Tax Levy FAQs

• Tax Levy: The total revenue amount requested by a public taxing body (like a municipality or school district) to fund its operations for the upcoming fiscal year.
• Tax Extension: The actual revenue received by the taxing body. The County Clerk calculates the rate required to raise the requested levy amount, which may be limited by state law (such as the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law), resulting in an extension that is sometimes less than the original levy request.
   

The local governing board of each taxing unit (e.g., a Village Board, City Council, or School Board) determines the amount of money needed to fund services. The municipality must adopt an appropriation or budget ordinance and a separate tax levy ordinance following specific statutory procedures. 

The Village of Wonder Lake Board of Trustees will vote on a proposed 11.5% increase on December 17, 2025, which would result in an additional $83,088 in property tax revenue to be received by the Village in 2026. This does not mean that your property tax will increase by 11.5%, but that the request is 11.5% higher than last year’s extension because of new construction. The Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL) is projected to limit the increase to 2.9%.

PTELL is legislation that limits the increase in property tax extensions (actual revenue received) to 5% or the Consumer Price Index (CPI), whichever is less, not counting new construction or debt obligations. This law applies to most non-home rule municipalities and counties in Illinois.

The McHenry County Assessor’s Office has projected a tax cap of 2.9% (CPI) for the 2025 property taxes, which equates to $20,953 in additional property tax revenue available to the Village of Wonder Lake. 
 

Municipalities often submit a levy request higher than the anticipated final extension (a "balloon levy") because the final property values (Equalized Assessed Valuation or EAV) and new construction figures are not available when the levy is due (by the last Tuesday in December). If a district under-levies, it is impossible to recapture the lost revenue in future years; requesting a higher amount ensures they can receive all the money allowable by law once the final EAV is determined.

Each year the Village must consider two property tax sources, (1) existing property and (2) new construction property. 

(1)    The tax rate for existing property is limited by an existing tax cap which is determined annually according to the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL).

(2)    New construction property value is estimated, and the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL) is applied to that value.

• The reporting final tax rate is (1) the sum of existing property value, plus (2) the newly constructed property value.
• This sum is then compared to the previous year’s revenue and expressed as a percentage change from the previous year. That increase is a revenue increase from last year, NOT a tax rate increase. 
   

The levy is one of two main factors in determining your bill. The County Clerk uses the total EAV of properties in the taxing district and the total levy amount to calculate the tax rate. Your bill is calculated by multiplying your property's EAV (minus any exemptions) by that final tax rate. An increased levy may not necessarily mean a proportional increase in your bill if your property's assessed value changed differently than the district average, or if the overall EAV of the district increased significantly due to new construction. 

Example of Actual Village Property Owner:  

A single-family homeowner in the Village of Wonder Lake with a “Fair Market Value” of $293,710, paid $338.74 in property tax to the Village in 2024. This represents approximately 3.73% of the overall 2024 property tax bill. 

For questions about your specific assessment, contact your County Assessor's office. 

For questions about tax rates or how the levy was applied, contact your County Clerk's office. 

You can also find general property tax information on the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) website.