Greensburg expected to hold tax rate as decision on garage grant is delayed

Greensburg is expected to hold the line on property taxes in 2026.

“There’s no tax increase, we have no plans on changing that at all,” said Councilman Randy Finfrock.

While the rate is expected to stay at 27.95 mills, the city plans in 2026 to redirect some of the expected property tax revenue, about $40,000 to $50,000, into into a sinking fund used to pay down debt from the general fund, he said. A surplus in the sinking fund no longer exists, so council will have to make some decisions next year about its debt structuring.

“We’ve got to be able to pay our debt in order to keep our bond rating,” he said.

The proposed $13.4 million spending plan for next year was introduced at Greensburg council’s meeting on Monday. It will be up for a final vote in December.

Finfrock discussed some concerns, ranging from rising electricity costs to property reassessments, during a public hearing on the draft plan. He said reassessments of commercial properties resulted in the citywide total assessed value decreasing by about $1.5 million.

“That impacts what we can collect,” he said.

Councilman Gregory Mertz said commercial property owners around the county use reassessments as a way to pay less in property taxes. The taxing bodies have to approve the reassessments and Finfrock said it would be costly to fight them.

On top of the reduction in overall assessed value, the city is collecting about 96% of property taxes, down from 98% in recent years.

“We might not be able to hold that 96% as the economy sours and people walk away from their homes,” Finfrock said.

One part of the city’s proposed 2026 budget is still up in the air — whether it will be awarded a $1 million state grant for repairs to the Robert A. Bell Parking Garage. If that funding doesn’t come through, officials will have to find it elsewhere, Finfrock said.

The work is a priority.

“We’re sitting here with our hands tied until the state lets us know,” he said. “The state normally lets us know on these things at the end of September. … Because they have no budget, they can’t authorize the expenditures.”

“That part is written in pencil. If we get the money, great, because that’ll open up other capital expenditures. If we don’t get the money, then, oh crap, we have to do other things. So how it works out, we don’t know yet.”