Council approved on a 3-2 vote a 20 mil property tax and a $2,948,058 property tax credit. The millage will appear on the October property tax bill as will a Town property tax credit. The amount of tax due to the Town will be zero on all tax bills. Here is an example of a property tax bill including the Town millage and tax credit.
$2,948,058 is equal to the total amount of revenue the Town has received from the LOST (Local Option Sales Tax) Property Tax Credit Fund since 2012, along with the interest earned on those funds, as well as the amount the Town anticipates receiving during the 2015-16 fiscal year.
The millage is for payment for a Town Hall by lease purchase agreement and the maintenance of a reserve.
The Town's tax plan will not increase the property tax of any taxpayer. However, I deeply regret that I was unable to convince a majority of JIPSD Commissioners to reduce rather than raise their property tax and allow the Town to pay the JIPSD for solid waste collection by contract. That plan would have allowed for a substantial reduction in property tax in the Town. Even though a reduction in property tax was not possible this year, I still believe that it is in the best interest of the Town to provide a tax credit against its own millage. I appreciate the support of the majority of Town Council.
I hope that a property tax reduction will be possible in the near future, most likely after the 2016 JIPSD elections.
Mayor Bill Woolsey