The Summit County Commission has decided to lower the property tax rate slightly in 1992 due to the good financial health of the county.
The rate will drop by one-quarter of a mill. County Auditor Blake Frazier said the tax decrease is "very small" and will amount to a $5 drop in property taxes on a $100,000 home. The county will have to utilize reserve surplus funds from previous years to pay for expenditures the property taxes would have covered if the rate remains the same.Commission Chairman Sheldon Richins made some last-minute attempts to cut the budget enough to lower taxes because he hoped the county's healthy financial status would continue.
"The county is in relatively good shape financially, and hopefully that will last a few years," said Richins. "If we go in and make these proposed changes in the county as far as enhancing the planning, building inspection and engineering departments, it's going to take a lot of dollars. I just feel it would be a lot more palatable to people . . . if we could cut a little off their taxes."
The 1992 budget increases funding to the planning and engineering departments - an increase supported by Park City-area residents but not necessarily endorsed by those living in other parts of the county. Richins, who lives in Henefer, one of the towns in the county that is farthest from Park City, regularly fields complaints from his constituents that the Snyderville Basin is getting more than its share of county services.
Frazier, who lives in Oakley, said the 1991 tax rate isn't "out of line. If anything, it's a gift." He said the county is legally able to tax its residents up to 16 mills. The current tax rate is nine. Last year, the rate dropped by one mill. Frazier pointed out that a negative side effect to the county's low tax rate is an inability to qualify for state and federal grants and loans.
Commissioner Ron Perry, arguing the merits of not changing the tax rate, emphasized that while services are increasing, taxes aren't. "It's budget neutral," he said the 1992 budget, which is 16 percent higher than the 1991 budget.
The projected general fund revenues (and expenditures) for 1992 are $8,633,091, up from 1991's $7,421,500. The increases, Frazier said, are due to increased commercial services, not necessarily residences. "Residential growth usually doesn't pay for itself," he said.
Adding extra revenue to county coffers this year are property and sales taxes. Frazier anticipates property taxes will jump by about $250,000 due to new growth and increased valuations, and sales tax will jump about $100,000. "Included in this new growth are the Outlet Stores, Piper Impact and the Kern River pipeline project," he said.
Building permit fees will increase slightly, although revenues in that category have doubled over the past four years.
New to the county in the 1992 budget is an in-house engineering department that will take the place of previously contracted chores. That department will oversee new buildings and road projects, and is expected to generate about $180,000. It will cost about $192,000 to implement, but Frazier said it will result in an overall savings for the county.