Wheel tax on fumes, but it's still sputtering and may resurface before deadline

BROWNSTOWN - A plan to replace declining revenues for roadwork with a new tax on vehicles may be down, but it's not necessarily out.

"I may bring it back up next month," Jackson County Councilwoman Debbie Hackman said Wednesday night after a proposal for a wheel tax was voted down 4-3.

Hackman raised the issue during a meeting of the council at the courthouse annex, and it prompted discussions lasting more than an hour.

"This is probably the worst time in the world to ask for any additional money," Hackman said of the proposed tax.

If passed, the local option highway user tax would have collected $534,751 to use for maintaining 764 miles of roads in the county. The tax also would have netted another $155,963 to be shared by Brownstown, Crothersville, Medora and Seymour.

Owners of passenger cars and light trucks (weighing less than 11,000 pounds) would have paid $15 a year while buses, recreational vehicles and heavier trucks would have paid $25 annually.

Hackman said without the tax, the highway department will not have enough money to fund any roadwork in two years.

"In two years, we're going to say we saw this coming and did nothing about it," Hackman said. "This is a train wreck we can avoid."

Interim county highway superintendent Warren Martin said declining revenues from gasoline taxes continue to generate less money for repaving.

"We'll be able to resurface about 10 miles of road in each district this year," Martin said.

Martin and Hackman also said the state continues to keep more of the gasoline tax revenues for its own uses, further depleting money available for repaving.

Martin said he was going to be able to spend about $700,000 for repaving this year, in part by using $450,000 in reserves. Reserves will be exhausted if he pulls the same amount in 2010, he said.

He said some work was going to have to be contracted, but he also planned to chip and seal roads to stretch the money.

"We could use $2 million a year to get caught back up," he said.

While Hackman's motion to enact the tax drew the support of councilmen Greg Prange and Andy Fountain, it lacked the four votes needed to pass.

"A lot of people are telling me they don't want this," Councilman Charlie Murphy said. "It's not a fair tax. I don't like this option. No. I don't have the answer."

Councilman Brian Thompson also questioned the fairness of the tax. He said a lot of out-of-county trucks travel Jackson County roads and would not have to pay anything.

Thompson said people are already making many personal sacrifices.

"They're saving money because they are afraid," Thompson said. "I'm afraid we will be deflating a lot of balloons if they tell them we need this money."

Councilman J.L. Brewer said he knows the wheel tax is going to happen eventually.

"I just don't think this is the year," he said.

Councilman Matt Reedy also questioned the fairness of the tax.

Reedy said he has 46 vehicles he pays taxes on in Jackson County and those trucks are never driven in the county.

"Tell me where that is fair," Reedy said.

The council has until July 1 to enact the tax in time to begin charging it in 2010. Revenues would not flow to the county until 2011.