Government officials in Starke, Pulaski and Marshall Counties discussed President Donald Trump’s option of deferring payroll taxes for county employees, but they all decided to opt out of the deferral option.
Marshall County Commissioner Michael Burroughs gave an overview of what was proposed.
“President Trump has asked employers to defer payroll taxes as a way of giving employees more take-home pay, however it is not forgiven. After the first of the year, the employees would have to repay that tax that is being deferred. If the employee leaves, we would still be liable for paying that,” explained Burroughs.
There is no penalty if employers do not participate.
Some government officials believed that would create a hardship for the employees at the beginning of the year. Starke County Auditor Rachel Oesterreich commented that many county governments in the state are also opting out of the option.
The Marshall County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday morning to opt out of the deferral program for county employees while the Starke County Commissioners also voted to opt out later that night during their meeting along with the Pulaski County Commissioners in their meeting.
During a COVID-19 media briefing on Wednesday, Sept. 9, Governor Eric Holcomb said the state was also opting out of the deferral option.
