Is Hennepin County so broke it needs a new tax to fund basic road maintenance?
Last year, the Hennepin County Board (minus the votes of Commissioner Randy Johnson and me) voted to increase the general property tax levy by 4.95%. At the same time, the board (minus only my vote) also increased the county regional railroad authority levy by 114% and the county housing authority levy by 176%.
It’s only fair to note that county spending actually decreased between 2009 and 2010, but not enough to avoid tax increases.
As we begin our discussions about the county’s 2011 budget, the safe bet would be that all three levies will increase again. But despite these increases, we are also considering a new source of revenue for the county (on top of the three major levies, the ballpark tax, the transit tax, the tax on garbage collection, etc.) known as a “wheelage tax.” Read more…
I saw in the news last night that the City of Minneapolis has increased its pothole repair budget by $500,000 to deal with the havoc this odd winter and spring wreaked on Minneapolis roads. Last month, the Hennepin County Board nearly doubled the county’s 2010 bituminous overlay program (a $3 million increase) to deal with potholes on county roads throughout the metro.
Wise decisions and good prioritization. Hooray!
Janitors will clean Hennepin County buildings during the day.
Yesterday’s Star Tribune included a story (”Cleaning in the Light of Day“) about the upcoming change to janitorial services in Hennepin County buildings:
Janitors typically do their work sight unseen, after everyone else has gone home. But soon that’s going to change at the Hennepin County Government Center and other heavily used county buildings.
By shutting off the lights and turning down the thermostats at night, the county expects to save at least $100,000 a year in energy costs.
Starting March 1, about half of Hennepin County’s buildings - 63 in all - will be vacuumed, wiped down, swept and emptied of trash during the daytime rather than at night. It’s thought to be the first public entity in Minnesota to move to day cleaning, a trend that has gained popularity in the private sector. Read more…
County Board Raises All Three County Tax Levies - One by 4.95%, One by 114% and One by 176%
The county board adjourned for the year last week by raising every property tax levy we have authority to raise.
The general county operating levy was increased 4.95% (an additional $12.5 million over 2009). The county rail authority levy - used to fund light rail trains - was increased 114% (an additional $8 million over 2009). The county housing authority levy was increased 176% (an additional $2.3 million over 2009).
Commissioner Randy Johnson and I voted against the budget that included the 4.95% levy increase. I was the only member to oppose the other two levy increases. Read more…
We are nearing the end of our annual budgeting process on the Hennepin County board, with a vote on the final budget scheduled for Tuesday, December 15. I expect a 2010 budget to pass (although I will not support it) that is slightly smaller than the 2009 budget, but it will contain a 3% increase in the property tax levy. I will post more information on that proposed budget soon.
Today, we had a budget hearing during which commissioners were allowed to propose amendments to the budget the administration has presented to us. There were a couple of amendments to move or restore funding to certain programs that had been cut. I brought in one amendment: To cut our commissioner office budgets by 4% for 2010. It failed 1 - 6. Read more…
Tom Hauser did a great “Tracking Your Money” story on my Lowry Avenue Bridge post last week:
Golden Hydrant goes to Lowry Avenue Bridge
We’re in the midst of budget hearings and property tax discussions on the Hennepin County Board, so it’s been awhile since I last awarded a Golden Fire Hydrant, but I can’t pass this one up. The newest Hydrant goes to the Board’s decision to spend an extra $14 million to make the new Lowry Avenue Bridge in Minneapolis a “signature” bridge - meaning it will look much fancier than most other bridges in Minnesota.
A little background:
The Lowry Avenue Bridge was built in 1905 and spans the Mississippi at Lowry Avenue in North Minneapolis. For over 100 years, the bridge carried motorists over the Mississippi almost uninterrupted until it was closed last year based upon the discovery that one of the bridge piers had shifted.
After that discovery, the county appropriately decided that the old bridge was no longer structurally safe and needed to be demolished and rebuilt. Read more…
On Tuesday, the Hennepin County Board voted 6 - 1 (I was the “no” vote) to set our maximum property tax levy increase for 2010 at 4.95%. This means that when we set our 2010 budget later in the year, we can increase the levy by 4.95% or less, but we cannot go over that amount. In the recent past, the final level has been set at or very near the maximum level nearly every year. I would expect this year will be the same. Read more…
Golden Hydrant goes to Property Tax Study Project
The latest Golden Fire Hydrant award goes to the Property Tax Study Project, an endeavor Hennepin County has funded on and off for the past decade.
Bottom line (and pardon my crudeness): Government is giving the finger to the taxpayers of Hennepin County as it spends taxpayer money to lobby the legislature for increased taxes on those same taxpayers. Read more…
Where does the money come from and where does it go?
The most common question I’m asked when wearing my county commissioner hat (which looks a bit like a Shriner’s fez, by the way) is pretty basic: “What does the county board do?”
The answer to that question could be very broad and detailed, but I generally sum it up in a sentence: “We spend a big chunk of your property tax dollars.”
Obviously, I’m oversimplifying. There is much more to my job as a commissioner than just spending money, but the budget aspect of the position is by far the most important part. I thought it worth a post to briefly describe the county budget and share where our budget dollars come from and where they go. Read more…
