City-County Building
Common Council

Week of December 15, 2025

posted 

Dear Neighbors,

As we head into the final weeks of the year, I want to thank everyone in District 7 for staying engaged, asking thoughtful questions, and continuing to reach out on issues that matter to you. Below are updates for the coming week, along with an important explanation regarding the 2025 property tax bills that many residents received last week.

Winter Reminders

With winter weather continuing:

  • Please follow alternate-side parking rules during snow emergencies.
  • Sidewalk shoveling is required within 24 hours after snowfall.
  • If you see icy or unsafe conditions on City property, please report them through the City’s online reporting system.

Understanding Your 2025 Property Tax Bill

Many District 7 residents have reached out after receiving their 2025 property tax bills, noting significant increases. I want to share a clear explanation based on information provided by City of Madison Finance Director David Schmiedicke.

How Property Tax Bills Are Calculated

Your property tax bill is determined by:

  1. Your property’s assessed value, and
  2. The overall tax rate, which is set by the combined levies of multiple taxing jurisdictions:
    • Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD)
    • City of Madison
    • Dane County
    • Madison College (MATC)

The tax rate is calculated by dividing the total approved levies by the total taxable property value citywide.

What Drove the 2025 Increase?

For a typical example reviewed by the Finance Department:

  • Assessed value increased by ~6.0%
  • Overall tax rate increased by ~5.4%
  • Total tax bill increase: ~12.1%

Here is how each jurisdiction contributed:

Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD)

  • 12.5% increase in the tax rate
  • 7.7% decrease in the State School Levy Tax Credit
  • Combined with assessment changes, this resulted in approximately a 24.7% increase in the school portion of the tax bill.

MMSD has approved a $668 million budget for 2025–26, including:

  • $577.1 million for day-to-day operations
  • Increased investments in staffing, student programs, and facilities
  • ~20% increase in the district’s total property tax levy
  • ~19.5% decrease in state aid
  • Continued strong financial reserves and high bond ratings

Residents with questions about MMSD’s budget can:

  • Use the district’s Let’s Talk tool (Planning, Budget, Purchasing & Accounting)
  • MMSD uses Let's Talk to receive input from the community and the link is https://www.madison.k12.wi.us/contact-us/lets-talk. At the link, you can select the tile called " Planning, Budget, Purchasing & Accounting". Calls can be directed to Bob Soldner, Assistant Superintendent for Financial Services, at 608-442-2145.

City of Madison

  • 4.1% decrease in the City tax rate
  • Combined with assessment changes, resulted in approximately a 1.6% increase in the City portion of the bill

It is also important to note that the City operating referendum approved by voters in November 2024 added funding for City services and first appeared on tax bills in December 2024.

Dane County

  • 1% decrease in the tax rate
  • Resulted in approximately a 5% increase due to assessment changes

Madison College (MATC)

  • 3.6% decrease in the tax rate
  • Resulted in approximately a 2.2% increase due to assessment changes

What About Future Tax Increases?

The City of Madison has a long-range operating plan that forecasts revenues and expenditures over the next 5 years.  This forecast assumes that the property tax levy will grow as defined by the State Legislature, only by the change in property value added by new construction [see pages 19 and 20 of the Executive Summary of the 2026 Executive Operating Budget].

You may want to contact other taxing jurisdictions within the boundaries of the City of Madison (MMSD, Dane County, MATC) for more information about their long-range operating plans.

Property Tax Relief Options

Wisconsin’s local government funding structure is largely set by the State Legislature. As a result, local options for tax relief are limited.

Currently:

  • The financing structure (allowable revenues, state aid, and allowable expenditures) of local government in Wisconsin is defined in state statutes as enacted by the State Legislature.  The State Legislature is responsible for property tax relief programs.  The City of Madison offers residents that are age 65 or older with eligible household income levels a mortgage loan assistance program.  This type of program is all that can be offered by the City of Madison to address property tax relief under state statutes and the State Constitution.
  • Other relief programs (such as Homestead Credit or deferral programs) are administered at the state level.

Ongoing Advocacy and Transparency

Concerns about aligning property tax growth with household income are valid and shared by many residents. These issues involve:

  • State revenue limits
  • State aid formulas
  • The structure of school funding
  • Long-term sustainability of local government finance

I remain committed to:

  • Sharing clear, accurate information
  • Advocating for transparency
  • Working collaboratively with residents, City staff, and other levels of government

Please continue to reach out with questions or concerns. Your engagement helps shape better decisions for District 7 and the City as a whole.

Updates and Notices

Envision Downtown Madison kick-off meeting materials are now available! Thanks to the approximately 175 people who attended the Envision Downtown Madison kick-off meeting on December 2nd.  If you missed the meeting, you can still participate as all meeting materials are now available on the Downtown Area Plan webpage. This includes the meeting video, presentation slides, and digital versions of the engagement activities. A summary of comments will be prepared and shared in early 2026. See the Spanish version of the video recording here. If you have any questions, or would like to schedule a conversation or presentation with City staff, please reach out to downtownplan@cityofmadison.com

John Nolen Drive Project: Get current information about road closures and construction updates for John Nolen Drive.

Boards, Commissions, and Committee Meetings

Note: This is not a complete list of meetings for this upcoming week. All meetings and their details can be found at the Meeting Schedule page.

If you would like more information about becoming a member of a City board, commission, or committee, please visit the page linked here.

Public Information Meetings (PIMs)

Announcements and News Releases

  • Love Our Lakes: City Strategies to Maintain and Improve Lake Health: The City of Madison Common Council will host a focused discussion titled “Love Our Lakes: City Strategies to Maintain and Improve Lake Health.” This conversation will highlight both ongoing and future initiatives to protect, restore, and enhance the… [posted December 12, 2025]
  • Affordable Housing Fund to Support 400+ New Homes: The City of Madison’s Common Council has approved nearly $14 million from the Affordable Housing Fund to support the creation of approximately 425 new rental homes across the City, with more than 260 of those offering permanent affordability. [posted December 10, 2025]
  • Common Council passes third Housing Forward package of 2025 : The City of Madison Common Council approved two more housing-focused ordinances during its December 9 meeting, capping off a year of impactful policy changes to make it easier to build more homes across Madison. [posted December 9, 2025]
  • Streets Division Drop-off Sites on Winter Hours until April 11, 2026: The Streets Division drop-off sites at 4602 Sycamore Avenue and 402 South Point Road are now on winter hours. The winter hours began on Friday, December 5, 2025. The last day for winter hours is Friday, April 10, 2026.  Expanded hours return on… [posted December 8, 2025]
  • New Snowplow Trading Cards Now Available!: The City of Madison is proud to present a new set of trading cards featuring our named snowplowing fleet. The cards are available for free at any Madison Public Library location and from the Streets Division offices while supplies last. [posted December 8, 2025]

Please visit the City news webpage to find additional news and announcements and to subscribe to receive notification of news releases as they are posted.

Events

Join the City of Madison Common Council on Tuesday, December 16, at 6:05 p.m. for a focused discussion that will highlight both ongoing and future initiatives to protect, restore, and enhance the city’s interconnected lake system. Read the full press release for complete details. -> https://www.cityofmadison.com/news/2025-12-12/love-our-lakes-city-strategies-to-maintain-and-improve-lake-health

Love Our Lakes: City Strategies to Maintain and Improve Lake Health.
Image credit: City of Madison

Additional upcoming events can also be found on the City events calendar.

Stay Connected

  • Sign up for District 7 blog updates to receive weekly posts and announcements.
  • Reach out anytime by email or phone if you need assistance or want to share feedback.

Thank you for being engaged and for helping make District 7 a strong, connected community.

Stay warm and stay safe,
Badri Lankella
Alder - District 7

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District 7 - Alder Lankella

Portrait of Alder Badri Lankella

Alder Badri Lankella

District 7
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