tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-998936422915177299.post8839289828970208581..comments2024-03-18T13:17:32.874-05:00Comments on Rensselaer Adventures: Start of budget hearingsDessert Survivorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04616064444288249273noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-998936422915177299.post-50286632376489288872016-08-17T17:41:56.136-05:002016-08-17T17:41:56.136-05:00"Growth Factor" - what that means: This..."Growth Factor" - what that means: This is also known as Local Option Income Tax A and when it was first introduced and adopted in 2007 it was known as a Levy Freeze. This meant that the tax levy amount set at that time would never change other than by a "Growth Factor" that would be determined by the Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF). This would be if a county decided to go with this, which the Jasper County Council did in 2007. Then each year the DLGF would determine by what "factor" or tax rate the county would be expected and allowed to increase the funds needed to operate their government and provide the services expected. The way this had been devised however was that the increase would automatically always come each year from an increase in Income Tax UNLESS the County Council would vote to apply that increase to Property Tax instead. That is why we had to vote on that issue last night to NOT have it increase the Income Tax rate any more than it already is. The rate of increase would have been .00364 and we decided by unanimous vote to have it apply to an increase in property tax. I was happy to see there was no opposition to that. Gerrit H. DeVries - Jasper County CouncilmanGaryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07132310184152058344noreply@blogger.com