By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
Settlement agreements were accepted and signed by county
commission chair Wm. Boyd Howarth.
The first of those agreements allows the payback of taxes
and the second allows the reduction of values for
Intermountain Power Association properties.
Eldridge, county attorney, told commissioners that he had
done as they requested and had looked into the matter. He
recommended the county sign the documents.
"Both Salt Lake County and Millard County have accepted
the settlement agreement," he said.
Howarth said that some years the county could have
requested a judgement levy, but not this year. The
opportunities were not there.
"If we do not agree," said Howarth, "we could be worse
off." He said, in the case of refusal, the state tax
commission would simply make readjustments to values.
"I agree, we have no choice in the world," said Robert
Steele, commissioner. "Unless we do a judgement levy. Is
that possible?"
Pat Ingram, county clerk, said she would check with the
state tax commission and find out if the settled figures
could all be lumped together, then the county may
qualify.
Juab did qualify on the amount needed to have a judgement
levy for the year 2001.
The settlement agreement is for the years 1999, 2000 and
2001.
"This will be hardest on the school district," said
Howarth. "They will have to payback the largest amount of
the entities involved."
Juab county will need to repay $7,172.77 with interest of
$1,281.63 added for a total of a payback of $8,454.38.
Juab School District, however, will be called upon to
payback $20,294.18 with interest of $3,395.27 for a total of
$23,689.96.
Other entities which will need to repay tax collected to
IPA will be CUP and the fire district. CUP will need to
repay $986.07 with interest of $170.25 for a total of
$1,156.32 and the fire district will need to repay $663. 09
plus interest of $46.43 for a total of $709.52.
Since standing alone to fight the return of the tax money
would be impossible, the county has little choice but to
repay the already spent tax money.
"The problem is that the payback of the taxes requires
that we repay money we spent several years ago," said
Howarth. "The money is gone, it was used, and it figured
into the budget that was set for that year. Then we are
called upon to repay the money and we have to dig it up out
of this year's budget, which is also already set."
The repayment of spent taxes created a hardship on
counties, entities in the county, and the citizens of the
county.
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