The Polk County Board of Commissioners met inside the Polk County Government Center on Tuesday morning to hear the annual report from the Sand Hill River Watershed District and a budget option from Polk County Engineer Richard Sanders.
SAND HILL RIVER WATERSHED DISTRICT
The board was first approached by the Sand Hill River Watershed District Administrator, April Swenby, who requested a resolution for the board to approve three one-year 2021 general tax levy petitions for the Watershed District. With each one in amounts not to exceed .00798% of the total taxable market value of $105,266.92 to pay the costs attributable to the basic water management features of projects within the Watershed District. “Every year, I ask the support of the county commissioners to provide a petition using Minnesota Statue #103D.905, Subdivision 3,” Swenby explained. “This statute allows for the use of these funds that must be petitioned by a political subdivision within the Watershed District, and in those funds, we have certain categories that we can use the money for, such as water quality, drainage water management features, and studies in agency support. So we earmark those dollars that we will know levee the taxpayers to be able to fulfill those obligations throughout the water district.” The board approved all petitions unanimously.
Sand Hill River Watershed District 2021 Annual Report
Swenby then gave the annual report of the Watershed District for 2021. She mentioned that the district had been awarded the 2021 Water District Project of the Year for their eight projects for the Sand Hill River ecosystem enhancements that they have done since 2007 to improve turbidity and fish passage issues. Some of these projects included adding two river crossing replacements, removing an old mill dam, and retrofitting the Sand Hill Lake Dam with rock arch rapids. She finished her report by saying that the district is moving forward with their One Watershed, One Plan project and have begun planning efforts for it.
RICHARD SANDERS- HIGHWAY
The board then heard from County Engineer Richard Sanders on a 2023 budget option for Wheelage and Local Option Sales Tax. He began by explaining the local option sales tax to the board, saying that it’s at ¼ of a cent which gives them around $700-750,000 a year, and the state statute allows them to have the option sales tax raised up to half a cent, which would raise the amount to about $1.4 million. He then began explaining the wheelage tax, saying that it is a minimum of $10 tax that is levied by the county board on vehicles in their county when not in operation and subject to annual registration and taxation. “We used to have a wheelage tax at about $10 a wheel, and we’re allowed to go up to $20 at one-dollar increments,” Sanders explained. “So, I put in a request to put in the wheelage tax at $20 with a $20 excise tax on new vehicles. It only brings in about $23,000 a year, so I’m not really requesting that, but it’s on the table. So, we’re going to have the discussions next Tuesday about those three items.” He gave the board a packet of information on the taxes of each county and their current tax rate for 2021, saying he would let them look it over before coming back with a motion next week to see what they’ll approve and where he’ll go with his budget for 2023. “The wheelage tax can be used for transportation purposes, so it can be used more broadly, not necessarily just for a road construction project, it can also be for maintenance projects whereas local option sales tax has to be on a construction project,” Sanders explained. “So, I’ll have two different budgeting methods depending on which way the county board goes next Tuesday. It’ll affect my 2023 budget.”
County Ditch 140 Maintenance Request
Sanders finished his time with the board by requesting they approve a maintenance request to clean and survey County Ditch 140, from Trunk Highway 2 to CSAH 44. Sanders said he would begin accepting bids for a contractor to complete the maintenance soon. The board approved the motion unanimously.
The next Commissioners’ meeting will take place on Tuesday, July 26, at 8:00 a.m. in the Polk County Government Center.
