Skip to content
Open Government

City

City of Rockford

Kent County

City of Rockford is a city in Kent County, Michigan. In 2025, primary homes here pay a total of 42.26 mills in property tax; rentals, second homes and businesses pay 60.26 mills. It levied property tax in 1 tax area in 2025. In fiscal year 2025 it reported $15.6 million in spending across all its funds. It has 14 boards and sub-entities.

Total property tax rate, primary homes

42.26

mills in 2025 · 1 tax area · about $6,876 a year on a median home (estimate)

Total property tax rate, rentals, second homes and businesses

60.26

mills in 2025 · includes the school operating tax

Levies, 2025

2

in 1 tax area

Boards and sub-entities

14

Total property tax rates here, 2025

What property pays to every taxing body (the State, county, schools, local government and others), by tax area. A mill is $1 of tax per $1,000 of taxable value.

Compare with every tax area in Kent County →

School district Primary homes mills Median home est. yearly tax Rentals, second homes and businesses mills
Rockford Public Schools 42.2638 $6,876 60.2638

Kent County's certified rates split each area's total between a summer and a winter tax bill; open an area below to see its split.

Primary homes, which their owners live in, pay the homestead rate; so do qualified farmland and a few other kinds of property exempt from the school operating tax. Rentals, second homes and most businesses pay the non-homestead rate, which includes it. What these terms mean

Median home, estimated: the yearly tax a new buyer would pay on a primary home at Kent County's median value, $325,400 (Census Bureau, 2024): half the value times the mills, divided by 1,000. An estimate, not a bill. How the estimate works

Every levy, by tax area

Rockford Public Schools · 42.2638 primary homes, 60.2638 other

Billed in 2 parts, in mills: primary homes summer 34.1106, winter 8.1532; rentals, second homes and businesses summer 43.1106, winter 17.1532.

Levy Levied by Primary homes mills Median home est. yearly tax Rentals, second homes and businesses mills
Allocated or Charter Operating City of Rockford 12.8424 $2,089 12.8424
School Debt Rockford Public Schools 7.0000 $1,139 7.0000
State Education Tax State of Michigan 6.0000 $976 6.0000
ISD Voted Special Education Kent ISD 4.3364 $706 4.3364
County Allocated Operating Kent County 4.0605 $661 4.0605
Community College Grand Rapids Community College 1.6793 $273 1.6793
Library Kent District Library 1.0832 $176 1.0832
Debt or Street Lights (Real Property Only) City of Rockford 0.9500 $155 0.9500
ISD Voted Vocational Education Kent ISD 0.9310 $151 0.9310
Extra Voted Millage Rockford Public Schools 0.8875 $144 0.8875
Jail Kent County 0.7417 $121 0.7417
Senior Citizens Kent County 0.4914 $80 0.4914
Building and Site Rockford Public Schools 0.4662 $76 0.4662
Zoo and Museum Kent County 0.4134 $67 0.4134
Ready by Five Kent County 0.2476 $40 0.2476
ISD Allocated Operating Kent ISD 0.0841 $14 0.0841
Veterans Kent County 0.0491 $8 0.0491
School Operating (Non-Homestead) Rockford Public Schools 0.0000 $0 18.0000

Where the property tax goes here

Each tax area's total for primary homes, split by who levies it.

Of the $6,876 a year a new buyer of a median primary home here would pay (an estimate), about $2,244 goes to the City of Rockford (33%). The rest goes to the other bodies that levy here: the State, the county, the schools and others.

Its total rate for primary homes ranks 8th highest of Kent County's 94 tax areas. See every area

  • State
  • County
  • ISD and college
  • School district
  • City, township or village
  • Library, transit and other
  • City of Rockford Rockford Public Schools 42.2638 mills $6,876

    City of Rockford with Rockford Public Schools: 42.2638 mills in total (State 6.0000, County 6.0037, ISD and college 7.0308, School district 8.3537, City, township or village 13.7924, Library, transit and other 1.0832), estimated $6,876 a year for a new buyer

The figures as a table
Tax area State County ISD and college School district City, township or village Library, transit and other Total Estimated tax
City of Rockford, Rockford Public Schools 6.0000 6.0037 7.0308 8.3537 13.7924 1.0832 42.2638 $6,876

Median home, estimated: the yearly tax a new buyer would pay on a primary home at Kent County's median value, $325,400 (Census Bureau, 2024): half the value times the mills, divided by 1,000. An estimate, not a bill. How the estimate works

What City of Rockford levies, 2025

Only its own millages, part of the totals above, and how many tax areas each is levied in.

Levy Primary homes mills Median home est. yearly tax Rentals, second homes and businesses mills Tax areas
Allocated or Charter Operating 12.8424 $2,089 12.8424 1
Debt or Street Lights (Real Property Only) 0.9500 $155 0.9500 1

Median home, estimated: the yearly tax a new buyer would pay on a primary home at Kent County's median value, $325,400 (Census Bureau, 2024): half the value times the mills, divided by 1,000. An estimate, not a bill. How the estimate works

Money in and out, fiscal year 2025

From its annual financial report, as filed with the Michigan Department of Treasury. Its fiscal year ends in June.

Revenue

$16.5M

all funds

Spending

$15.6M

all funds

Spending per resident

$2,476

2024 population: 6,291

General fund spending

$5.8M

budget: $6.3M

Spending by purpose

All funds. Share of $15,573,525 in total.

  • Public works $5,931,106 38%
    Public Works (Non-Act 51) $534,878
    Road Commission/Street Dept. (Act 51) $948,434
    Water and/or Sewer Systems $4,159,026
    Other Public Works Enterprise-Activities $187,807
    All Other Public Works $100,961
  • Capital outlay, debt service and other $2,903,197 19%
    Capital Outlay $1,568,073
    Debt Service $637,848
    Depreciation $697,276
  • Public safety $2,569,215 16%
    Combined Public Safety Department $2,569,215
  • General government $1,094,429 7%
    Legislative (Council, Board, Commission) $37,047
    Chief Executive $670,912
    Assessing Equalization $117,018
    Elections $29,042
    Building and Grounds $30,770
    All Other General Government $209,640
  • Recreation and culture $486,136 3%
    Parks and Recreation $342,479
    Library $62,900
    All Other Recreation and Culture $80,757
  • Community and economic development $480,185 3%
    Economic Development $368,456
    All Other Community Development $111,729
  • Transfers out and special items $2,109,257 14%
    Transfers (Out) $2,109,257

Revenue by source

All funds. Share of $16,469,515 in total.

  • Taxes $4,737,920 29%
    Payment in-Lieu-of Taxes (PILOT) $2,626
    Industrial Facilities Tax (Act 198 of 1974) $8,874
    Property Tax (includes, delinquent taxes, penalties, interest, fees, community wide special assessments) $4,726,420
  • Charges for services $4,672,815 28%
    All Other Services Rendered Charges $155,550
    All Other Sales, Use, & Admission Fees $4,491,803
    All Other Statutory Fees $25,462
  • State grants $2,470,909 15%
    State Revenue Sharing $715,387
    Public Safety $70,676
    Streets and Highways (Act 51) $754,721
    Streets and Highways (Non-Act 51) $22,362
    Culture and Recreation $492,018
    Other General/All Other State Aid Grants $415,745
  • Other revenue $1,105,723 7%
    Reimbursements $7,213
    Public and Private Contributions $1,016,890
    Refunds & Rebates $32,849
    Miscellaneous Other Revenue $48,771
  • Interest and rents $705,478 4%
    Interest & Dividends $564,924
    Rents & Royalties $140,554
  • From other local governments $369,503 2%
    General Government $66,500
    Public Safety $121,698
    Culture and Recreation $170,132
    All Other $11,173
  • Federal grants $219,729 1%
    All Other Federal Aid Grants $219,729
  • Licenses and permits $73,487 <1%
    Business Licenses and Permits $73,487
  • Fines and forfeits $4,694 <1%
    All Fines, Penalties & Forfeits $4,694
  • Borrowing and transfers in $2,109,257 13%
    Transfers In $2,109,257

"All funds" is the report's total column: the general fund, other governmental funds, enterprise funds such as water and sewer, internal service funds and component units. Its totals include money moved between the government's own funds, and revenue includes money borrowed. Spending per resident is total spending divided by the population shown; the shares are each heading's part of its total. Open a heading to see the lines filed under it.

Population: DashBoard_Metrics (MI Community Financial Dashboard), Michigan Department of Treasury.

Source: FY2025 F65 City, Michigan Department of Treasury, retrieved November 3, 2026.

Revenue and spending, fiscal years 2016–2025

All funds, as filed each year.

Revenue Spending
The figures as a table
Fiscal year Revenue Spending General fund spending Long-term debt
2025 $16,469,515 $15,573,525 $5,822,719 $4,326,791
2024 $18,025,367 $14,369,246 $5,209,993 $4,989,179
2023 $17,503,194 $13,438,763 $5,862,921 $5,797,854
2022 $11,404,342 $9,741,140 $4,193,437 $2,615,805
2021 $11,338,092 $10,179,829 $4,389,306 $3,121,316
2020 $10,046,058 $9,164,916 $3,821,253 $3,724,632
2019 $10,579,757 $10,738,383 $4,052,617 $4,317,948
2018 $11,503,974 $9,371,226 $4,127,169 $4,719,000
2017 $8,461,317 $7,643,937 $3,344,691 $2,296,160
2016 $7,676,683 $6,826,838 $3,252,273 $2,882,006

Each year links to the dataset it comes from. A year with dashes across has no report in the State's data.

Debt, pensions and staff, fiscal year 2025

As reported in the same filing.

Debt and fund balance

Long-term debt at year end
$4,326,791
General fund balance at year end
$2,687,269
Of which unassigned
$2,379,230

Pensions and retiree health care

Unfunded pension liability
$3,933,446
Pension funded, general employees
71%
Pension funded, police and fire
—
Unfunded retiree health care (OPEB)
—

Staff

Police
—
Fire
—
Combined public safety
17
All other staff
63
Wages and salaries
$2,772,548

A dash means the State's data has no figure for that line. Its datasets leave out zero amounts in most years, so a dash can also be a zero that was filed. The unfunded pension liability is the filing's "aggregate pension liability" line.

Source: FY2025 F65 City, Michigan Department of Treasury, retrieved November 3, 2026.

Boards and sub-entities

Authorities and special districts

Boards, commissions and committees

Transparency checks

What this body files with the State and posts online, checked against the law and good practice.

Grade pending

A grade appears once every check below has been read and the site has set its grading scale. Every check counts the same.

Required by law

6 found · 1 not found

  • Found: Audit filed with the State for the latest fiscal year

    Treasury's Document Search shows the audit for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 as received, sent October 23, 2025.

    Uniform Budgeting and Accounting Act, MCL 141.421 et seq.; MCL 141.921 · FY2025 · Read September 27, 2026 from State records · Evidence for Audit filed with the State for the latest fiscal year

  • Found: Audit filed on time

    Sent October 23, 2025, within six months of the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 (due December 31, 2025; fiscal year end from its F-65).

    Due six months after fiscal year end; MCL 141.921 · FY2025 · Read September 27, 2026 from State records · Evidence for Audit filed on time

  • Found: Annual financial report (F-65) filed with the State

    Treasury's Document Search shows the annual financial report (F-65) for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 as received, sent December 29, 2025.

    MCL 141.424(3) · FY2025 · Read September 27, 2026 from State records · Evidence for Annual financial report (F-65) filed with the State

  • Found: Annual financial report (F-65) filed on time

    Sent December 29, 2025, within six months of the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 (due December 31, 2025; fiscal year end from its F-65).

    Due six months after fiscal year end; MCL 141.424(3) · FY2025 · Read September 27, 2026 from State records · Evidence for Annual financial report (F-65) filed on time

  • Found: Retirement report (Form 5572) filed with the State

    Treasury's FY2025 status report (as of September 18, 2026) does not list it as "No Retirement Submission".

    PA 202 of 2017, MCL 38.2805 · FY2025 · Read September 26, 2026 from State records · Evidence for Retirement report (Form 5572) filed with the State

  • Found: FOIA procedures and written public summary posted

    The City Clerk's FOIA page (linked from the homepage) lists "FOIA Procedures and Guidelines" and "Public Summary of FOIA Procedures and Guidelines". Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers. Nothing saved.

    MCL 15.234(4) · Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for FOIA procedures and written public summary posted

  • Not found: Retirement report information posted

    The Finance Director's Financial Record Keeping/Investments folder posts "Retirement System Summary Annual Report" files for 2020 to 2024; the newest is "Form 5572 Fiscal Year 2024". The latest report due by 2026-09-27 is the one for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 (due December 31, 2025). The site's own search for "5572" finds nothing. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    MCL 38.2805(8) · FY2025 · Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Retirement report information posted

Good practice

6 found · 5 not found

  • Found: Current budget posted

    The City Finance Director page (Budgeting) posts "2026-27 Budget" and its presentation for the fiscal year in progress (July 2026 to June 2027). Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Current budget posted

  • Not found: Budgets for the past three years posted

    The Budgeting list posts the 2024-2025, 2023-2024, 2022-2023 and earlier budgets, but no 2025-2026 budget. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Budgets for the past three years posted

  • Found: Latest audit posted

    The Audit list posts "2025 Audit" and the four years before it. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Latest audit posted

  • Not found: Budget posted as a spreadsheet or data file

    The budgets on the City Finance Director page are documents; no spreadsheet or data file was found. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Budget posted as a spreadsheet or data file

  • Found: Regular meeting schedule for the year posted

    Found on the second reading (the site's own search): the city Calendar lists the upcoming City Council meetings (September 14, October 12 and November 9, 2026). Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Regular meeting schedule for the year posted

  • Found: Agendas posted for the past 12 months

    Agendas & Minutes lists City Council agendas (67 documents) from October 13, 2025 to September 14, 2026. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Agendas posted for the past 12 months

  • Found: Minutes posted for the past 12 months

    Agendas & Minutes lists City Council minutes (70 documents) monthly from January 2025 to August 10, 2026. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Minutes posted for the past 12 months

  • Found: Members' names and a way to contact them posted

    Council Members names all five members (mayor, mayor pro-tem and council members), each with an email address. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Members' names and a way to contact them posted

  • Not found: Check register (payments) posted

    No check register or payments list was found on the City Finance Director, City Treasurer or City Clerk pages. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Check register (payments) posted

  • Not found: Employee pay or salary schedule posted

    No salary schedule, pay ranges or pay by position was found on the department pages (City Manager, Clerk, Assessor, Finance Director, Treasurer). Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Employee pay or salary schedule posted

  • Not found: Current contracts posted

    No list of current contracts or contract in force was found; the City Clerk page says the clerk maintains the city's contracts but posts none. Read page by page in the publisher's Chrome: the site's robots.txt blocks automated readers.

    Read September 27, 2026 on its website, page by page · Evidence for Current contracts posted

About

Type
City

Codes

Census of Governments ID
166711
Census GEOID (county subdivision)
2608169080
Census GEOID (place)
2669080
Michigan Treasury unit code
412070

Sources

Where this page's facts come from.

Open Government Project · a nonpartisan, nonprofit project

Every figure comes from a public record, cited on its page.