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Peninsula puts income tax issue before voters

7/12/2012 - West Side Leader
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By Pam Lifke

Most residents would see no increase if approved, village officials say

PENINSULA — Peninsula Village Council at its regular July 9 meeting gave final approval to placing a 1 percent income tax increase on the Nov. 6 General Election ballot.

Council unanimously approved the measure.

The village currently has a 1 percent income tax. If approved by voters in November, the village income tax would increase to 2 percent, but most people subject to the tax would notice no change in their paychecks, said Mayor Doug Mayer. He estimated only 23 percent of village residents — those who both live and work in the village — would see an increase in the tax they pay.

Most municipalities already have a 2 percent income tax in effect, Council members noted. Village residents who work in other communities likely already pay a 2 percent income tax, but 1 percent goes to the village and 1 percent goes to the municipality in which they work, said Councilman Dan Schneider. If voters approve Peninsula’s 1 percent increase, the village would collect the entire amount already being paid by residents who work in municipalities that collect a 2 percent income tax, he added.

For residents who work outside the village, approving the increase means 100 percent of the tax they already pay will be directed to the village’s General Fund, according to Council. “It would just benefit us to get it all, and it wouldn’t cost those people any more money because they’re paying 2 percent regardless,” Schneider said.

Council also discussed the possibility of allowing the village road levy to expire should the income tax proposal pass.

Rescinding the village police levy would require that issue be placed on the ballot since the police levy is continuous, according to Council.

In other business, Council authorized the village solicitor to meet with Boston Township’s legal counsel to discuss terms of an economic activity district (EAD) the township is hoping to implement. Similar to a joint economic development district, the EAD must have a “host” that has the ability to collect taxes. Mayer said Boston Township trustees are interested in having the village host the EAD, which would seek to capture payroll tax from employers in the township. Those include Boston Mills ski resort, the Cuyahoga Valley Environmental Education Center, Cuyahoga Valley National Park offices and the Summit County Engineer’s road maintenance facility.

Payroll tax collected from the EAD would be split between the township and the village. Council approved five hours for the solicitor to review the proposal.

Also at the meeting, Councilwoman Dee Holody told Council she will meet with the village Planning Commission to discuss the possibility of installing a parking “pay station” in the village. The automated pay stations conservatively could generate $58,000 per year in revenue, Holody said. Residents could be granted waivers that would make them exempt from paying parking fees, she added.

In other news, Council:

• agreed to give Road Superintendent Roger Robinson a 50-cent per hour raise, bringing his pay to just more than $21 per hour;

• agreed to codify the village traffic and criminal ordinances and to put codification on an ongoing schedule to keep village ordinances up-to-date. Village officials said it has been eight years since the last codification; and

• set the starting salary for the police chief at $19.34 per hour and authorized the mayor to advertise for candidates for the position.

Peninsula Village Council’s next regular meeting is set for Aug. 13 at 7 p.m. Village Council meets in the second-floor council room of Peninsula Town Hall, located at the corner of state Route 303 and Akron-Peninsula Road.

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