As the city searches for revenue, Roy residents face a 55% property tax hike. It’s not their first

The population of the landlocked, northern Utah city of Roy has hovered close to 39,000 for the past decade, with sales tax revenues flatlining in similar fashion. During that same time, city officials have floated significant property increases that primarily pay to keep employee wages competitive with neighboring cities.

Roy City increased property tax three times in the past decade while a fourth attempt last year was unsuccessful.

In 2025, city councilors approved a 28% increase, but the State Tax Commission blocked it because they failed to comply with new guidelines to publicly post details about other proposed property tax increases in Weber County.

This year, city officials have proposed a 55.45% increase. In his budget message, City Manager Matt Andrews noted that this would provide $2,807,745 in additional revenue to cover $936,844 in cost of living adjustment shortfalls for the current year and next, along with $1,870,901 for wage correction adjustments.

Attempts to reach Andrews for comment were unsuccessful. 

A few other Weber County cities have also floated property tax increases. Hooper, the mostly residential city directly west of Roy, is considering a 47.61% property tax increase due to flat sales tax revenues. And neighboring Clinton intends to raise property taxes for the same reason, with the amount yet to be determined.

North Ogden is seeking a 5% increase to fund a new community service officer, cybersecurity software, and capital projects.

During a May 5 public hearing about the proposed tax increase in Roy, a flood of concerned residents spoke out, Scott Bradford among them.

“I built a house about six years ago. My house has increased (in value) almost 65% to 70% since I built. I’ve received a 60% increase in taxes during that period of time,” Bradford said. “I imagine if prices continue to go like they have been, I’ll have another increase and that’s not even including the 55% that we’re having discussed here.”

Bradford acknowledged that first responders need and deserve the pay increases, but suggested that “after that, it starts to get a little sketchy.”

He urged the city to look for places to cut expenses.

“Roy Days is a really cool thing that I’ve never attended in the 21 years I’ve lived in Roy,” Bradford said of the city’s annual community celebration offering events like a salmon bake, 5K, car show and fireworks. “There are lots of things that … maybe the city should consider farming out.”

A city on life support?

Robert “Bob” Dandoy served two terms as mayor of Roy City from January 2018 to January 2026. In his role helping to manage the 309th Maintenance Wing at Hill Air Force Base, he said he learned how to maintain a strict budget.

“We looked at tax dollars as sacred,” Dandoy said in a recent interview. “The real issue is to be a steward of that money and manage it as best you can.”

Dandoy did not seek re-election in 2025, when Ann Jackson won the office. Roy’s mayor oversees the five-member City Council but does not have a vote. 

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Dandoy said that in 2025 he “told the council they need to get rid of 11 people and then provide a modest increase in property tax. And then we’ll be fine. Well, they didn’t listen to me.” 

But Roy’s 28% increase proposal last year was one of about three dozen that the Utah State Tax Commission tossed out because recent state legislation requires strict compliance to new guidelines for truth-in-taxation notices.

Dandoy predicts that this year’s tax increase (of 30% to 55%) will happen — but it won’t end there. 

“They’ll keep doing it until some change takes place,” Dandoy said, estimating the council could end up stacking on another increase of between 8% and 15% next year. “That’s the reality of what we’re facing.” 

The Roy City Council meets June 16 at 5:30 p.m. to vote on adopting a maximum proposed tax rate for the city’s 2027 budget. 

Flawed data?

Roy resident Diane Chaston spoke against the tax increase at the city’s May 5 hearing, questioning the in-house salary survey used as justification.

“The entire increase is built on the assumption that city employees are underpaid. If that data isn’t sound, then this entire request falls apart,” Chaston said.

She pointed out that the salary survey committee consisted of the mayor, three high-ranking members of her administration, and two council members.

“When other cities want wage increases, they hire a third-party unbiased consultant or consult reliable databases,” Chaston said.

Dandoy also questioned the salary survey used in 2025 during his final year as mayor.

“What’s happening is that they’re only selecting key cities” for comparison, Dandoy said. “If you don’t include private industry, federal, state or county employees, it will be biased and show an increase every year.”

Punishing businesses?

Richard Sparrow, president of Sparrow’s Home Furnishings — which has drawn customers to Roy for more than 50 years — said that his building at 4456 S. 1900 West has almost doubled in value in recent years. He questions the county’s assessment.

“(The value) gradually went up for 20 years, and then the past three years it just went off the map,” Sparrow said. “They’re just making a killing.”

While homeowners only pay 55% of the taxable value for their primary residence, commercial property owners are on the hook for the full amount. And Sparrow said his annual tax bill is now about $25,000. But he noted that the city only gets a small portion of that total.

“It’s gone up about $5- or $6,000 in the last two to three years,” Sparrow said of his annual tax bill.  “It all has to come out of what you pay your employees.” So far, he’s been able to keep all 15 on the payroll, he added.

Should Roy consolidate?

As one alternative to what he sees as the city slowly withering, Dandoy suggested merging Roy with the neighboring burgs of Riverdale and West Haven — an audacious concept that would require buy-in from all three city councils along with support from a majority of voters in each municipality.

While Riverdale only has about 9,300 residents, its calling card lies in a wide and busy road lined with restaurants, retail stores and auto dealerships that bring in $8.3 to $8.6 million in annual sales tax revenue. Of this total, Riverdale, by law, shares 40% with other Utah cities. 

And West Haven — which still has open land, large properties to care for animals and a fast-growing population now nearing 27,500 — does not yet levy any property tax. However, residents do receive a property tax bill from Weber County. 

“You’d have a powerhouse that would be incredibly competitive and would not have to rely so much on property tax,” Dandoy said of such a merger. “Nobody wants to talk about that, but if you look at it from a business perspective, that’s what you do.”

The lone ranger

Bryon Saxton, now midway through his second term on the Roy City Council, has been the only member to publicly oppose this year’s proposed tax increase.

“We’re facing a pretty big mountain with a 55% tax increase. That will be historic if we approve it, and I don’t want to be a part of that history,” Saxton said in a recent interview. “I’m not going to be happy if they don’t readjust some of their thinking.”

Saxton acknowledged recent impacts on revenues from road construction: “We lost 56 properties with the expansion of 5600 South. And in addition, we lost 11 commercial properties. We’ve been able to spare about half of those through relocation, but the others were lost.”

Instead of the 55% jump, Saxton suggests an 18% increase this year with half of it going for wage compensation. 

“They feel like they’re lacking almost $3 million in revenue that they want to catch up” all at once, Saxton said. “And you just can’t do that. You hit people upside the head with that kind of increase, and you then get a lot of resentment. I’ve tried to explain that to them, but I don’t think I’m their favorite son.”