The Pulaski County Council still hasn’t made any decisions about reconfiguring its local income taxes, but members did agree last week to keep thinking about some options. President Jay Sullivan reminded the rest of the council that the county will have to come up with additional revenue, since a special local income tax is scheduled to expire at the end of 2020.
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After the Pulaski County Council narrowly rejected a tax restructuring plan Monday, Council President Jay Sullivan hopes to get to work on a new proposal relatively soon. He told the rest of the Community Development Commission Tuesday that he doesn’t expect the council to wait an entire year before taking action.
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A proposed tax adjustment was narrowly voted down by the Pulaski County Council Monday. The change would have resulted in a slight decrease in the county’s local income tax rate, while allowing property taxes to increase on non-homestead property.
Continue readingThe Pulaski County Council passed an ordinance Monday that could allow property taxes to increase by “thawing” the county’s levy freeze. But one council member pointed out that another measure to balance the county’s tax structure had already been agreed upon but never been implemented.
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An ordinance paving the way for a potential property tax increase was adopted by the Pulaski County Council Monday, but not without some opposition. The county council voted four-to-two to “thaw” the county’s property tax levy freeze. That means the tax levy may increase within the limits set by the state’s growth quotient.
Continue readingAn ordinance to “thaw” Pulaski County’s property tax levy freeze will be up for final approval during a special county council meeting tonight. The measure would allow the tax levy to increase within the limits set by the state’s growth quotient.
Continue readingPulaski County landowners may be paying more in property taxes next year. An ordinance that would “thaw” the county’s property tax levy freeze was presented during Monday’s county council meeting. That means the county’s tax levy would be able to increase, within the limits set by the state’s growth quotient.
Continue readingThe Pulaski County Council and Commissioners will open health insurance bids tonight. The bid opening will take place during their joint session, scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. EDT at the Pulaski County Highway Garage.
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Pulaski County’s tax structure is not sustainable. That’s what fiscal planning consultant Jeffrey Peters told the county council during a public hearing Monday. “You’re on a track that you can’t continue on,” he said, “and those income taxes are going to have to be shifted around in some fashion, in order to get you back to an equilibrium to provide services under a revenue model that does not eat up all your cash over time.”
The Pulaski County Council is not likely to address issues with its local income tax structure in time to have an impact on the 2019 budget. A sudden drop in revenues from the “LIT Levy Freeze” tax was brought to the county council’s attention in September of 2017. In the months that followed, there were some discussions about working with an accounting firm to address the issues, but little progress was made.
Officials in the town of Winamac agreed to attend a joint meeting with Umbaugh and other local officials to discuss issues with the local income tax (LIT).
When town council members met in a special session on Monday, Clerk-Treasurer Melanie Berger informed them that Pulaski County Public Library representatives recently met with Umbaugh Executive Partner Todd Samuelson to discuss the problem.
Berger said they expressed an interest in holding a meeting where town and county officials, as well as any other agencies impacted by LIT levy freeze, could receive additional information from Umbaugh. Continue reading
Winamac Clerk-Treasurer Melanie Berger informed town council members last week that the Department of Local Government Finance approved the budget submitted for 2018.
Berger stated that aside from the budget being approved, she also learned that the maximum tax levy was received. She added that Eric Walsh from Umbaugh and Associates collected some information from her and said they will be meeting with Pulaski County officials to discuss the LIT levy freeze issue.
Additionally, Berger asked members for permission to enter all checks that are unaccounted for back into the system. Continue reading
Declining income tax revenues continue to cause concerns for Pulaski County officials.
Pulaski County stands to lose several million dollars in income tax revenues over the coming decades, due to declining population. That’s according to Community Development Commission Executive Director Nathan Origer. He presented some rough estimates to the county council last week. Continue reading
Pulaski County may be looking to state lawmakers to help make up a shortfall in local income tax revenues. The issue was brought to the attention of the county council last month, after Winamac officials noticed a sudden drop in the town’s share of Local Levy Freeze Income Tax funds. Pulaski County communities are now facing big holes in their 2018 budgets.
