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Local taxes › Cerro Gordo County

County

Cerro Gordo County

11 cities · 9 school districts · How counties work

$2,400 a yearproperty tax on a $200,000 home in a typical town here, FY27 (a rate of $28.54 per $1,000 of taxable value)1
$1,840 a yearon a $200,000 home in the countryside, FY27 ($21.90 per $1,000)
$45.9Mcounty budget, FY27
$3.73Btaxable value, 2025 valuations (+26.0% in 5 years)

Who runs it

The Board of Supervisors sets the county budget and its property tax; the other officers run elections, records, taxes and law enforcement.

  • IncomingCasey M. CallananCerro Gordo County Board of Supervisors District 2 · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingNikki FesslerCerro Gordo County Treasurer · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingAnnMarie LeglerCerro Gordo County Recorder · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingKaitlyn Kemna AusbornCerro Gordo County Attorney · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingColette SampsonCerro Gordo County Agricultural Extension Council · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingDalton CullinanCerro Gordo County Agricultural Extension Council · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingJill BaleCerro Gordo County Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioner · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingLucinda SheriffCerro Gordo County Agricultural Extension Council · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingPaige GrabeCerro Gordo County Agricultural Extension Council · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingPhillip DoughertyCerro Gordo County Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioner · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027
  • IncomingTodd CashCerro Gordo County Agricultural Extension Council · elected November 3, 2026, takes office in January 2027

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 Board of Supervisors is deciding: each agenda, the resolutions and ordinances on it, and a plain-language summary.

Iowa Funnel doesn’t read this county’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

Rates over time

Typical combined rate per $1,000 of taxable value, and the county government’s own rural levy.

Show the numbers
YearIn citiesRuralCounty’s rural levy
FY27$28.54$21.90$8.16
FY26$29.79$21.83$8.60
FY25$28.53$21.67$8.65
FY24$28.66$22.45$8.86
FY23$30.93$22.23$8.87
FY22$31.17$22.76$9.22
FY21$30.64$23.04$9.50
FY20$29.81$23.18$9.64

Rates by city, FY27

Typical combined rate in each city, per $1,000 of taxable value.

CityTypical rateSince FY22
Clear Lake$28.41+1.7%
Dougherty$45.14+34.5%
Mason City$37.24-3.1%
Meservey$33.19+6.4%
Nora Springs$30.99-0.6%
Plymouth$29.95-6.0%
Rock Falls$26.42+10.0%
Rockwell$37.30+16.3%
Swaledale$38.38+3.2%
Thornton$31.62+3.0%
Ventura$28.32-6.3%
Show the numbers
CityTypical rateSince FY22
Clear Lake$28.41+1.7%
Dougherty$45.14+34.5%
Mason City$37.24-3.1%
Meservey$33.19+6.4%
Nora Springs$30.99-0.6%
Plymouth$29.95-6.0%
Rock Falls$26.42+10.0%
Rockwell$37.30+16.3%
Swaledale$38.38+3.2%
Thornton$31.62+3.0%
Ventura$28.32-6.3%

Compared with places this size2

Cerro Gordo County’s countywide property tax rate of $4.98 per $1,000 is the 2nd lowest of 12 Iowa counties with 32,000–56,000 people. The middle of the group is $6.47.

Lee County: $9.59Wapello County: $7.64Muscatine County: $7.03Clinton County: $6.93Des Moines County: $6.82Webster County: $6.66Marshall County: $6.29Warren County: $5.65Marion County: $5.57Jasper County: $5.37Sioux County: $4.07Cerro Gordo County: $4.98$4.07 lowest$9.59 highestmiddle
See all 12
#PlaceRate per $1,000People
1Lee County$9.5932,376
2Wapello County$7.6435,681
3Muscatine County$7.0342,132
4Clinton County$6.9346,015
5Des Moines County$6.8238,411
6Webster County$6.6636,909
7Marshall County$6.2940,392
8Warren County$5.6556,343
9Marion County$5.5734,048
10Jasper County$5.3738,107
11Cerro Gordo County$4.9842,493
12Sioux County$4.0736,554

Think your assessment is wrong?

Start by talking with the assessor’s office. If that doesn’t settle it, you can file a written protest with the local board of review from April 2 to April 30 (May 1 to June 5 in a county declared a disaster area).3

Who values property here: Cerro Gordo County Assessor · City of Mason City Assessor

What a protest can and can’t change →

What’s taxed

$3.73B of taxable value in 2025 valuations, +26.0% since 2020. Who carries the load, by kind of property:

  • Homes$2.16B55%
  • Commercial$831.8M21%
  • Farmland and farm buildings$504.3M13%
  • Utilities, railroads and other$250.0M6%
  • Industrial$163.9M4%
Show the numbers
Valuation yearHomesFarmlandCommercialIndustrialTotal
2025$2.16B$504.3M$831.8M$163.9M$3.73B
2024$2.06B$459.2M$709.3M$161.9M$3.47B
2023$2.00B$445.9M$700.2M$146.4M$3.38B
2022$1.91B$411.0M$624.1M$127.9M$3.18B
2021$1.71B$394.2M$658.3M$176.7M$3.04B
2020$1.66B$372.0M$647.2M$185.6M$2.96B
2019$1.59B$360.2M$635.4M$188.7M$2.88B
2018$1.56B$346.3M$610.0M$182.5M$2.80B

Budget and spending

Reading a local budget

Where each dollar of the county’s budget goes, FY27

Public safety & legal services: 31¢ of every dollar31¢Roads & transportation: 21¢ of every dollar21¢Physical health & social services: 15¢ of every dollar15¢Administration: 12¢ of every dollar12¢Capital projects: 11¢ of every dollar11¢Everything else: 10¢ of every dollar10¢

Planned spending from all funds. “Counties this size” is the average for the 11 counties closest in size (32,000–56,000 people).

Where it goesOf each dollarCounties this size (11)
Public safety & legal services31¢29¢
Roads & transportation21¢26¢
Physical health & social services15¢7¢
Administration12¢13¢
Capital projects11¢10¢
Everything else10¢14¢

The county’s budget

Cerro Gordo County plans to spend $45.9M in FY27, from property taxes, state and federal money, fees and its reserves. It spent $39.7M in FY25.

  • Public safety & legal services$14.2M31%
  • Roads & transportation$9.7M21%
  • Physical health & social services$6.8M15%
  • Administration$5.7M12%
  • Capital projects$5.1M11%
  • Parks, libraries, extension & environment$3.0M7%
  • Services to residents (records, elections, licenses)$1.4M3%
  • Debt payments$24,6160%

Its property tax levies, FY27

Dollars per $1,000 of taxable value. Everyone in the county pays the countywide levies; people outside cities also pay the rural ones, which mostly pay for roads and rural services.

  • General Basic · countywide$3.40
  • General Supplemental · countywide$1.59
  • Countywide · countywide$4.98
  • Rural Basic · rural$3.17
  • Total Rural · rural$8.16

Roads: spending per mile

Cerro Gordo County spent $8.4M on roads and transportation in FY25, $8,686 for each of its 969 miles of county roads: 28th most of 99 counties (the middle county spent $7,810). It budgeted $9.7M for FY27.4

$9,953
$8,686
YearSpentPer mile
FY25$8.4M$8,686
FY24$8.2M$8,421
FY23$8.0M$8,219
FY22$9.7M$9,953
FY21$6.3M$6,529
FY20$7.3M$7,512
FY19$6.9M$7,136
FY18$6.4M$6,603
Show the numbers
YearSpentPer mile
FY25$8.4M$8,686
FY24$8.2M$8,421
FY23$8.0M$8,219
FY22$9.7M$9,953
FY21$6.3M$6,529
FY20$7.3M$7,512
FY19$6.9M$7,136
FY18$6.4M$6,603

Debt, reserves and audits

How local debt works · What an audit tells you

What Cerro Gordo County owes

$390,471 at June 30, 2026: $9 per resident. 89th most per resident of 99 Iowa counties (the list).5

$12.4M
$390,471
June 30OwedPer resident
2026$390,471$9
2025$1.4M$32
2024$2.3M$55
2023$3.3M$77
2022$4.2M$100
2021$5.2M$122
2020$6.0M$142
2019$6.9M$162
2018$7.7M$182
2017$8.6M$202
2016$9.8M$231
2015$11.0M$260
2014$10.8M$255
2013$11.4M$269
2012$12.0M$282
2011$11.9M$282
2010$12.4M$293
Show the numbers
June 30OwedPer resident
2026$390,471$9
2025$1.4M$32
2024$2.3M$55
2023$3.3M$77
2022$4.2M$100
2021$5.2M$122
2020$6.0M$142
2019$6.9M$162
2018$7.7M$182
2017$8.6M$202
2016$9.8M$231
2015$11.0M$260
2014$10.8M$255
2013$11.4M$269
2012$12.0M$282
2011$11.9M$282
2010$12.4M$293

Down 97% since 2010.

The 5% limit6

General obligation debt is $0, 0% of the limit of about $307.5M (5% of $6.15B, the full value of its taxable property in 2024).

4 obligations at June 30, 2026
KindForPaid off byOwed
Revenue BondsCity of Meservey Sanitary Sewer Project2041$185,696
Revenue BondsCity of Swaledale Sanitary Sewer Project2036$122,555
Revenue BondsClear Lake Dredging & Restoration Project2028$49,250
Revenue BondsCity of Meservey Sanitary Sewer Project2044$32,969

General obligation bonds are repaid from property taxes; revenue bonds and loans from the fees or revenue they’re tied to. On the Treasurer’s site

Money in reserve

Cerro Gordo County plans to end FY27 with $30.7M across its funds, about 8.0 months of its planned spending.7 Why governments keep reserves

8.0 mo
Show the numbers
YearStartEndMonths of spending
FY27–$30.7M8.0
FY26$31.9M$26.7M7.1
FY25$31.0M$26.1M7.3
FY24$31.1M$22.2M5.8
FY23$27.1M$19.2M5.4
FY22$20.9M$16.8M5.2
FY21$18.3M$15.6M4.9
FY20$18.8M$17.5M5.8
FY19$13.6M$13.4M4.6
FY18$14.3M$12.2M4.2
FY17$14.0M$12.1M4.4
FY16$12.9M$11.0M4.2

Audits8

The latest: Financial Statement for the period ending Monday, June 30, 2025 (PDF), released Friday, December 19, 2025, by a CPA firm.

19 earlier reports for Cerro Gordo County

Sales tax and state money

Where else the money comes from · Does state money keep pace?

Local option sales tax collected

The extra local sales tax voters approved, collected by the state and paid back to the county and its cities.

$11.6M
YearCollected
FY24$11.6M
FY23$10.5M
FY22$10.5M
FY21$10.7M
FY20$9.8M
FY19$8.9M
FY18$8.4M
FY17$8.5M
FY16$8.5M
FY15$8.4M
FY14$8.0M
Show the numbers
YearCollected
FY24$11.6M
FY23$10.5M
FY22$10.5M
FY21$10.7M
FY20$9.8M
FY19$8.9M
FY18$8.4M
FY17$8.5M
FY16$8.5M
FY15$8.4M
FY14$8.0M

Property tax credits the state pays

The state pays part of residents’ property tax bills (homestead, ag land and family farm, business, elderly and military credits): $2.7M in FY26, up 18% since FY14 while prices rose 39%, so it buys 15% less. County and city state aid for roads isn’t in the state’s county files yet.

Show the numbers
CreditFY26FY25FY24FY23FY22FY21
Homestead property tax credit$2.3M$2.2M$2.2M$2.3M$2.4M$2.2M
Ag land and family farm tax credits$357,505$383,519$428,502$458,787$407,362$420,447
Business property tax credit–$2.2M$2.7M$2.0M$2.1M$2.0M
Elderly and disabled property tax credit$86,058$93,744$111,246$105,568$115,446$123,763
Military service property tax credit––$25,704$26,986$28,732$30,581

Who received the state’s payments

Property tax credits and the local option sales tax the state collected and sent back, by recipient: $14.4M in FY26. The newest year may be partial.

  • City of Mason City$6.6M46%
  • Cerro Gordo County$5.1M35%
  • City of Clear Lake$1.8M13%
  • City of Rockwell$242,9562%
  • City of Nora Springs$182,0821%
  • City of Ventura$157,8401%
  • City of Thornton$92,4821%
  • City of Plymouth$81,4671%

Federal money, business awards and disasters

Federal money statewide · Business awards statewide

State economic development awards

2 businesses have state awards in Cerro Gordo County: $669K in grants, loans and tax benefits, for 76 jobs. Closed projects promised 76 jobs; 76 were there at the end.9

  • EVCO Holdings, LLC · Mason City
    High Quality Jobs Program · FY23 · Not going ahead: Contract ended · 115 jobs required
    $345K
  • Kraft Heinz Foods Company · Mason City
    High Quality Jobs Program · FY19 · Closed: Met its contract · 32 jobs required, 32 at the end
    $233K
  • Cargill Kitchen Solutions · Mason City
    High Quality Jobs Program · FY17 · Closed: Met its contract · 44 jobs required, 44 at the end
    $436K

Community college new jobs training: 41 contracts since 1995 worth $10.9M, for 1,578 pledged jobs.

Awards statewide

Elections

Most recent: November 3, 2026

County offices · 6

5 seats: the top 5 win.

2 seats: the top 2 win.

Townships · 13

    No candidates listed.

      No candidates listed.

        No candidates listed.

        Other local races · 1

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

        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 ballot10.

        Voter turnout11

        General electionCerro GordoIowaAbsentee
        202662.5% (18,638)63.4%38.2%

        Every county →

        Places in the county

        At the Statehouse and in Congress12

        Doug Campbell (Sen. 30)Christian A. Hermanson (Rep. 59, 74%)Jane Bloomingdale (Rep. 60, 26%)

        U.S. House:District 2

        Cities

        Clear LakeDoughertyMason CityMeserveyNora SpringsPlymouthRock FallsRockwellSwaledaleThorntonVentura

        School districts

        Central SpringsClear LakeForest CityGarner-HayfieldGarner-Hayfield-VenturaMason CityRudd-Rockford-Marble RockVenturaWest Fork