Government and civic life
🏛️ Local Government 101: Budgets, Levies and Bonds
Learn who governs the counties, cities, school districts and special districts on your tax bill, how their budgets are built, how Idaho's levy math and 3 percent cap work, and how to read a bond, a fee or a tax bill well enough to question it or testify about it.
- 1Who Governs What: Counties, Cities, Schools and Special DistrictsSort out the separate local governments that share your property tax bill, who sits on each board, and which one to call about which line.14 min
- 2The Budget Cycle: From Department Requests to a Certified LevyFollow an Idaho local budget from spring requests to the September certification, with the legal deadlines for counties, cities and school districts.15 min
- 3Funds, Budget Books and Audits: Reading the DocumentsLearn the fund types every local budget uses, how to find what matters in a budget book, and what an audit or ACFR can tell you that the budget cannot.16 min
- 4Property Tax Math: Value, Exemptions, Levy Rates and Your BillCompute a levy rate and a homeowner's tax from scratch, apply Idaho's homeowner exemption, and see why rising values do not by themselves raise total taxes.17 min
- 5Idaho's 3 Percent Cap, New Construction and Forgone BalancesWork through Idaho Code 63-802 step by step: the 3 percent growth limit, the new construction and annexation additions, the 8 percent ceiling, forgone balances and the voter overrides.18 min
- 6Levies and Bonds: Supplementals, Plant Facilities, Overrides and DebtTell supplemental, plant facilities and override levies apart, compare general obligation and revenue bonds, and compute what a bond costs a homeowner, with Idaho's vote thresholds and election dates.19 min
- 7Fees, Impact Fees and Enterprise Funds: Water, Sewer and GrowthTell a fee from a tax under Idaho law, follow how water and sewer rates get set, and check an impact fee against the Idaho Development Impact Fee Act.16 min
- 8Reading a Tax Bill and Comparing YearsRead every line of an Idaho property tax bill and assessment notice, split a year-over-year change into its value and rate causes, and find which district moved.15 min
- 9Following the Money and Testifying on a BudgetHow Idaho's open meetings and public records laws let you track a local budget all year, and what makes testimony a board can act on.17 min