Sales tax funding good for county roads

Milt Hagen said the county’s half-percent sales tax — which is solely dedicated to county road upgrades — has made an enormous impact on the state of Carlton County roads.

“I have been working for the county transportation department for 28 years,” said the assistant county engineer at the April 2 Carlton County Committee of the Whole meeting. “There is more than five times more construction in the last four years than I saw in all the rest of the 24 years working here.”

Net revenue for dedicated road projects from the sales tax fund to date is nearly $7 million ($6,881,202.98, to be exact). The record high was in 2017 with $2,019,090 tax revenue, and the lowest, in a complete year of impact, was $1,687,429.09 in 2016. So far, roads throughout the county numbered higher than 100 and ineligible for state and federal transportation funding have been targeted during this construction boom.

In further road news, the county and the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa have an agreement of understanding regarding county roads that lie within reservation boundaries. A partnership between the county and the Band will make it possible to apply to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) for dedicated monies for road improvements. The county and Band would continue to adhere to federal guidelines for the protection of impacted wetlands and waters.

In other county news, assessor Kyle Holmes wants county board approval to encourage assessors trained in our county assessor’s office to continue working for Carlton County. There is a severe shortage of trained assessors in Minnesota. Holmes would like to set up a seven-year training program with new staff coming in as appraiser trainees, advancing to deputy appraisers, and rising to a senior deputy appraiser. At this time, Holmes is the only one in the office with these qualifications.

“It is my hope that by investing in educating our assessors and having them work in Carlton County for a longer period of time that we can hold onto our trained staff,” Holmes said.

Planning for replacing the county jail continues. Imposing a sales tax similar to the half-percent for county road projects is being considered.

Imposing a local sales tax option would require the following steps:

1. The Carlton County board passes a resolution for the tax, including the rate, the amount to be raised, and the expiration date.

2. The proposal must be approved by a majority of voters at a special election.

3. The political subdivision cannot expend money to advertise and promote the tax.

4. The state legislature must

pass a special law imposing the tax.

Commissioner Dick Brenner explained the county’s dilemma: “The Department of Corrections has been kind to us considering our jail is one of the oldest in the state at this time,” he said. “They have not shut us down or reduced the number of beds we may have in our facility.”

Commissioner Tom Proulx, who also works in probation, pointed out that the county doesn’t know exactly how much a new building will cost, noting that he has seen costs ranging from $24 to $26 million or more.

“The process of considering to impose a sales tax for the jail stands by itself,” said county auditor Paul Gassert. “It makes no difference on the possible cost within reason. The length of time for the sales tax will be determined by the cost of that facility and the interest rate our bonds come in at.”

Commissioner Gary Peterson pointed out that Chisago County got special legislative money for the construction of their jail.

“Hopefully, other income will be found to help with the jail costs,” Peterson said.