Property tax increase opponents want information
Night meetings and advance agendas requested
By Debbie Lowe

Due to the shear number of county residents opposed to an increase in a cumulative capital improvement fund tax rate, Friday morning's hearing held by the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) had to be relocated from the commissioners' meeting room to the Carroll Circuit Courtroom. Approximately 100 county residents attended and there were still not enough seats for everyone.

Five of the seven county council members and two of the three county commissioners also attended. Four council members, county auditor Beth Myers and sheriff Dennis Randle, along with Economic Development Director Daryl Smith and Carroll County Chamber of Commerce representative Dick Bradshaw, spoke in favor of the tax increase. Neither of the commissioners present offered an opinion.

However, many county residents seized the opportunity to voice opposition to state representatives.

Concerned residents not only expressed displeasure with the proposed tax hike, but took the opportunity to make it clear to county leaders they want meetings held at times convenient to taxpayers rather than catering to council members' schedules.

The lack of widely available agendas in advance of both commissioners' and council meetings was cited as an additional complaint.

Objectors were heard before proponents to the tax increase, as established by the administrative hearing officers, Miranda Bucy and Shelly Gemmill.

They explained the potential financial hardship an additional property tax would have on those on fixed incomes.

"I'm one of the lucky ones," county resident Shirley Inman said to the hearing officers. "Some Social Security recipients have already given up their homes. Let's not layer another tax increase. I ask you to deny this rate increase."

"Why can't we fix the jail we have?" asked Judith Beaver of Flora. "A lot of people are going to have to sell their homes. If my home needs repair, I don't go out and buy a new one. We just fix it."

Beaver and others suggested cost-cutting measures should be employed before property owners are expected to pay more in property taxes for county projects.

Others expressed disappointment in the lack of planning on the part of county leaders, which may have led to the need for additional money to renovate or replace the current jail facility.

"We should not be asked to foot the bill for lack of foresight and oversight," lamented Delphi resident Tom VanSickle.

County-leader accountability was a common concern among opponents to a property tax hike.

"Property taxpayers cannot be asked to assume the burden one more time," Delphi resident Pam VanSickle explained.

She asked for a guarantee against possible future tax increases levied for another jail project, stating "we don't want to be asked to pay again after 25 more years."

VanSickle also wanted hearing officers and county leaders to understand the number of opponents to the action exceeded those in attendance.

"It should not be assumed that because more people aren't here, they aren't interested," she added.

Delphi resident Larry Fuller addressed county leaders as much as he did state representatives. He said the average person is unable to go to council and commissioners' meetings because they are held during the day when many are working.

His succinct message ended with, "I don't believe they need this new tax."

Delphi resident Marlene Joseph suggested the council wait for new county sheriff Tony Burns to take office. She suggested Burns be allowed to assess the situation and provide a comprehensive report before the need for an increase in property taxes is determined.

At a fall council meeting, when the results of the petitions against the tax increase were announced by Myers, one council member said the increase would only amount to pennies for each property owner. That phrase "only amounts to pennies" was offered up by opponents as an example of the council being out of touch with the taxpayers' financial situations.

"The average person does not understand the legalese of tax computation, but they do understand their tax bill," Joseph demonstrated as she waved a property tax bill in the air. "It doesn't only amount to pennies when the total is computed," she added.

Council member Nancy Cripe spoke in defense of her participation of the governing body's action.

"I didn't take this vote lightly," she said. "We need a savings plan. Nobody likes higher taxes."

"I don't want a tax increase any more than anyone else," council member Steve Ashby said. "The funds just aren't there."

Ashby said it was beneficial to start saving for the eventuality of either replacing or making significant improvements to the current facility to satisfy state mandates.

"The original (current) jail was paid for the day it was built," he said.

Randle was criticized by opponents for not making sure the facility was maintained to make it last longer than it has.

He reported to the audience that $231,072.54 was spent on jail maintenance in the past two years.

"I've done the best I could," he replied to the criticism. "I know I didn't please everyone."

In a statement after the meeting, Randle said, in hindsight, the situation could have been handled differently to help county residents understand the implications of the deterioration of the facility and the need to make improvements.

"I think we all got ahead of ourselves," he said about trying to levy an additional tax without significant input from county residents. "Looking back and after this meeting, I think we might have gotten the cart before the horse."

"I don't want my taxes raised either, but this goes back more than two-and-a-half years," he said. "There were problems when I became sheriff eight years ago. We've outgrown the facility, staff and storage-wise."R a n d l e announced a jail-information meeting will be held Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. in the Canal Interpretive Center.

"I wanted to bring this before the public," he said.

The hearing officers said a report from the Friday administrative hearing will be written and submitted to the Indianapolis DLGF office. Commissioner Melissa Henson will review the report and make a final decision about whether the tax will be levied and for what amount. The decision will be forwarded to auditor Myers. No time line was provided for the results. The hearing officers indicated Hinson's analysis time is dependent upon her current workload.

The next council meeting will be Nov. 3 at 8 a.m.