MARSHALL — Lyon County is looking at a levy increase of up to 4.2% for 2025, Lyon County Administrator Loren Stomberg said this week.

“It’s been a tougher budgeting year for 2025, mainly because of the financial swings with interest,” said Stomberg. “But we’re still in pretty good shape.”

On Tuesday, Stomberg and county commissioners went over the county’s preliminary tax levy and budget during the county’s annual Truth in Taxation meeting. In September, commissioners set a preliminary levy increase of 4.2% from 2024. The final version of the levy can be lower than that, but not higher.

“That’s as high as it can go,” Stomberg said.

The proposed county budget for 2025 included a net levy of about $16.89 million. That would be an increase of about $681,000, or 4.2%, from 2024. Changes in revenue from interest were a major factor driving the increase, Stomberg said.

Stomberg said the 4.2% preliminary levy increase was “a little bit higher than we’ve had, historically.” Lyon County had a 1.1% levy increase going from 2023 to 2024.

Stomberg said the proposed 2025 budget and levy included a roughly $500,000 increase in general revenue for the county, as well as increases to the road and bridge fund and the Southwest Health and Human Services levy.

“In the road and bridge fund, we’re looking at a 5% increase. That $130,000 is predominantly all wage adjustments that we have every year,” Stomberg said. The SWHHS levy came in at “just shy” of $4.2 million, he said. Meanwhile, the county’s debt service levy would stay the same as 2024, at about $1.26 million.

The requested increases would exceed the 4.2% preliminary levy, Stomberg said.

“So the board made the conscious decision to use some general fund balance to balance that budget,” he said. “We will be, on paper, dipping into the checkbook a little bit, to the tune of $209,000.”

Stomberg said he had never advised using the general fund balance in that way in the past.

“But this is a little bit of a unique year, in that compared to last year, where we had interest rates that were in the 5% range, we’re forecasting down into three and-a-half, 4%. That cuts our interest income quite a bit,” he said.

“I’m probably not as confident going into 2025 as I was in 2024 that we’re in a real good spot, but we’re not in a bad spot,” Stomberg added.

The county board will act to approve a final budget and levy for 2025 at their next meeting, on Dec. 17.