The Owen County Council proposed a budget of $16.7 million, up a million dollars from the 2021 budget.
The County is nearly $2 million in debt, due in part to the former county auditor’s failure to collect $900,000 in taxes.
Although the budget is larger than last year, county departments were asked to cut at least 20 percent from their own unit budgets. But the costs were offset by other expenses.
“The bottom line is, costs across the board, through the pandemic, I think, you know, on materials and supplies for all of our county offices have went up quite a bit,” said Council President Andy Wood.
On October 1 st, an income tax increase went into effect, after council members raised the rate from 1.6 percent to 2.5 percent.
“What we're trying to do with that tax increase is normally the sheriff was funded out of our county general fund, this tax would fund his department, which would free up money within the general fund to fund or other expenditures,” said Wood.
Wood adds the increase reflects $1 million dollars in savings that can be used for a new jail.
However, some residents are calling on the county to repeal the tax increase.
“The mismanagement is why we are getting all these tax increases, they need to manage better and take some of this away from us,” said Rachel Combs, an Owen County resident and candidate for the County Council District 4 seat.
Combs is trying to organize a Libertarian Party chapter in the county. She’s concerned a tax increase is a heavy burden for residents to bear.
“We are a small population a lot, there's not a lot of income already here and you add those tax increases on top of it, that's going to make it to where some people's ends can't meet.”
The County Council is expected to take a final vote on the budget at its October 25 th meeting.
