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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

County board approves 3.45-percent levy hike

Most county residents will see little change on tax bill

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 9/27/18

WUORI TWP— St. Louis County taxpayers could pay more overall next year after the county board voted this week to increase the county levy by 3.45 percent for 2019. But an estimated four-percent …

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County board approves 3.45-percent levy hike

Most county residents will see little change on tax bill

Posted

WUORI TWP— St. Louis County taxpayers could pay more overall next year after the county board voted this week to increase the county levy by 3.45 percent for 2019. But an estimated four-percent increase in the county’s tax capacity, means that the average taxpayer should see little change next year on the county portion of their property tax bill.

St. Louis County Administrator Kevin Gray highlighted that point during his presentation of the proposed 2019 levy request during the board held Tuesday at the Wuori Town Hall.

The 2019 levy, at $136.7 million, represents a $4.5 million increase over the $132.2 million that the county assessed taxpayers this year. According to Gray, the higher costs reflect the county’s increased spending on human services to address the social costs of the opioid crisis, as well as the additional cost of the final conversion of assessing services to county control. Increases in wages and benefits were another driver of the higher overall spending.

Despite those higher costs, growth in the county’s property base means most taxpayers will pay a slightly smaller piece of the overall pie next year, which should keep the average property tax roughly steady. “That’s the power of a growing tax base,” said Gray.

The levy approved this week is a preliminary one and could still be reduced when the board approves a final levy in December. The board will not, however, be able to impose a higher levy that the 3.45 percent approved on Tuesday.

As part of the budget process, the county board has set two public Truth-in-Taxation meetings to take public input on the levy and budget. They are set for Nov. 29 at the county courthouse in Virginia and on Dec. 6 at the courthouse in Duluth. Both meetings are set for 7 p.m.

Response to complaint

In other business, the board heard an impassioned protest under public input from Zim resident and longtime county social worker Dennis Frazier, who objected to the county’s decision not to investigate a complaint he filed last week over Commissioner Pete Stauber’s alleged use of county resources to promote a campaign event. St. Louis County Human Resources Director James Gottschald issued that decision on Sept. 19, just two days after Frazier filed his complaint. The four-sentence letter indicated Commissioner Keith Nelson, the current county board chair, convened a meeting with the county administrator and Gottschald to review the complaint but provides no rationale for the decision not to investigate.

“I and many others have found the response from the county to be extremely inadequate,” said Frazier. “I am protesting the lack of transparency in this process. Where is the public record of what happened in this meeting?” he asked. “It looks like a cover-up to myself and many others and knowing that the county board chair is a supporter of the candidate in question does not put my mind, or many others’ minds, at ease.”

Frazier said Stauber had admitted to media that the event in question was a campaign event. “Any fair-minded person would see that there was a clear misuse of county resources,” Frazier concluded.

In response to questions from the Timberjay, county information officer Dana Kazel said county officials were not involved in the organizing of the event, nor did the county pay for any of the travel costs for Congressman Greg Walden, of Oregon, who visited an opioid treatment facility in Duluth at the behest of Stauber, who is currently running for Congress. Several county staff and at least two commissioners, Stauber and Commissioner Beth Olson, participated in the event, held at the ClearPath Clinic. Kazel also issued a news release announcing the county’s participation in the event, which included a roundtable discussion and a tour of the clinic. Kazel noted that the county has invested significant funds in ClearPath’s Pathfinder Unit, to match state and federal resources in an innovative treatment program to help address the opioid crisis in the county.

The county board, on Tuesday, offered no response to Frazier’s comments and it is unclear what additional action, if any, the board might take.