Abatement changes likely

The Jay County Council approved a tax abatement for a rural Portland business Wednesday night, but also decided it needs to review and revamp its requirements for granting future abatements.
Jay County Development Corporation executive director Bill Bradley presented the council with a recommendation from the Jay County Tax Abatement Advisory Committee to grant a three-year abatement on a $231,264 piece of equipment being purchased by IOM Grain.
Normally such an abatement might be granted without much contention, but council member Gary Theurer expressed some concern about it, since IOM Grain already received a low-interest loan from the county’s Economic Development Income Tax fund to help make the purchase.
“Is this the same equipment we already loaned him money on?” Theurer asked.
“Yes,” answered Bradley.
“I have a problem saving him money from two different sources from the county,” Theurer noted later.
“A double dip, as it were,” said councilman Dan Orr.
Councilman Ted Champ, who also sits on the tax abatement board, said he had similar reservations, but also said that the request met the loose standards set for abatement applications.
“This meets the criteria we are working with,” he said.
Bradley said similar situations have come up and passed in the cities, but couldn’t recall a situation on the county level where a business received an EDIT incentive and then a subsequent tax abatement.
The council approved the abatement, but decided it should take another look at the abatement requirements.
“We need to come up with some revamped guidelines,” Bradley said. Bradley also said a new set of guidelines would also allow him to screen requests before bringing them to the council.
Champ said he would like to see a new set of rules that would be a bit more black and white in order “to make it fair and equal to everyone who is applying.”
Bradley said he will work with the tax abatement committee and the council to draft a new set of rules.
In other business Wednesday, the council:
•Approved a shift in EDIT funds to help support operations of Jay County Development Corporation. JCDC will receive an additional $50,000 in EDIT funds per year for two years.
•Approved an appropriation of $1,000 to the Drug Free Community fund.
•Appropriated $12,709 to Jay Emergency Medical Service to purchase new software that will allow medics to enter run data electronically.
JEMS director Teresa Foster-Geesaman said the software will allow the department to eventually eliminate one position. The majority of that worker’s responsibilities is to enter the handwritten run sheets into the computer system.
•Approved an appropriation of $10,000 to the Jay County Health Department so it can purchase more vaccines. Health officer Dr. Stephen Myron said the vaccine clinic in the county is seeing good business and that the department is making a small profit to allow it to continue offering both children’s and adult vaccines.
•Appropriated $3,000 to the backhoe and dozer repair and replacement fund to cover repairs until the end of the year. County surveyor Brad Daniels said the fund was drained when the tracks on one of the excavators needed to be replaced earlier this year.
•Approved tax abatement compliance reports for Red Gold and Cross Roads Precision. Both companies were found to be in compliance with the terms of their abatement agreements.
•Assigned a tax abatement compliance checkup for Minnich Poultry to council president Mike Leonhard.
•Signed an ordinance extending collection of the Economic Development Income Tax until 2018.
•Received a budget schedule for this year. Since the county’s new pay plan will not be completed until late August, the council’s first budget meeting will be Sept. 7.
The council will hold budget reviews on Sept. 13 and 14, the first reading of the budget on Sept. 28 and second reading on Oct. 12.[[In-content Ad]]