By Bill Dolan, Times of Northwest Indiana
bill.dolan@nwi.com
CROWN POINT | Municipal officials appear just as conflicted about voting for a Lake County personal income tax as county government officials, who have debated -- but ultimately refused to pass -- a levy on their constituents.
Hammond City Councilman Robert Markovich said last week, "I can't support the income tax. That would be imposed on retirees living on Social Security benefits."
Others question how the revenue from such a tax could possibly be distributed fairly to local governmental units.
"I'm for the income tax as long as the distribution is fair," Merrillville Town Councilman Richard Hardaway said.
Gary Councilwoman Carolyn Rogers, whose community has the most to lose -- more than $32 million annually -- if an income tax isn't passed, declined to say whether she supports such a measure.
State officials have frozen the annual increases in Lake County's property tax collections since 2007 to punish the County Council for refusing to pass a 1 percent income tax on local residents and workers.
That freeze, combined with upcoming statewide property tax cuts, will deny the county's 19 cities and towns about $100 million in revenues annually.
But state legislators are debating a new measure to permit a majority of city and town council members in communities representing more than half the county's population of 492,000 to pass a tax on all county residents and workers, end-running the County Council.
In Lake County, however, not everyone is convinced they would use such authority even if it was given to them.
Lake Station City Councilman Todd Rogers said last week, "The income tax would benefit the city, but hurt my constituents."
Schererville Town Council President Perry Ferrini, said, "It's something we haven't discussed, and the way the economy is right now, I won't be pushing for it. Instead, we will get our budget in line."
But Whiting Mayor Joseph Stahura, who has actively lobbied for the bill that would put the decision in the hands of leaders from the county's largest population centers, is an advocate of creating the income levy to rejuvenate municipal budgets.
Munster Town Councilman Rob Mangus said he understands the public's desire for lower taxes, but tax levies are needed to fund police and fire departments.
"We already are cutting positions and shuffling people around because of the frozen levy," Mangus said. "I can see at some point, not too much later, where we will get our backs pushed to the wall where we may have to (consider an income tax)."
Still, conflict regarding the idea abounds.
Griffith Town Council President Rick Ryfa said, "I would not support that at all. If Whiting, Hammond, East Chicago and Gary want to tax their own citizens and keep the money in their own cities, that's fine, but we don't need to be included in that nonsense."
Highland Clerk-Treasurer Mike Griffin said no cities or towns appear prepared to debate or vote for an income tax at present.
"Its too premature. I understand the public has real resistance to any new cost of government," Griffin said.
Times staff writer Patrick Guinane contributed to this report.