The county commissioners are searching for new ways to bring in additional money to help to pay for repairs to roads and bridges, including possible adoption of a motor vehicle excise surtax and wheel tax.
“The big picture of this is that we’re ultimately going to need to at least start the discussion in an open forum on bringing a wheel tax to Knox County,” said commissioner Larry Holscher. “Nobody wants to have another tax to pay, and we certainly aren’t wanting to impose another tax, but we know we’re in a situation where we’re going backwards as far as our road funds, and having this discussion is necessary.”
As it sits, the county doesn’t have enough money to maintain the 881 miles of road and nearly 300 bridges. Holscher said some roads are already slated for grinding — turning chip-and-seal roads into gravel.
“We’ve done some research and found that the surrounding counties have all adopted a wheel tax and it’s evident they have the funds to maintain their road conditions where we’re in a situation right now where we’re basically going backwards,” Holscher said. “We’re tearing up roads instead of fixing them because we just don’t have the funds to keep them.”
“Looking and driving in the surrounding counties at what they’re able to do, it’s pretty evident that the wheel tax brings a substantial benefit,” Holscher said. “It’s a sad thing when we have to go to someone who lives on a road and say, ‘I’m sorry we’re going to turn this chip-and-seal road into a gravel road.’ That’s not what the people of Knox County want.”
The timing for the tax may be perfect, too, he added.
“We know the bond for the jail will be paid off in two years,” he said. “We’ll be letting go of one tax, so this might be an opportunity to at least have the discussion and have the opportunity to invest in our county’s infrastructure.”
Because the distribution from the state gas tax is less decreasing each year, the roads have seen a steady decline, Holscher said there just isn’t enough money for upkeep anymore.
“Part of the reason for the shortfall is that there just isn’t the same kind of gas consumption there was years ago when the fuel efficiency hadn’t made it to the point we’re at now, so we’re seeing less dollars from the gas tax,” he said. “And, the cost of materials are higher than they’ve ever been.
“So it’s really a double whammy we’ve been faced with, we have less money coming in and the repairs are more costly than they use to be,” Holscher said. “We’ll deal with this, but this tax is an option, it’s a good option.”
The commissioners have enlisted the help of Don Villwock, the president of Indiana Farm Bureau and a Knox County resident, to begin the discussion of the tax with the county council, an entity that has been traditionally resistant to the idea.
However, the council may not be needed to impose the tax after June 1, thanks to a Senate bill passed during the latest legislative session.
Under the current law, only the county council can adopt or make changes to the motor vehicle excise surtax and wheel tax, but the new bill will permit a county income tax council to call for the tax.
This body would also have the exclusive power to increase, decrease or rescind it in the future.
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http://www.suncommercial.com/articles/2013/05/13/news/local_news/doc51919f34cdde8710337965.txt
