911 tax district protests due Tuesday
The Flathead County commissioners will release the results of the E-911 special tax district protests shortly after 5 p.m. today when the protest period officially ends.
If taxpayers protest between 10 and 50 percent of the value of the $1.9 million to be taxed in the new district — $190,000 — then the issue could not move forward without a public vote. If more than 50 percent of the tax value is protested, the issue cannot be brought up again for a year.
Results will be posted on the Daily Inter Lake’s website, www.dailyinterlake.com.
The commissioners will meet at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday to consider how to proceed after reviewing the protest results.
Property owners wanting to comment may do so during the commissioners’ 15-minute public comment period that begins at 8:45 a.m. in the commissioner chambers on the third floor of the Courthouse in Kalispell.
There has been a considerable amount of opposition to the plan to raise $1.9 million a year for the consolidated emergency dispatch center by taxing residential and commercial properties. The county is trying to find a way to pay for needed equipment upgrades because no funding mechanism for ongoing capital improvements was put in place when a $6.9 million bond issue for the 911 center passed in 2008.
The county has received numerous complaints over the way property owners would be taxed for the 911 center. The maximum initial assessment will be $25 per residential unit and up to $1,000 per commercial unit, depending what type of business it is.
There also were complaints about the protest form sent by the county to property owners.
Property owners were asked to check whether they support or oppose the creation of the E-911 special district, but if the form is not returned, the county stated the owner’s lack of action “must be construed as support of the creation of the proposed district.”
County Administrator Mike Pence said earlier that the county worded the protest form based on a state law for establishing special districts.
The 911 center currently is funded by a property tax levy of about 6 mills that funds a portion of the sheriff’s budget — a funding mechanism that generates about $1.4 million annually for the center. That tax levy will continue despite the outcome of the proposed special district.
The three cities contribute money based on population and a small tax on county residents’ phone bills brings in the rest of the operating money. The county’s three incorporated cities have the option of rolling back their tax contributions if the district is created.
If the district is created, the commissioners have indicated they would consider changes to the proposed commercial assessments to create a fairer tax.
Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.