Accountant shows plan to keep taxes steady
Scot Loyd, accountant, has devised a plan for Marion County commissioners whereby they could remain at "Ground Zero," that is, not raise taxes this year or next.
Loyd, with Swindoll, Janzen, Hawk and Loyd, McPherson, said Monday it would be somewhat like a tax lid for Marion County. Sales tax revenue is expected to decline, and County Commission Chairman Howard Collett pointed out that when and if the "point of delivery" collection of sales taxes is implemented, the county could lose $2,000 a month just from sales of Marion-based Western Associates alone.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius a few weeks ago implemented a six-month moratorium on carrying out the controversial shift in tax collections.
If sales tax collections are down by 10 percent, that could mean $45,000 or $50,000 less coming to county coffers, Loyd said.
City/county revenue sharing is "gone," he said. Interest on idle funds is down. Loyd suggested that transfers of funds for road improvements could be spread over several years if sufficient money is not available from year to year.
Commissioner Leroy Wetta said he did not want to "touch" or tamper with that road betterment money.
Employee benefits, Loyd suggested, instead of being listed as part of the general fund, could be listed in each county department's budget "to see what that department really costs" the county.
County budgets are the most difficult ones to prepare, Loyd said.
He told commissioners of an exercise he has seen conducted among team players, where each department head has to justify his or her capital-outlay wants/needs to peers, other department heads.
But a weaker person might get "ganged up on," or ignored, commissioners said, and Loyd admitted this was a possibility.
A referee would be needed to ensure fairness.
County Clerk Carol Maggard said department heads in Marion County are "already cutting from their capital-outlay budgets for 2003 and 2004."
Loyd said he would work with Maggard, looking at holes, gaps, deficiencies in each department's budget, and return to make a presentation to commissioners at midday Monday.
When he did return, he said one mill of tax, with the new valuation of county property, will raise $91,288. He said that the county could raise $124,243 more in the general fund by raising that part of the levy by 1.234 mills, to 18.986.
But he showed possible cuts in other parts of the total county levy, which would leave it at 51.902 mills in both 2003 and 2004.
This would necessitate cutting the total county budget for 2003 by 7.06 percent, or $423,354, and the proposed budget for 2004 by 4.57 percent, or $274,242.
Commissioners will finalize the budget at their 9 a.m. Aug. 4 meeting. It will be published Aug. 6, and a public hearing on the budget will be at 9 a.m. Aug. 18 in Commissioners' Chambers at the courthouse.
Commissioners' next meeting will be at 8 a.m. Monday.
