The Washington County Board kept a lid on taxation for another year, but storm clouds loom on the fiscal horizon.
Commissioners at their Tuesday meeting approved a no-increase property tax levy for 2013, but they also adopted a slightly more costly $158.6 million operating expense budget.
Next year's property tax levy of $86.1 million continues a trend that began in 2011, when commissioners decided they wouldn't raise taxes during a recession.
"In this economic situation, I think it's important to be as conservative as possible," said Commissioner Dennis Hegberg after the board voted 5-0 last week to approve the levy. But commissioners also are fighting to maintain "core services" while state revenue promised to counties has shriveled in recent years.
For Washington County to keep its tax levy flat, it has had to find more savings in its expense budget and rely more on other non-levy sources of revenue, such as fees paid at county offices. The decrease in state funding also means that the county's share of the tax burden continues to grow even while costs associated with state-mandated programs stay about the same.
"As you can see, the property tax now funds half of all county revenues," Budget Director Kevin Corbid told commissioners at a recent public hearing.
State money paid to Washington County fell far below projections in 2010 and 2011. Corbid said of 2013, when the county expects $6.8 million: "We believe there's a strong likelihood the county won't receive this state aid amount."
On top of that challenging scenario, sharp increases in county population mean more residents now use services such as roads, welfare and Sheriff's Office policing. In the county's Community Services department, which administers welfare programs, numbers of health care and food support cases shot up because of economic struggles.