Peotone Township Adopts Budgets for 2025-26 Fiscal Year

The Peotone Township Board of Trustees unanimously adopted its operating budgets for the 2025-26 fiscal year, finalizing the township’s spending plans following public hearings held just before its regular meeting on May 19.

The board approved two separate measures to formally enact the budgets. The first, Ordinance 1.24, established the Town Fund Budget, which covers general administrative and operational expenses. The second, Ordinance 2.24, set the budgets for the Road and Bridge, Hard Road, and Equipment funds, which finance the maintenance and improvement of the township’s infrastructure.

Both ordinances passed on unanimous roll call votes. Supervisor Gene Younker and Trustees James Morgan, Ron Schubbe, Randy Swartz, and Grant Heatherwick all voted in favor of adoption. The approved budgets will govern township spending from April 2025 through March 2026. The minutes of the meeting did not contain specific dollar amounts for the approved budgets or the property tax levies required to fund them.

The final budget adoption comes as residents are receiving their latest property tax bills from Will County. In her report to the board, Assessor Virginia Gates-Hamann noted that her office has been “extremely busy answering phone calls” from residents with questions about their new bills. The influx of inquiries has highlighted the need for more personnel, and Gates-Hamann announced that her office is currently looking to hire field staff.

Prior to the regular meeting, the board held the legally required public hearings on the Town Fund and Road Fund budgets. This provided a final opportunity for public review and comment before the trustees took their official vote. With the budgets now in place, the township has its financial roadmap for the coming year.

The board also processed a series of routine financial matters, unanimously approving the monthly budget reports, financial summary, and the payment of bills from the Town Fund, Road & Bridge Funds, and Building and Equipment Funds.