Commissioners rescind county home levy resolution

Carroll County commissioners rescinded a resolution approving a proposed county home levy increase during a special meeting June 5, one day after the measure was initially approved, after determining the proposal would place an additional tax burden on property owners.

Commissioner Chris Modranski said the resolution approved during the board’s June 4 meeting was presented as a renewal with an increase that would not raise taxes for residents. Following additional review and discussions with county officials, commissioners learned the proposal would generate approximately $834,000 in new tax revenue.

“When it was presented to us, it was presented that it would not be an increase in property tax,” Modranski said. “On further inspection, I did learn that it would actually be an increase in property tax to the property owners of Carroll County.”

The proposal called for a five-year renewal of the county home’s existing 1.4-mill levy along with an additional 0.5-mill increase.

Modranski said the existing 1.4-mill levy generates approximately $1.4 million to $1.5 million annually, while the additional 0.5 mill would have generated about $834,000 in new revenue.

Commissioner Robert Wirkner made the motion to rescind the resolution, saying commissioners should take additional time to review the county home’s finances and explore alternatives.

“I thought it might be best for us to come back today to rescind this motion and give us more time to get on the drawing board and see if there’s other options where we could reduce expenditures at the county home or other ways we can create revenue rather than putting it on the burden of the taxpayers,” Modranski said.

Wirkner said commissioners still recognize the need to maintain funding for the Carroll Golden Age Retreat but want to avoid increasing taxes if possible.

“We certainly don’t want to increase the tax burden on residents of Carroll County,” he said. “The voters have been very kind to us over the years.”

Wirkner said commissioners understood the need for a levy renewal but wanted additional review before considering an increase.

“The necessity part of this renewal was absolutely well understood, well founded and appropriate,” Wirkner said. “The part that surprised me after further investigation was that it’s actually going to cost the taxpayer more.”

Carroll County Auditor Stacy Brady, who participated remotely in the meeting, said there may have been confusion regarding how the proposal was explained.

“I think what they were trying to say was that by doing a renewal plus increase, it was actually going to generate less revenue than if they did a replacement,” Brady said. “It’s really hard to explain these things when you don’t work with them every day.”

Brady said she provided county home officials with estimates for several smaller millage increase options and agreed that further review was appropriate.

Commissioners unanimously approved the motion to rescind Resolution 2026-22.

“They still need to do the renewal of 1.4 mills and they have until August to get that on the ballot,” said Modranski. “I think the appropriate approach right now is to take a pause on this and rescind this motion.”