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Local taxes › Woodbury County › Sergeant Bluff

City

Sergeant Bluff

$2,780 a yearproperty tax on a $200,000 home here, FY27, for every local government ($33.05 per $1,000 of taxable value)¹

$1,150 a yearof that goes to the city ($13.70 per $1,000)

$3.4Mproperty taxes the city levies, FY27

$6.4Mcity 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.

Kirk MoriartySergeant Bluff City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Ronald HansonSergeant Bluff Mayor · elected November 4, 2025
Ryan PanowiczSergeant Bluff City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Shari Zenor KipleSergeant Bluff City Council At-Large · elected November 4, 2025
Andrea JohnsonSergeant Bluff City Council At-Large · elected November 7, 2023
Mark ReindersSergeant Bluff 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 Sergeant Bluff

Homes and businesses in most of Sergeant Bluff pay a combined $33.05 per $1,000 of taxable value (FY27). They pay it all to the Woodbury County treasurer, who passes each government its share; the city sets and gets only its own piece, $13.70. Estimate your bill.

City of Sergeant Bluff$13.7041%
Sergeant Bluff-Luton schools$10.7332%
Woodbury County$7.1122%
Western Iowa Tech Community College$1.023%
Woodbury County Assessor$0.381%
Woodbury County Extension (ISU Extension and Outreach)$0.11<1%

Rates over time

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

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$31.64	$13.00
FY21	$32.25	$13.00
FY22	$32.53	$13.22
FY23	$32.19	$13.35
FY24	$32.15	$13.35
FY25	$32.27	$13.35
FY26	$32.52	$13.35
FY27	$33.05	$13.70

Show the numbers

Year	Combined	City’s own
FY20	$31.64	$13.00
FY21	$32.25	$13.00
FY22	$32.53	$13.22
FY23	$32.19	$13.35
FY24	$32.15	$13.35
FY25	$32.27	$13.35
FY26	$32.52	$13.35
FY27	$33.05	$13.70

Compared with places this size³

Sergeant Bluff’s city property tax rate of $13.70 per $1,000 is the 17th lowest of 60 Iowa cities with 3,600–7,800 people. The middle of the group is $14.87.

See all 60

#	Place	Rate per $1,000	People
1	Red Oak	$20.65	5,420
2	Oelwein	$20.16	5,788
3	Albia	$19.70	3,579
4	Eagle Grove	$19.32	3,615
5	Independence	$19.01	6,266
6	Iowa Falls	$18.86	4,993
7	West Liberty	$18.68	3,724
8	Chariton	$18.37	4,278
9	Atlantic	$17.48	6,717
10	Knoxville	$17.46	7,440
11	Clarinda	$17.25	5,334
12	Centerville	$16.85	5,345
13	Algona	$16.75	5,341
14	Webster City	$16.51	7,763
15	Vinton	$16.25	4,962
16	Winterset	$16.15	5,421
17	Cresco	$16.13	3,890
18	Humboldt	$16.00	4,774
19	Anamosa	$15.95	5,845
20	Charles City	$15.95	7,081
21	Forest City	$15.77	4,199
22	Decorah	$15.52	7,454
23	Sheldon	$15.33	5,584
24	Estherville	$15.27	5,796
25	Washington	$15.21	7,281
26	Harlan	$15.07	4,898
27	Shenandoah	$15.02	4,878
28	Creston	$14.99	7,421
29	Manchester	$14.96	5,283
30	Jefferson	$14.88	4,148
31	Hampton	$14.86	4,340
32	Carlisle	$14.82	4,381
33	Cherokee	$14.82	5,186
34	Glenwood	$14.77	5,250
35	Waukon	$14.76	3,799
36	Nevada	$14.58	7,082
37	Monticello	$14.49	4,095
38	Osceola	$14.37	5,585
39	Windsor Heights	$14.30	5,106
40	Osage	$14.29	3,559
41	Orange City	$14.01	6,547
42	Hiawatha	$13.78	7,347
43	Rock Valley	$13.76	4,024
44	Sergeant Bluff	$13.70	5,335
45	Emmetsburg	$13.70	3,632
46	Mount Vernon	$13.50	4,518
47	Adel	$13.43	6,763
48	Maquoketa	$12.85	6,064
49	Camanche	$12.75	4,536
50	Le Claire	$12.64	4,776
51	Tiffin	$11.80	6,695
52	Huxley	$11.68	4,737
53	Polk City	$11.00	6,430
54	Carter Lake	$10.67	3,752
55	Dyersville	$10.27	4,559
56	Spirit Lake	$10.17	5,548
57	Clear Lake	$9.85	7,602
58	Asbury	$8.32	6,051
59	Eldridge	$8.13	6,967
60	Evansdale	$8.00	4,515

The $8.10 limit

Sergeant Bluff’s general levy is $8.10 per $1,000 of taxable value in FY27, at the limit.⁴ 247 of 934 Iowa cities have a higher general levy. All cities.

$8.10

FY23 $8.10 · FY24 $8.10 · FY25 $7.86 · FY26 $7.79 · FY27 $8.10 (before FY25, the general levy alone)

Outside the limit: $5.60 more⁵

Debt Service Levy$3.93 · $1.0M
Total Employee Benefit Levies$1.49 · $363,558
Liability, property & self insurance costs$0.18 · $43,478

Tax increment financing (TIF)

Sergeant Bluff’s TIF revenue, from its reports to the state. It budgeted $213,533 in TIF revenue for FY25.

$142,690

$137,636

Year	TIF revenue
FY16	$63,653
FY17	$59,300
FY18	$93,790
FY19	$82,552
FY20	$32,280
FY21	$66,636
FY22	$142,690
FY23	$137,636

Show the numbers

Year	TIF revenue
FY16	$63,653
FY17	$59,300
FY18	$93,790
FY19	$82,552
FY20	$32,280
FY21	$66,636
FY22	$142,690
FY23	$137,636

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$2.0M58%
Debt Service Levy$1.0M30%
Total Employee Benefit Levies$363,55811%
Liability, property & self insurance costs$43,4781%

Budget and spending

Reading a local budget

Where each dollar of Sergeant Bluff’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 59 Iowa cities closest in size (3,600–7,800 people).

Where it goes	Of each dollar	Cities this size (59)
Business Type / Enterprise	52¢	36¢
Public Safety	16¢	13¢
Debt Service	9¢	7¢
Capital Projects	7¢	19¢
General Government	6¢	5¢
Everything else	10¢	19¢

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 Safety$2.1M33%
Debt Service$1.2M19%
Public Works$1.1M16%
Culture and Recreation$829,62513%
General Government$795,63912%
Capital Projects$300,0005%
Community and Economic Development$61,4001%
Health and Social Services$9,6000%

The state’s FY27 file doesn’t include business type / enterprise yet ($6.9M in FY26), so this total is low.

Budget compared with what it spent, FY23

Function	Budget	Spent
Public Works	$645,610	$671,860
Public Safety	$1.7M	$1.8M
Health and Social Services	$9,600	$9,600
General Government	$664,070	$1.1M
Debt Service	$785,116	$1.1M
Culture and Recreation	$729,490	$732,689
Community and Economic Development	$310,974	$167,778
Capital Projects	$0	$1.8M
Business Type / Enterprise	$6.4M	$6.5M

What it spent each year

FY24 left out⁶

$16.9M

Debt, reserves and audits

How local debt works · What an audit tells you

What Sergeant Bluff owes

$14.3M at June 30, 2026: $2,854 per resident. 301st most per resident of 939 Iowa places of its kind (the list).⁷

$18.4M

$14.3M

June 30	Owed	Per resident
2026	$14.3M	$2,854
2025	$15.8M	$3,142
2024	$17.1M	$3,412
2023	$18.4M	$3,676
2022	$18.1M	$3,600
2021	$16.5M	$3,291
2020	$17.4M	$3,469
2019	$11.4M	$2,274
2018	$11.1M	$2,215
2017	$10.7M	$2,126
2016	$9.9M	$1,981
2015	$10.7M	$2,132
2014	$9.8M	$1,956
2013	$9.8M	$1,956
2012	$10.7M	$2,138
2011	$7.7M	$1,541
2010	$6.8M	$1,363

Show the numbers

June 30	Owed	Per resident
2026	$14.3M	$2,854
2025	$15.8M	$3,142
2024	$17.1M	$3,412
2023	$18.4M	$3,676
2022	$18.1M	$3,600
2021	$16.5M	$3,291
2020	$17.4M	$3,469
2019	$11.4M	$2,274
2018	$11.1M	$2,215
2017	$10.7M	$2,126
2016	$9.9M	$1,981
2015	$10.7M	$2,132
2014	$9.8M	$1,956
2013	$9.8M	$1,956
2012	$10.7M	$2,138
2011	$7.7M	$1,541
2010	$6.8M	$1,363

Up 109% since 2010.

Money in reserve

The state’s budget files don’t include cities’ fund balances⁸. Sergeant Bluff’s latest audit has them: Financial Statement, period ending Monday, June 30, 2025 (PDF).

Audits⁹

The latest: Financial Statement for the period ending Monday, June 30, 2025 (PDF), released Thursday, April 30, 2026, by a CPA firm.

6 earlier reports for Sergeant Bluff

Financial Statement, period ending Sunday, June 30, 2024Tuesday, July 1, 2025
Financial Statement, period ending Friday, June 30, 2023Friday, June 28, 2024
Financial Statement, period ending Thursday, June 30, 2022Wednesday, July 5, 2023
Financial Statement, period ending Wednesday, June 30, 2021Monday, July 18, 2022
Financial Statement, period ending Tuesday, June 30, 2020Wednesday, March 31, 2021
Financial Statement, period ending Sunday, June 30, 2019Wednesday, July 1, 2020

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? ¹⁰

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: $789,454 in FY25, up 32% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 5% more. Grants are below.

Show the numbers

Source	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Road Use Tax (streets)	$680,624	$690,120	$774,812	$789,454
Commercial and industrial tax replacement (“backfill”)	–	$30,246	$22,685	–

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.

$423,695

Iowa DOT projects$407,74096%
State grants$15,9554%

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$10,884
FY20	$88,781
FY21	$136,242
FY22	$0
FY23	$0
FY24	$0
FY25	$423,695

Show the numbers

Year	Grants and projects
FY19	$10,884
FY20	$88,781
FY21	$136,242
FY22	$0
FY23	$0
FY24	$0
FY25	$423,695

Has it kept up with prices?

Each source from FY19 to FY25, after inflation.

Road Use Tax (streets)+14%$550,040 → $789,454, up 44% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 14% more

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 60% since FY19 while prices rose 25%, so it buys 27% more.

$903,706

Federal grants, for comparison: $1.7M in FY25.

Business awards

Every award statewide

State economic development awards

1 business has state awards in SERGEANT BLUFF: $842K in grants, loans and tax benefits, for 2 jobs.¹¹

Ag Processing Inc. a Cooperative
High Quality Jobs Program · FY22 · Under contract: Building · 2 jobs required
$842K

Community college new jobs training: 4 contracts since 2007 worth $3.6M, for 835 pledged jobs.

Awards statewide

Elections

Running for mayor and city council

Filing opens Monday, August 23, 2027: in 285 days.

For the Tuesday, November 2, 2027 election, candidates file Monday, August 23, 2027 to Thursday, September 16, 2027 with the county auditor (or the city clerk, if the auditor names the clerk to take them)¹².

In a city that can hold a primary, filing runs Monday, August 9, 2027 to Thursday, August 26, 2027.

Most recent: November 4, 2025

City · 2

Sergeant Bluff City Council At-Large

3 seats: the top 3 win.

Kirk Moriarty Winner1,00242.0%
Ryan Panowicz Winner1,00041.9%
Shari Zenor Kiple Winner28011.7%
Austin Tonner 1064.4%

Sergeant Bluff Mayor

Ronald Hanson Winner1,09289.9%
Seth Tonner 12310.1%

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

Who has filed for Tuesday, November 2, 2027

Filing hasn’t opened. These seats are expected on the ballot.

Sergeant Bluff City Council At-Large (2 seats)
Now held by Mark Reinders, Andrea Johnson

Candidates as county auditors and civicAPI list them; a filing can take a few days to appear here¹³.

Past ballot measures

None found since 2022.

When a measure can be on the ballot

Tuesday, March 2, 2027 · no bond or debt questions
Tuesday, September 14, 2027 · no bond or debt questions
Tuesday, November 2, 2027 · any question, including bonds
Tuesday, March 7, 2028 · no bond or debt questions

Bonds and other borrowing can only go on the November ballot¹⁴.

Related places

At the Statehouse and in Congress¹⁵

Kevin Alons (Sen. 7)Jacob Bossman (Rep. 14)

U.S. House:District 4

Woodbury County Sergeant Bluff-Luton schools

Notas

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 reports each government files with the Treasurer of State’s debt reporting site. “Per resident” divides by the population the site lists, the same figure for every year, so the trend shows the debt itself changing. ↩
The Department of Management’s city budget and annual report files on the Iowa Data Hub give revenue and spending by city, but no beginning or ending fund balances. A city’s audit or annual financial report has them, in its statement of net position and its fund balance schedules. ↩
From the Auditor of State’s list of audit reports. Every Iowa city, county and school district is audited or examined: larger ones each year by a CPA firm or the Auditor of State, small cities every few years. Findings are problems the auditors report, from weak controls over cash to breaking a law. ↩
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. ↩
From the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s project records on the Iowa Data Hub (High Quality Jobs and Targeted Jobs awards since about 2013). Projects that won’t go ahead aren’t counted. ↩
Iowa Code §376.4(1)(a): nomination papers are filed 71 to 47 days before the election, by 5:00 p.m. on the last day. Cities that may hold a primary election file earlier: 85 to 68 days before. ↩
Expected seats come from when each seat was last elected and its term. Filed candidates come from civicAPI and, in Black Hawk, Johnson and Scott counties, the auditor’s published candidate list, read weekly while filing is open. Check with the county auditor or city clerk before relying on it. Only names are shown. ↩
Iowa Code §39.2(4) (2026), paragraph d: “For any political subdivision of this state, if the special election is in whole or in part for the question of issuing bonds or other indebtedness, the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.” This applies to bond elections on or after July 1, 2023. Subsection 2 adds that “a special election for a city, school district, or merged area shall not be scheduled to coincide with the general election.” A few kinds of elections follow their own rules (“unless otherwise provided by law”). ↩
Legislative and congressional districts that cover Sergeant Bluff; percentages are rough shares of its area. These lawmakers write the state laws and budget Sergeant Bluff works within. ↩

Fuentes: 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.

Sergeant Bluff

Who runs it

Meetings and agendas

Property taxes

Who gets a property owner’s tax bill in Sergeant Bluff

Rates over time

Compared with places this size3

The $8.10 limit

Outside the limit: $5.60 more5

Tax increment financing (TIF)

The city’s levies, FY27

Budget and spending

Where each dollar of Sergeant Bluff’s budget goes, FY26

Planned spending, FY27

What it spent each year

Debt, reserves and audits

What Sergeant Bluff owes

Money in reserve

Audits9

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

Business awards

State economic development awards

Elections

Most recent: November 4, 2025

Who has filed for Tuesday, November 2, 2027

Past ballot measures

When a measure can be on the ballot

Related places

At the Statehouse and in Congress15

Compared with places this size³

Outside the limit: $5.60 more⁵

Audits⁹

At the Statehouse and in Congress¹⁵