Dupage Policy Journal

City of Elmhurst Finance Council Affairs & Administrative Services Committee met Sept. 22

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

1. Call to Order

Chair Talluto called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.

2. Roll Call 

Committee Members Present: Talluto, Nudera, Hill, Virgil

Committee Members Absent:

Other Elected Officials Present: Curran

City Staff and Others Present: Coyle, Bruns, Kravets

3. Public Comment

None.

4. Receipt of Written Communication

None.

5. Business Before the Committee

A. Minutes of the September 8, 2025, meeting of the Finance, Council Affairs & Administrative Services Committee

A motion to approve the minutes of the September 8, 2025, FCA&AS Committee meeting was made by Alderman Virgil and seconded by Alderman Hill. A voice vote was taken, and the minutes were approved unanimously.

B. Operating Budget Revenues

Director Coyle presented the performance and expectations of several key revenues ahead of the 2026 budget review by City Council. Current 2025 projections indicate the City will receive $16.9 million in sales taxes, which is a record high level for the City. Illinois Public Act 103-0983 mandated that all retail sales originating from outside of Illinois without an Illinois nexus be subject to destination-based Retailers’ Occupation Tax rather than use tax beginning January 1, 2025, which has contributed to the higher sales tax revenue in 2025. Sales tax is expected to increase approximately $478,000 in 2026 due to the change, with an equivalent decrease in use tax collected in 2026. Effective January 1, 2026, there will no longer be grocery sales taxes collected through sales tax. The City implemented its own grocery tax which will replace the grocery taxes that were collected via the state sales tax. As a result, the sales tax revenues are adjusted downwards $1.5 million representing the amount of grocery tax projected to be collected. The resulting 2026 budget for sales tax revenue, net of the changes to use tax and grocery tax is $15.9 million.

The change from PA 103-0983 also positively impacts home rule sales tax (HRST). Staff is conservatively budgeting for 2026 sales tax revenue equal to the 2025 estimated revenue. Home Rule Sales tax is projected for 2026 at a 2.4% increase from the 2025 estimated total of $14 million, which matches the average increase from 1994-2022. As already noted, a law change has shifted revenue from use tax to sales tax. Based on Illinois Municipal League (IML) per capita estimates, 2026 use tax revenue is budgeted at $171,300. The City is budgeting income tax conservatively by using the median of the 2025 estimated total and the 2026 budgeted per capita projection provided by the IML. Additional general fund revenues discussed include food & beverage taxes, electricity taxes, building permits, vehicle licenses and real estate transfer tax. TIF and Parking Fund revenues were also reviewed with the Committee.

C. Referral Introduction – Council Member Compensation

In 2024 a referral was submitted requesting a review of council member compensation. The Committee had a preliminary discussion on the topic, noting that compensation was last adjusted in 2000. The Committee indicated that based on the length of time since it was last changed, an adjustment based on inflation since 2001 warrants examination. The compensation review encompasses the elected positions of Mayor, Clerk, Treasurer, and Aldermen, as well as appointed positions on the Board of Police and Fire Commission. For comparison, staff provided results from a recent survey taken by the DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference regarding elected official compensation. The Committee requested additional data points be added to the survey results, including population and the number of wards for each community. Staff will bring back additional information to a future committee meeting.

6. Other Business

The Committee discussed the schedule of upcoming Council and Committee meetings.

7. Adjournment

A motion to adjourn was made by Alderman Nudera and seconded by Alderman Hill. Motion carried by unanimous voice vote.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:53 p.m.

https://go.boarddocs.com/il/coe/Board.nsf/Public