Earlham gets partial property-tax payment after months without distributions

Earlham received a partial Madison County property-tax distribution on Oct. 16, according to KCCI. That came three days after Mayor Jeff Lillie said the city had received no property-tax distributions in 2026 as of the Oct. 13 Madison County Board of Supervisors meeting. KCCI did not state the amount of the partial payment.

Lillie told KCCI the money could cover at least one more pay period, and possibly two if the city tightly controlled spending. The payment offered limited near-term cash-flow relief, not a confirmed resolution of the city’s financial needs.

The figures reported for the two years differ by about $110,000: Earlham received about $460,000 from September through November of the prior year, while it expected roughly $350,000 through October 2026. The expected 2026 amount is about 24% lower, though the periods do not match exactly and one figure is an estimate. The October payment amount is not given, so it cannot be compared directly with either total.

The city was also pursuing a separate $500,000 line of credit. KCCI reported that paperwork was planned for a special City Council meeting on Oct. 21, with access to funds expected around Nov. 1–3. Those dates were plans, not confirmation that the council approved the credit or that Earlham borrowed money. The $500,000 was the proposed credit-line amount, not the amount of the property-tax payment. Lillie described the credit line as a last resort.

An earlier Madison Report article said the distribution amount was still unknown when Lillie spoke and that an apportionment was expected in the following days. It also reported his concerns about borrowing costs and possible effects of spending restrictions on municipal services. KCCI’s account does not establish the council’s final decision or whether the city later drew on the credit line.