By Erik Potter, Post-Tribune staff writer
CROWN POINT -- The meeting ended almost as soon as it began, bringing a bizarre end to one of the biggest political hot potatoes in the county this year.
Lake County's flirtation with a local option income tax ended with barely a whimper Friday afternoon when council members decided to not even bring the question up, let alone put it to a vote.
By making no motion to override the county Board of Commissioners' veto of the income tax, the council avoided what was shaping up to be a lengthy public testimony from the overflow crowd.
A rousing cheer went up from the 30 or so people who couldn't fit into the packed council chambers when the decision was announced in the hallway.
The death of the income tax proposal occurred when Councilman Ted Bilski, D-Hobart, decided to switch his vote, which he had previously cast in support of the tax.
He decided to pull his support Friday, however, because he was not happy with any of the ways the state said the county could distribute the money back to taxpayers.
Bilski wanted a "dollar-for-dollar exchange," meaning that every dollar residents paid in county income tax would come off their property tax bill.
State law does not allow such a formula, and Bilski did not want to take a chance that the legislature would grant that authority when it convenes in January.
"All I had was a verbal promise," Bilski said, "and you can't take that to the bank."
Tom O'Donnell, D-Dyer, another tax opponent, said other remedies for property tax relief should be tried before the local income tax, like shifting the cost of welfare and other state mandates onto the state.
"I think this is a good for Lake County," O'Donnell said. "(The income tax) is not a tool we want to use for property tax relief."
What next?
It now appears certain that the Dec. 31 deadline imposed by the state for Lake County to pass as income tax will not be met, triggering a freeze in property tax levies across the county at last year's levels.
Lake County communities could suffer if municipalities have to freeze budgets for public safety and other services.
"This isn't good for local government, I'll tell you that," said Shawn Pettit, president of the Merrillville Town Council.
Pettit said the council's action comes as a "slap in the face." The town's finances have been particularly hurting, because, unlike other towns, Merrillville doesn't make any money off utilities.
Pettit said no job cuts are in the forecast, but raises are likely out of the question, which could mean the departure of three police officers next month for higher paying work elsewhere.
"It means we tighten our belts even more," Hobart City Clerk-Treasurer Deborah Longer said.
Longer said she's just glad the state certified Hobart's 2007 budget in October.
In anticipation of possible budget shortfalls, Hobart City Council this fall adopted a 2008 working or contingency budget to reflect the actual amount each city department will be able to spend next year.
Smith resigns
After the meeting, Councilman Will Smith, D-Gary, announced his resignation from the council, effective Monday.
Smith said that he had stayed in his seat this long, in the face of strong public pressure to resign after his felony fraud conviction in September, in order to shepherd the income tax through.
With that effort over, Smith said he was stepping down.
With Smith's departure, the four solid votes for the income tax will be whittled to three.
Staff writers Piet Levy and Karen Snelling contributed to this report.