Papio-NRD Board approves 2024 budget, property tax levy decrease

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - The Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District voted to approve its 2024 budget at Thursday’s meeting -- including a “significant decrease” in the property tax levy.

For 18 of the last 19 years, the Papio NRD has either decreased or kept level the property tax levy. This fiscal year’s total tax request is nearly 2% above last year’s budget; the district’s property tax mill levy will drop by 10% this fiscal year -- from .347 to .031 per $100 of assessed valuation.

For context, a homeowner with property valued at $150,000 would pay $46.95 a year, or $3.91 a month, in property taxes next year to support NRD projects and services.

The NRD’s Board of Directors said in a release it was able to secure more than $20 million in grant funding. The NRD’s budget calls for around $30 million in revenue from the property tax levy -- about a third of the total $90.3 million operating budget.

The levy is based on an estimated 12.9% increase in property valuations across the six-county area the NRD serves. The NRD receives less than 2% of total property taxes collected in the area.