$11.31	1,069
126	Dunkerton	$11.30	840
127	Sutherland	$11.25	628
128	Arcadia	$11.23	588
129	Whiting	$11.21	725
130	Shelby	$11.17	730
131	Blairstown	$11.04	705
132	Manilla	$11.01	756
133	Hamburg	$10.95	863
134	Clarence	$10.94	991
135	Ireton	$10.93	571
136	Fontanelle	$10.88	684
137	Richland	$10.82	532
138	Grand Mound	$10.78	608
139	Cambridge	$10.53	844
140	Swisher	$10.39	909
141	Schleswig	$10.39	820
142	Melbourne	$10.38	771
143	Radcliffe	$10.37	540
144	Elk Run Heights	$10.33	1,061
145	Fredericksburg	$10.27	983
146	Lake Park	$10.25	1,155
147	Ventura	$10.22	701
148	Inwood	$10.22	962
149	Milo	$10.20	762
150	Hartford	$10.16	729
151	What Cheer	$10.01	595
152	Newhall	$9.99	887
153	Cumming	$9.85	527
154	Graettinger	$9.81	810
155	Doon	$9.78	640
156	Long Grove	$9.59	849
157	Lake View	$9.39	1,120
158	Paullina	$9.21	979
159	Fairbank	$9.00	1,133
160	Winthrop	$8.94	814
161	Crescent	$8.72	626
162	Keosauqua	$8.58	944
163	Grand Junction	$8.57	715
164	Princeton	$8.24	917
165	Gilman	$8.10	530
166	Lakeside	$8.10	695
167	Kellogg	$8.10	597
168	Riverside	$8.02	1,063
169	Agency	$7.94	623
170	Hills	$7.94	911
171	Fremont	$7.86	688
172	Larchwood	$7.52	954
173	North English	$7.49	1,030
174	Sloan	$7.49	1,078
175	Sully	$7.41	891
176	Fruitland	$7.21	928
177	Lawton	$7.10	949
178	Wayland	$7.07	935
179	Raymond	$6.85	754
180	Keystone	$6.80	616
181	Shueyville	$6.79	725
182	Okoboji	$3.83	729

The $8.10 limit

Carson’s general levy is $7.71 per $1,000 of taxable value in FY27, $0.39 below the limit.⁴ 731 of 934 Iowa cities have a higher general levy. All cities.

$8.10

FY23 $8.09 · FY24 $8.10 · FY25 $8.10 · FY26 $7.94 · FY27 $7.71 (before FY25, the general levy alone)

Outside the limit: $4.51 more⁵

Debt Service Levy$3.09 · $116,101
Total Employee Benefit Levies$1.42 · $53,476

Tax increment financing (TIF)

Carson’s TIF revenue, from its reports to the state.

$109,511

$28,511

Year	TIF revenue
FY16	$82,268
FY17	$77,973
FY18	$88,484
FY19	$94,739
FY20	$109,511
FY21	$96,741
FY22	$30,886
FY23	$28,511

Show the numbers

Year	TIF revenue
FY16	$82,268
FY17	$77,973
FY18	$88,484
FY19	$94,739
FY20	$109,511
FY21	$96,741
FY22	$30,886
FY23	$28,511

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$289,92863%
Debt Service Levy$116,10125%
Total Employee Benefit Levies$53,47612%

Budget and spending

Reading a local budget

Where each dollar of Carson’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 181 Iowa cities closest in size (520–1,200 people).

Where it goes	Of each dollar	Cities this size (181)
Business Type / Enterprise	36¢	40¢
Public Works	19¢	16¢
General Government	12¢	10¢
Debt Service	9¢	6¢
Public Safety	9¢	9¢
Everything else	14¢	16¢

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$217,15428%
General Government$214,74828%
Debt Service$117,23815%
Public Safety$116,70815%
Culture and Recreation$109,80214%

The state’s FY27 file doesn’t include business type / enterprise yet ($462,005 in FY26), so this total is low.

Budget compared with what it spent, FY23

Function	Budget	Spent
Public Works	$223,228	$201,450
Public Safety	$116,659	$113,570
Health and Social Services	$0	$0
General Government	$147,115	$159,057
Debt Service	$123,013	$123,013
Culture and Recreation	$92,687	$155,751
Community and Economic Development	$75,000	$42,925
Capital Projects	$93,285	$615,886
Business Type / Enterprise	$387,338	$458,229

What it spent each year

FY24 left out⁶

$2.0M

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: $111,577 in FY25, up 6% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 15% less. Grants are below.

Show the numbers

Source	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Road Use Tax (streets)	$107,034	$105,410	$108,200	$108,787
Commercial and industrial tax replacement (“backfill”)	–	–	$1,710	$2,790

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.

$137,542

$760

Liquor Profits$760100%

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$0
FY20	$0
FY21	$21,396
FY22	$61,200
FY23	$41,750
FY24	$137,542
FY25	$760

Show the numbers

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$0
FY20	$0
FY21	$21,396
FY22	$61,200
FY23	$41,750
FY24	$137,542
FY25	$760

Has it kept up with prices?

Each source from FY19 to FY25, after inflation.

Road Use Tax (streets)−17%$104,899 → $108,787, up 4% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 17% 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 31% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 4% more.

$153,952

Federal grants, for comparison: $60,482 in FY23.

Elections

Most recent: November 4, 2025

City · 2

Carson City Council At-Large

3 seats: the top 3 win.

Drake Roller Winner23333.6%
Drake R. Colvin Winner14821.4%
Tate Brandon Winner13319.2%
Charles Pleak 9113.1%
Andrew Taylor 8812.7%

Carson Mayor

Bret Sherkenbach Winner20876.2%
Lyndon Taylor 5620.5%
Rodney Morrison 93.3%

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

Related places

At the Statehouse and in Congress⁸

Mark Costello (Sen. 8)David Sieck (Rep. 16)

U.S. House:District 4

Pottawattamie County Riverside 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 Carson; percentages are rough shares of its area. These lawmakers write the state laws and budget Carson 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.

Carson

Who runs it

Meetings and agendas

Property taxes

Who gets a property owner’s tax bill in Carson

Rates over time

Compared with places this size3

The $8.10 limit

Outside the limit: $4.51 more5

Tax increment financing (TIF)

The city’s levies, FY27

Budget and spending

Where each dollar of Carson’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: $4.51 more⁵

At the Statehouse and in Congress⁸