Stutsman County Commission hears budget requests from library, airport
Stutsman County commissioners heard levy requests from the library and airport, two asks that would hit property owners differently: daily services or regional connectivity.
The Stutsman County Commission heard mill levy budget requests from the James River Valley Library System and the Jamestown Regional Airport, forcing a public choice that will show up on county property tax bills. The county’s 2024 levy sheets already show how layered local taxes can be, making every added mill a direct cost for residents.
Under North Dakota’s mill formula, one mill equals 1/1,000 of taxable value. On a home with a $200,000 market value, taxable value works out to about $9,000, so one mill is about $9 a year and 4 mills is about $36. That matters because the library system’s levy had already been approved to rise to 4 mills, turning a small-sounding number into a real annual charge for property owners.
The library’s case rests on everyday use. The James River Valley Library System had projected a break-even 2025 budget, while its website lists online library accounts, interlibrary loan, materials requests, a Library of Things, a seed library, printing, library hours and meeting room reservations. Its board includes Emaline Roorda, David Schloegel, Amanda Hastings, Jackie Barnes, Denise Waldie, Meranda Vetsch and Melissa Thury, and it regularly meets on the second Wednesday of each month at 3:30 p.m. at Alfred Dickey Library.
The airport’s ask is different. The Jamestown Regional Airport Authority received more than $2 million in Federal Aviation Administration Airport Infrastructure Grant Program money on May 14, 2025, part of a $5.8 million package for North Dakota airports. That federal funding was meant to expand an existing 9,450-square-foot snow removal equipment and sand storage building by 1,500 square feet, underscoring the airport’s winter-operations needs and its broader role in business travel, medical trips, emergency access and regional connectivity.
Stutsman County’s commission is a five-member board elected at large, and it meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month. The county’s transparency portal and open budget portal are meant to give residents a public view of county finances, while the 2024 levy documentation lays out mill rates across taxing districts. That is the backdrop for both requests: commissioners must decide whether the return from library services and airport connectivity justifies the added tax burden on county property owners.
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