Madison Special Assessments

Madison assesses under its police power, citing Wis. Stat. 66.0701 and Madison General Ordinance 4.09.(Street Assessment Policy) The ordinance covers sanitary and storm sewers, streets including sidewalks, landscaping and street lights.(MGO 4.09) Assessments cover a small part of these projects; the city pays most of the cost.(City Engineering) On the 2026 Elmside, Sommers and Center reconstruction, owners were assessed $357,867 of a $4.99 million project.(Legistar)

From First Letter to Final Bill

1. Rating. Engineering rates streets and curbs every two years on a 1 to 10 scale. Pavement at 5 or below with sound curb is a resurfacing candidate.(City Engineering)
2. Resolution of intent. The Common Council adopts a resolution that sets the assessment district and the number of installments.(MGO 4.09)
3. First letter and public information meeting. Owners usually first hear by letter or postcard, often with an invitation to a meeting during early planning.(City Engineering)
4. Preliminary schedule of assessments. Engineering mails each owner an estimate for their property. Engineers try to cover contingencies so the final amount comes in at or below it.(City Engineering)
5. Board of Public Works hearing. Notice is published and mailed, and the hearing starts 10 to 40 days later. Plans and the schedule are open for inspection for 10 working days.(MGO 4.09)
6. Common Council vote. After a second notice and hearing, the Council adopts the final resolution. That date is the levy date, and the assessment is a lien on the property from then.(MGO 4.09)
7. Finance letter. City Finance mails a letter explaining how payment works. It isn't a bill.(City Engineering)
8. Construction and final bill. Nothing is charged until the work is done. Engineering measures what was actually built, and the final invoice usually goes out the summer after construction.(City Engineering)

Every project has a page on City Engineering's projects list, with the project engineer's contact, the mailings, the full schedule of assessments for every property, and hearing dates.(City Engineering)

What You Pay For

Since the Common Council adopted the current street policy on October 25, 2022, Madison charges one citywide rate per foot of frontage instead of a share of each project's actual cost.(Legistar) Each year the City Engineer sets the rate from a weighted average of the last three years' actual costs, and it applies to projects built the next year.(Street Assessment Policy) The split on a typical 2026 reconstruction:(2026 project fact sheet)

2026 unit rates. Reconstruction: $46.72 per foot of frontage for the pavement strip, $4.97 per square foot to replace a concrete driveway apron, $25.00 per foot to replace a sanitary lateral, $1,750.00 per sanitary reconnect and $3,200.00 per private storm connection.(2026 schedule of assessments) Resurfacing: $11.98 per foot of frontage.(2026 resurfacing notice) A 40-foot lot on the Elmside project paid $1,868.80 for pavement.(2026 schedule of assessments)

• Corner lots: a one- or two-family home on a lot that touches more than one street pays half the mid-block rate.(Street Assessment Policy) A 2026 fact sheet gives a 67% discount for corner lots that front three streets.(2026 project fact sheet)
• Resurfacing is only assessed when it covers the full width of the street and at least a block or 500 feet. Anything shorter is a patch, and patches aren't assessed.(Street Assessment Policy)
• Odd-shaped lots are capped at 1.5 times the frontage of a similar mid-block lot.(Street Assessment Policy)
• Specialty work: the city won't replace pavers or stamped or colored concrete you put in the terrace or apron.(Street Assessment Policy) Terrace stairs are 100% yours.(Street Assessment Policy)
• Sewer laterals: replacing a lateral with one of similar size is assessed 25% to the owner; sewer main work isn't assessed.(Sanitary Sewer Assessment Policy)
• Extra work you ask for, like an additional lateral or a private storm hookup, is added through a signed waiver and can push the final bill above the estimate.(City Engineering)
• If the project costs less than estimated, each assessment is cut proportionally and any overpayment refunded.(MGO 4.09)

Paying: Lump Sum or Installments

• In full: no interest if the balance is paid by October 31 of the first billing year. You can pay as soon as Finance has processed the preliminary assessment.(City Engineering)
• Installments: most assessments are paid over 8 years, one eighth of the principal each year plus interest on the unpaid balance, on your property tax bill. On projects with unusually high assessments an alder can ask for 15 years.(City Engineering)(hearing notice) The ordinance caps terms at 15 years, with longer terms only for things like new water and sewer in well and septic areas.(MGO 4.08)
• Interest: 4.5% for assessments in 2026(City Engineering) and 4.0% in 2025.(City Engineering) The Finance Director sets it each January at the city's prior-year borrowing cost plus 1%, rounded up to the next half percent, and your assessment keeps the rate from the year it was levied.(MGO 4.08)
• Paying early: through the City Treasurer, by card at 608-266-4771, by check to "City of Madison – Treasurer" with a copy of the invoice, or in person at 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Room 107.(City Engineering)
• Missing a payment: an installment unpaid with the tax bill goes to Dane County as delinquent and is collected like unpaid property tax.(MGO 4.08) Your installment shows as a special assessment line on the property tax bill.

The city's resurfacing program page still mentions a five-year plan and a bill separate from the tax bill; the 2025 and 2026 resurfacing notices give the 8-year terms above.(City Engineering)(2026 resurfacing notice)

Objecting and Appealing

Speak or write at the Board of Public Works hearing and the Common Council hearing; both are part of every assessed project.(MGO 4.09) After the Council's final decision, you have 40 days to appeal to circuit court.(MGO 4.09(14))(Wis. Stat. 66.0701) The appeal follows Wis. Stat. 66.0703(12): written notice to the city clerk and a $150 bond. You have to keep paying the assessment or installments as they come due, or the appeal is dismissed.(Wis. Stat. 66.0703) The 90-day window you may read about elsewhere is the state default for 66.0703 assessments, not Madison's.

If You Can't Pay

Madison has no senior or hardship deferral. The deferral ordinance covers farmland, landmarks, some through lots and a few other property types.(MGO 4.081) Help is a loan instead: the Special Assessment Mortgage Loan for owner-occupants with less than $30,000 in liquid assets.(MGO 4.082) You need at least 30% equity, the loan is recorded as a mortgage, and it's repaid when you sell, transfer the title or move out. 2026 income limits (from June 1, 2026): $74,800 for one person, $85,450 for two, $96,150 for three, $106,800 for four, $115,350 for five. Apply through the Community Development Division, homeloans@cityofmadison.com, 608-266-6520.(City of Madison)

Buying or Selling a House

• Check the balance: look up the property on the City Assessor's property lookup and open the Special Assessment tab. It lists each charge, the year, the interest rate, the original amount, what's left, and whether it's Final, Preliminary or Deferred. One project can create several charges, such as street, sanitary sewer and storm sewer.(City Engineering) Our property lookup guide covers the other records.
• Get a Special Assessment Letter from City Finance: $25 per parcel, in writing or in person, usually sent in 3 to 5 business days.(City Finance)
• At closing: it's common to require every assessment paid in full, preliminary ones included. If the final assessment comes in lower, the refund goes to whoever paid, if they left forwarding information.(City Engineering) Assessments are liens on the property, so they stay with it when it sells.(City Finance)
• Look ahead: check the Engineering projects list for your street. A schedule of assessments on a project page means a bill is coming. Our home buying guide has the rest of the checklist.

Sidewalks

Since 2022, sidewalk the city replaces in its annual Sidewalk Replacement Program, including trip hazards it saw-cuts, isn't assessed to the owner.(City Engineering) Extra sidewalk you ask to have replaced is 100% yours, and so is a driveway apron replaced at your request.(Street Assessment Policy) The program moves through two alder districts a year on a 10-year cycle: Districts 2 and 6 in 2026, 17 and 15 in 2027, 16 and 3 in 2028.(City Engineering) New sidewalk where there was none is assessed 100% but can qualify for a grant of up to the full cost.(Street Assessment Policy)

Special Charges Are Different

A special charge (Wis. Stat. 66.0627) bills a current service, like sidewalk repair, tree care or lead service line financing. It can't be paid in installments, and if it's unpaid it goes on the tax roll.(Wis. Stat. 66.0627)(MGO 4.09(13)) Your monthly city utility charges are explained in the Municipal Services Bill guide, and the rest of your tax bill in Madison property tax.

Questions

What is a special assessment in Madison?

A charge on a property for part of the cost of a public project next to it, usually a street reconstruction or resurfacing. Under Madison's policy, owners pay for a 10-foot strip of pavement along their frontage, half of a replaced driveway apron, and a share of a replaced sewer lateral. The city pays the rest.

How much is the Madison street assessment in 2026?

On 2026 reconstruction projects, $46.72 per foot of frontage for the pavement strip; on 2026 resurfacing projects, $11.98 per foot. A 40-foot lot on a reconstructed street was assessed $1,868.80 for pavement. Corner lots of one- and two-family homes pay half.

Can I pay a Madison special assessment in installments?

Yes. Most are paid over 8 years on your property tax bill, one eighth of the principal each year plus interest (4.5% for assessments levied in 2026). Pay in full by October 31 of the first billing year and there's no interest.

How do I appeal a Madison special assessment?

Within 40 days of the Common Council's final decision, under MGO 4.09(14) and Wis. Stat. 66.0701, using the circuit court procedure in Wis. Stat. 66.0703(12). That includes a $150 bond, and you have to keep paying the assessment while the appeal is pending.

Can seniors defer a special assessment in Madison?

No. Madison's deferral ordinance covers farmland, landmarks and a few other property types, not age or income. Low-income owner-occupants can instead borrow the amount through the city's Special Assessment Mortgage Loan, repaid when the home is sold.

Do I have to pay off special assessments when I sell?

Buyers and lenders commonly require it, including preliminary assessments. The assessment is a lien on the property, not on you. City Finance issues a Special Assessment Letter for $25 per parcel.

Related Guides

• Your Tax Bill, Line by Line
• Madison Property Tax
• Madison Municipal Services Bill
• Property Lookup