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CARLISLE Officials
present were:
Mayor Ruth Randleman, Council members Doug Hammerand, Eric Mahnke, Blair Dewey
and Frank Shultz and City Administrator Neil Ruddy.
Councilmember Drew Merrifield was absent.
Also present was Nader Halawa of Project Destiny and several citizens.
Mayor
Randleman called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. Mayor
Randleman explained that the meeting was scheduled as a community forum to
receive input on how the City Carlisle should plan to spend an estimated
$136,000 in annual revenue that will be received if the Project Destiny one cent
local option sales tax referendum is approved on November 9, 2006.
Because a majority of the Councilmembers are participating in the forum,
the meeting has been convened as a special Council meeting.
The
proposed distribution formula calls for 1/3 of the sales tax proceeds or $84,000
to be for mandated direct property tax reduction, 1/3 or $84,000 to be allocated
by the local jurisdiction for additional property tax relief and 1/3 or $84,000
to be split between a competitive grant program for regional attractions and
recreational trails and a local distribution for regional tax base equalization.
The mandated direct reduction amount of $84,000 will go directly to the
County Auditor and will be credited to each property tax bill; the amounts the
City of Carlisle will get to allocate are the $84,000 for additional property
tax relief and $52,000 of the $84,000 for regional attractions and recreational
trails and regional tax base equalization for a total of $136,000.
The
additional property tax relief and regional tax base equalization revenue can be
spent either to replace a property tax levy with sales tax revenue for an
existing project or activity or to substitute sales tax revenue for a future
property tax levy for a planned project or activity.
Estimates of the potential reduction in the combined Carlisle property
tax rate of $39.54 per $1,000 were $.97 per $1,000 or $54 on the average
assessed value residence of $115,487 for the mandated direct property tax
reduction amount of $84,000 and an additional $1.57 per $1,000 or an additional
$88 on the average assessed value residence of $115,487 if Carlisle decides to
substitute the additional property tax relief and the regional tax base
equalization amount of $136,000 for existing property tax levies. It
was explained that the Project Destiny plan is to gather petitions to place the
local option sales tax on the November ballot in all 3 counties and 48
communities of the metro area and to have each county and community develop an
individual plan for allocation of the additional property tax relief and
regional tax base equalization revenue. It
was explained that 80% of the state already has the one cent local option sales
tax in place and that Warren County will benefit significantly from the regional
approach to the sales tax distribution because the majority of the sales tax
revenue will be collected in Polk and Dallas Counties.
It
was pointed out, that depending on individual circumstances the cost of the
additional sales tax could be higher than the property tax savings, that there
is a proposed 28E agreement including a Fiscal Responsibility Oversight Council
to regulate the collection and distribution of the tax, that communities can opt
out of the tax if the election is not successful throughout the region and that
if the referendum is successful in the rest of the region but not successful in
Carlisle, residents will pay the tax anyway because there is much more retail
sales tax paid in Polk and Dallas Counties than in Warren County.
It was stated that Carlisle can’t afford to be left out of the sales
tax distribution. Suggested
uses for Carlisle’s additional property tax relief and regional tax base
equalization revenue were:
It was explained that Indianola has decided to use sales tax revenue to pay for enlarging and remodeling a public safety facility and Norwalk has decided to use sales tax revenue to pay for public infrastructure improvements, including water, sewer, bridges, roads and trails. Staff
was directed to prepare examples of the tax rate and levy impact for different
values of residential and business property.
Mayor Randleman appointed Councilmember Mahnke Chair of the Carlisle
Project Destiny Advisory Committee. Superintendent
of Schools Tom Lane offered to be a consultant to the committee.
The
meeting adjourned at 8:15 P.M. by unanimous consent.
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Ruth Randleman, Mayor Attest: ___________________________ Neil Ruddy,
Administrator/Clerk |