From the Northwest Indiana Times:
While Porter County government is in a strong financial position, a consultant reported Tuesday the county is projected to lose $1.7 million next year as a result of the state tax caps in addition to facing continued losses of local income tax revenue.
The tax cap losses affect the county's general fund, where 70 percent of the expenditures are dedicated to employee costs, including benefits, according to representatives from H.J. Umbaugh & Associates.
On hand to witness the report was a large group of county employees, who were in attendance because of ongoing talks by the commissioners about the potential of increasing health insurance deductibles as a way of addressing the growing financial challenges.
Porter County Commissioner President John Evans, R-North, defended the need to reduce the county's insurance costs.
"We can't afford to go on the way we are and keep the county solvent," he said.
Evans announced the creation of a five-member committee to come up with recommendations about changes to the employee health insurance plan. The committee will include himself and four employees, including a single person, married people with and without children, and someone with special needs.
Todd Samuelson, a partner at Umbaugh, suggested other ways the county could respond to the shrinking revenue, including other cost-cutting and reconsidering the property tax relief passed along from the revenue generated by the local income tax.
He prefaced the suggestion by pointing out that homeowners have benefited from recent changes in property taxes.
Samuelson said the county also could implement an additional local income tax.
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http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/valparaiso/consultant-county-revenue-projected-to-decline-in/article_22e163a4-8bd7-51bc-80da-e8a845ae4edc.html
