June 27, 2013
Thursday AM

The views expressed here are my own.

At its January policy session this year the Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly tentatively set its property tax mill rate at 5.5 mills, a projected increase of 0.5 mills. The increase was built into the revenue side of the budget to offset expected reductions in federal funds. When property assessments came in approximately 6% higher than the previous year and sales tax proceeds exceeded projections, the Borough Assembly, after much debate, chose not to implement the 0.5 increase and maintained the mill rate at 5.0 mills.

In November 2012 the Ketchikan City Council tentatively set it property tax mill rate at 6.7 mills, a projected increase of 0.3 mills. Some of you may recall the previous year the City Council raised the mill rate from 6.2 to 6.4 mills because as one council member put it we may need that revenue . Of course, as with all things government, they did find a use for those funds, whether they truly needed to or not is beyond the scope of this discussion.

At its June 6, 2013 meeting the City Council voted to raise the mill rate from 6.4 to 6.7 even though in a May 23, 2013 memo to the City manager, the City Finance Director gives an option of Establish the mill rate at 6.4. At this rate the City would realize the property tax revenues projected for 2013.

The justification given by the City Manager to raise the mill rate to 6.7, even though they had sufficient revenues at a 6.4 mill rate, was that they may need the flexibility the funds would provide them if the voters pass the $43 million Hospital bond initiative in October. It doesn't appear the council gave any thought that the citizens may have need of those funds to help pay for the recent increases in utility rates and diesel surcharges.

The Assembly chose to maintain the 5.0 mill rate even though it meant dipping into reserves. The City Council chose to raise their mill rate to 6.7 even though the City Finance Director admitted that a 6.4 mill rate was sufficient to meet their budge projections.

The City needs to live within its budget. It shouldn't be raking in tax monies just because it may need the funds.

Agnes Moran
Ketchikan, Alaska

Representations of fact and opinions in letters are solely those of the author.
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