Customer Service Place an Ad Become a Carrier Contact Us About Us Mobile Edition E-Mail Updates Report Cancellation Submit Milestone
| Subscribe Now Customer Service Place an Ad Become a Carrier Contact Us About Us Mobile Edition E-Mail Updates Report Cancellation Submit Milestone
|
 |
 |
|
Weather  Calendar Obituaries Classifieds Jobs Autos Homes Rentals Coupons Ad Center Gift Finder |
Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
|
Home News Sports
Free Time Life Money Nation/World Opinion Blogs/Columns Archives Site Map |
| NewsFriday, October 12, 2007 4:50 PM CDT |
 Comments (0) |  E-mail this page |  Print this page |  Enlarge type |  Reduce type |  Search archives |  RSS feeds |  Add to My Yahoo! |
LaSalle sales tax vote going on ballot
OTTAWA — LaSalle County voters will be asked for the fifth time whether to have a sales tax increase to pay for a juvenile detention center. The sales tax measure, which would raise the current quarter-percent sales tax to half a percent, was one of three referendum questions the County Board approved Thursday for the Feb. 5 ballot. The two other referendums are nonbinding and will cost the county or taxpayers little or nothing. One asked if the board should establish a storm water commission that would decide, with 13 other northeastern Illinois counties, how to handle water that comes through the aquifers and waterways. The other would urge the federal government to fund health care for veterans. Only board member Steve Carson of Mendota, a Republican, voted against all three referendums. He said the veterans’ referendum was only a ploy “to stack the ballot” against any other questions that could be put on the Feb. 5 primary ballot. State law prohibits more than three referendums on a ballot. A fourth referendum, to increase the property tax for operating the juvenile detention center from 1.5 cents per $100 equalized assessed valuation to 5 cents per $100 EAV, was tabled after the sales tax question was approved. Board members said it would be brought up again in the February meeting if the sales tax referendum fails. The money would cover salary costs no longer paid by the federal government. Committee members studying the issue said they never intended for both sales tax and property increase referendums to be on the ballot at the same time. A successful sales tax referendum would bring in $2 million a year and go to such public safety expenses as the sheriff and coroner departments and the jail. Board member Bob Jakupcak of Streator said a pledge to establish a citizens’ task force on how the money would be spent “would go a long way” toward easing voter concerns. He noted some people fear levying a tax specifically for public safety would allow the County Board to shift money already spent on public safety to other uses. “The public just does not trust us,” said board member Randy Freeman of Lostant. He said he was only voting for the referendum to give the public “a chance to speak.” E-mail this story | Print this story | Search archives | RSS Show comments |  Hide comments | Hide comments on all stories |
|
||||||
|
 |
|
Top of Page | Home | News | Sports | Free Time | Life | Money | Nation/World | Opinion | Blogs/Columns | Archives | Site Map | RSS
Customer Service | 301 W. Washington St., PO Box 2907, Bloomington, IL 61701-2907 | Ph. 309-829-9000 | 800-747-7323
Copyright © 2009, Pantagraph Publishing Co. and Lee Enterprises. All rights reserved. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
|