City

Dayton

$3,430 a yearproperty tax on a $200,000 home here, FY27, for every local government ($40.73 per $1,000 of taxable value)¹

$1,900 a yearof that goes to the city ($22.51 per $1,000)

$478,473property taxes the city levies, FY27

$888,845city 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.

Cameron McGuireDayton City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Maureen HainzingerDayton City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Dave BillsDayton Mayor · elected November 7, 2023
Don SchmadekeDayton City Council At-Large · elected November 7, 2023
Gregg MuenchDayton City Council At-Large · elected November 7, 2023
Nathan StevensDayton 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 Dayton

Homes and businesses in most of Dayton pay a combined $40.73 per $1,000 of taxable value (FY27). They pay it all to the Webster County treasurer, who passes each government its share; the city sets and gets only its own piece, $22.51. Estimate your bill.

City of Dayton$22.5155%
Everyone else$11.5728%
Webster County$6.6616%

Rates over time

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

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$39.49	$20.81
FY21	$42.48	$23.66
FY22	$36.51	$18.62
FY23	$34.36	$17.46
FY24	$32.87	$15.88
FY25	$34.97	$17.51
FY26	$38.84	$20.34
FY27	$40.73	$22.51

Show the numbers

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$39.49	$20.81
FY21	$42.48	$23.66
FY22	$36.51	$18.62
FY23	$34.36	$17.46
FY24	$32.87	$15.88
FY25	$34.97	$17.51
FY26	$38.84	$20.34
FY27	$40.73	$22.51

Compared with places this size³

Dayton’s city property tax rate of $22.51 per $1,000 is the 2nd highest of 183 Iowa cities with 510–1,100 people. The middle of the group is $12.85.

See all 183

#	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	Pomeroy	$19.60	511
7	Allison	$19.06	937
8	Dumont	$19.04	614
9	Seymour	$18.78	646
10	Dexter	$18.69	631
11	Fonda	$18.52	636
12	Kanawha	$18.11	638
13	Swea City	$18.04	545
14	Greene	$17.91	971
15	Alden	$17.90	738
16	New Hartford	$17.69	555
17	Lansing	$17.67	959
18	Strawberry Point	$17.58	1,141
19	Rockwell	$17.54	1,044
20	Walnut	$17.46	728
21	Murray	$17.44	609
22	Gowrie	$17.17	943
23	Colo	$17.14	856
24	Mapleton	$16.90	1,114
25	George	$16.89	1,106
26	Adair	$16.84	792
27	Eddyville	$16.82	965
28	Elk Horn	$16.78	631
29	Oxford	$16.70	715
30	Buffalo Center	$16.58	839
31	Bancroft	$16.52	677
32	Eldon	$16.42	788
33	Early	$16.35	571
34	Truro	$16.34	515
35	Aplington	$16.34	1,088
36	Panora	$16.14	1,096
37	Mechanicsville	$16.12	974
38	Armstrong	$15.87	847
39	Ruthven	$15.84	710
40	Minden	$15.77	581
41	Walker	$15.74	671
42	Newell	$15.49	850
43	Riceville	$15.31	807
44	Neola	$15.30	917
45	Sidney	$15.19	1,048
46	Gilbertville	$15.15	792
47	Stanwood	$15.12	612
48	Stratford	$15.03	688
49	Griswold	$15.01	975
50	Readlyn	$14.99	857
51	Wyoming	$14.81	526
52	Hopkinton	$14.79	622
53	Essex	$14.76	721
54	Dunlap	$14.56	1,030
55	Garnavillo	$14.52	751
56	Maxwell	$14.50	862
57	Clermont	$14.30	571
58	Moulton	$14.25	596
59	Mcgregor	$14.20	725
60	Olin	$14.19	652
61	Primghar	$14.18	893
62	Sheffield	$14.16	1,123
63	Elgin	$14.05	676
64	Ossian	$13.88	777
65	Redfield	$13.73	719
66	Victor	$13.72	852
67	Edgewood	$13.64	908
68	Sioux Rapids	$13.63	722
69	Donnellson	$13.63	859
70	Gladbrook	$13.58	775
71	Rockford	$13.52	722
72	Janesville	$13.43	1,052
73	Glidden	$13.43	1,140
74	Calmar	$13.39	1,100
75	Boyden	$13.39	694
76	Baxter	$13.32	983
77	Anita	$13.28	953
78	Van Horne	$13.27	768
79	Conrad	$13.23	1,098
80	Keota	$13.21	888
81	Shellsburg	$13.20	987
82	De Soto	$13.18	937
83	Quasqueton	$13.12	587
84	Farmington	$13.10	583
85	Anthon	$13.05	534
86	Treynor	$13.03	1,104
87	Odebolt	$13.00	967
88	Coggon	$12.99	691
89	Earlville	$12.90	713
90	Brighton	$12.88	592
91	Danville	$12.87	910
92	Underwood	$12.85	973
93	Malvern	$12.79	1,056
94	Montrose	$12.78	734
95	Goldfield	$12.73	617
96	Wellsburg	$12.68	709
97	Delmar	$12.68	541
98	Badger	$12.67	540
99	Stanton	$12.62	664
100	Hospers	$12.58	703
101	Everly	$12.51	570
102	Hazleton	$12.48	711
103	West Point	$12.39	903
104	Hinton	$12.38	959
105	Preston	$12.38	940
106	Alburnett	$12.30	672
107	Hubbard	$12.30	837
108	Moravia	$12.27	625
109	Hedrick	$12.22	717
110	Carson	$12.22	772
111	Wheatland	$12.18	765
112	Schaller	$12.14	702
113	Winfield	$12.04	1,006
114	Elkhart	$12.00	1,079
115	Afton	$11.96	864
116	Lowden	$11.93	767
117	Tabor	$11.88	983
118	Albert City	$11.88	627
119	Aurelia	$11.84	970
120	Merrill	$11.64	713
121	Morning Sun	$11.50	702
122	Battle Creek	$11.49	683
123	Wall Lake	$11.43	739
124	West Bend	$11.42	770
125	Dakota City	$11.39	764
126	Marcus	$11.31	1,069
127	Dunkerton	$11.30	840
128	Sutherland	$11.25	628
129	Arcadia	$11.23	588
130	Whiting	$11.21	725
131	Shelby	$11.17	730
132	Blairstown	$11.04	705
133	Manilla	$11.01	756
134	Hamburg	$10.95	863
135	Clarence	$10.94	991
136	Ireton	$10.93	571
137	Fontanelle	$10.88	684
138	Richland	$10.82	532
139	Grand Mound	$10.78	608
140	Cambridge	$10.53	844
141	Swisher	$10.39	909
142	Schleswig	$10.39	820
143	Melbourne	$10.38	771
144	Radcliffe	$10.37	540
145	Elk Run Heights	$10.33	1,061
146	Fredericksburg	$10.27	983
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	Ainsworth	$8.62	511
163	Keosauqua	$8.58	944
164	Grand Junction	$8.57	715
165	Princeton	$8.24	917
166	Gilman	$8.10	530
167	Lakeside	$8.10	695
168	Kellogg	$8.10	597
169	Riverside	$8.02	1,063
170	Agency	$7.94	623
171	Hills	$7.94	911
172	Fremont	$7.86	688
173	Larchwood	$7.52	954
174	North English	$7.49	1,030
175	Sloan	$7.49	1,078
176	Sully	$7.41	891
177	Fruitland	$7.21	928
178	Lawton	$7.10	949
179	Wayland	$7.07	935
180	Raymond	$6.85	754
181	Keystone	$6.80	616
182	Shueyville	$6.79	725
183	Okoboji	$3.83	729

The $8.10 limit

Dayton’s general levy is $8.14 per $1,000 of taxable value in FY27, $0.04 above the limit; it has to come down in steps.⁴ 183 of 934 Iowa cities have a higher general levy. All cities.

$8.10

FY23 $8.10 · FY24 $8.10 · FY25 $8.39 · FY26 $8.39 · FY27 $8.14 (before FY25, the general levy alone)

Outside the limit: $14.36 more⁵

Total Employee Benefit Levies$4.79 · $101,498
Liability, property & self insurance costs$4.79 · $101,498
Debt Service Levy$3.87 · $82,990
Support of a Local Emerg. Mgmt. Comm.$0.92 · $19,502

Tax increment financing (TIF)

$234,193 of taxable value in Dayton is in TIF districts’ increment (1% of the city’s taxable value), 2025 valuations, taxed in FY27.⁶ It budgeted $7,500 in TIF revenue for FY25.

$8,028

Year	TIF revenue
FY16	$7,891
FY17	$7,114
FY18	$7,072
FY19	$7,567
FY20	$6,670
FY21	$7,828
FY22	$7,298
FY23	$8,028

Show the numbers

Year	TIF revenue
FY16	$7,891
FY17	$7,114
FY18	$7,072
FY19	$7,567
FY20	$6,670
FY21	$7,828
FY22	$7,298
FY23	$8,028

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$172,72236%
Total Employee Benefit Levies$101,49821%
Liability, property & self insurance costs$101,49821%
Debt Service Levy$82,99017%
Support of a Local Emerg. Mgmt. Comm.$19,5024%

Budget and spending

Reading a local budget

Where each dollar of Dayton’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 182 Iowa cities closest in size (510–1,100 people).

Where it goes	Of each dollar	Cities this size (182)
Business Type / Enterprise	61¢	40¢
Public Works	14¢	16¢
General Government	10¢	10¢
Public Safety	5¢	9¢
Debt Service	4¢	6¢
Everything else	6¢	18¢

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$304,70534%
General Government$234,82026%
Public Safety$123,37514%
Culture and Recreation$83,5209%
Debt Service$83,1259%
Capital Projects$54,0006%
Community and Economic Development$4,5001%
Health and Social Services$8000%

The state’s FY27 file doesn’t include business type / enterprise yet ($1.4M in FY26), so this total is low.

Budget compared with what it spent, FY23

Function	Budget	Spent
Public Works	$138,500	$212,504
Public Safety	$159,050	$78,589
Health and Social Services	$500	$820
General Government	$140,350	$209,708
Debt Service	$33,081	$33,291
Culture and Recreation	$79,775	$152,759
Community and Economic Development	$17,000	$7,496
Capital Projects	$80,000	$71,183
Business Type / Enterprise	$1.1M	$1.2M

What it spent each year

FY24 left out⁷

$3.2M

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? ⁸

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: $109,639 in FY25, up 1% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 19% less. Grants are below.

Show the numbers

Source	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Road Use Tax (streets)	$108,337	$107,347	$109,047	$109,639

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.

$3,592

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$0
FY20	$3,592
FY21	$0
FY22	$0
FY23	$0
FY24	$1,863
FY25	$0

Show the numbers

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$0
FY20	$3,592
FY21	$0
FY22	$0
FY23	$0
FY24	$1,863
FY25	$0

Has it kept up with prices?

Each source from FY19 to FY25, after inflation.

Road Use Tax (streets)−19%$108,153 → $109,639, up 1% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 19% 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 25% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 1% less.

$151,031

$147,173

Federal grants, for comparison: $82,997 in FY23.

Elections

Most recent: November 4, 2025

City · 1

Dayton City Council At-Large

2 seats: the top 2 win.

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

Related places

At the Statehouse and in Congress⁹

Tim Kraayenbrink (Sen. 4)Wendy Larson (Rep. 7)

U.S. House:District 4

Webster CountySoutheast Webster-Grand 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. ↩
Tax increment financing: when a city sets up a TIF district, the taxable value there is frozen at a “base”. Taxes on the base go to every government as usual; taxes on the growth in value since (the “increment”) go to the city’s TIF fund to pay for the project, such as roads, utilities or a developer rebate, until the district ends. From the state’s valuation file (Iowa Data Hub), valuation year 2025. ↩
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 Dayton; percentages are rough shares of its area. These lawmakers write the state laws and budget Dayton 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.

Dayton

Who runs it

Meetings and agendas

Property taxes

Who gets a property owner’s tax bill in Dayton

Rates over time

Compared with places this size3

The $8.10 limit

Outside the limit: $14.36 more5

Tax increment financing (TIF)

The city’s levies, FY27

Budget and spending

Where each dollar of Dayton’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 Congress9

Compared with places this size³

Outside the limit: $14.36 more⁵

At the Statehouse and in Congress⁹