By Maya Betti, News Intern
Northfield’s 2024 audit reveals a continued increase in both the city’s tax rate and the amount of taxes collected per resident, slightly surpassing state and county averages for similar cities, according to a presentation given by Tom Olinger, an auditor from the firm Abdo Financial, at a June 10 City Council meeting.
The audit presentation did not include updated statewide comparisons for 2023 or 2024, which limits direct benchmarking.
In 2022, Rice County cities had an average tax rate of 56%, and other cities that were within Northfield’s population range averaged around 51%.
Northfield’s was almost 60%.
Tax revenue per capita also continues to rise. In 2021, Northfield collected $576 per resident. That number has steadily climbed to $809 in 2024 — an increase of over 40 percent in four years.
Coverage of the Northfield 2024 Audit
City Council Receives Audit Report; Northfield’s Finances Stay Strong Heading into 2025
Northfield Liquor Store Receives Audit; Slightly Outperforms State Average
In the last part of this series of the audit, we will be covering the future bond rating of the city, which the city recently received a report on.
This trend is tied to city investment, according to Olinger, but is demonstrative of smart investing more than anything.
“It almost raises a red flag if you’re consistently running lower than where it is. Because then you kind of ask — are you reinvesting back into the community? Are you keeping your infrastructure up? What does that look like? In these situations, you [the City of Northfield] have been reinvesting. You have been following your debt plan going forward with the capital expenditures,” – Tom Olinger of Abdo Financial at the 6/10/2025 Northfield City Council Work Session
Two charts tracking the debt level held by the City of Northfield (left) showing a chart of the Debt Service cost to the total of current expenditures and (right) the long-term debt cost to the city from the 6/10/2025 City Council Meeitng.
City records show that investment has taken shape through infrastructure upgrades, new capital projects and long-term financial planning. Northfield’s debt per capita has grown in recent years, but the audit confirms that these increases are tied to a structured capital improvement plan.
Importantly, expenditures in Northfield were largely in line with those of other cities of similar size, even if the city’s tax rate is higher. That means residents are receiving a comparable level of service and investment for their tax dollars.
Overall, the city received a clean audit report or an “unmodified opinion.”
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