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Pope County Tribune - Starbuck Times
Written by Steffanie Dahlseng   
Friday, 23 September 2011 12:12

County increases preliminary tax levy by 14.99% during a recession


The Pope County Board of Commissioners set the preliminary levy at an increase of 14.99 percent for 2012. This will raise an additional $1,001,803 in tax revenue and is in addition to last year's tax levy of $6,683,143.

Interim County Coordinator Jim Thoreen said the county should be able to reduce its total expenditures for 2012 of $15,477,461, which were requested by department heads, by $740,926.

This can be accomplished through a 10 percent cut in appropriations, instituting an early retirement incentive, reducing cost of living increases for employees, reducing step increases for employees, a reduction of 2.5 percent in commissioner salaries, mandatory or voluntary hour reductions for employees and not filling vacancies in county employee positions.

The new reduced expenditures figure then becomes $14,736,535. Subtract $6,404,398 in total proposed revenue, $327,095 in county program aid, $7,684,946 in tax revenue and $100,000 in reserve use and the county still has a small budget shortfall of $220,096.

Therefore, even with a preliminary tax levy increase of more than $1 million, the county has failed to fully balance its budget.

However, the budget is in the beginning stages, and a final budget is not required until December. The county is required by state law to set a preliminary levy by Sept. 15. This preliminary levy can be decreased between now and December. It cannot be increased.

Thoreen said, "Now we are confronting reality."

The county is choosing not to spend down reserves in order to cover the county's budget shortfall. In the last five years, the county closed the year with the highest reserve balance in the revenue fund in 2007 at $3,167,855.29. By December 2010, the reserve balance for the revenue fund had decreased to $1,526,765.50.

Pope County taxpayers may see an even greater impact in their tax bill from state budget changes to the Market Value Homestead Credit.

In other action, the Pope County Board of Commissioners:

•Scheduled a public hearing to consider a tax abatement for the expansion of Midwest Machinery for Oct. 4 at 9:05 a.m.

•Approved an increase in hours from 16 hours per week to 30 hours per week for the administrative support position in the coordinator's office. This will allow for the coordinator's position to be cut to half time. Altogether the coordinator's salary and benefits budget will be reduced from $224,812 in 2009 to $162,476 in 2012. This includes three county employees.

•Rescheduled the first regular board meeting in December to Thursday, Dec. 8, at 9 a.m. The commissioners will be attending Association of Minnesota Counties meetings on Dec. 5, 6 and 7.

•Scheduled the Truth in Taxation Hearing for 7 p.m. on Dec. 8.

•Accepted the 2012 HRA-EDA preliminary levy of $300,000.