By Brian Massie, A Watchman on the Wall
Why does Treasurer Mike Zuren feel the need to pat himself on the back while collecting record property taxes, and record investment income. All the while Lake County residents are having trouble paying bills, putting food on the table, and gas in their cars. The phrase “tone deaf” seems appropriate.
In the News-Herald article Zuren is quoted as saying: “The current increase, he added, which “boosts the county’s investment income,” is partly attributed to internal improvements made over the past three years, which have included upgraded payment options, QR codes, and additional mailings — “to bridge the gap between the semi-annual billing cycles” — and a heightened online payment platform.”
So exactly how much has Lake County received in investment income over the years?
- 2009 $4,030,207.67
- 2010 $2,187,337.46
- 2011 $1,745,892.12
- 2012 $1,074,893.22
- 2013 $ 953,933.80
- 2014 $ 772,619.05
- 2015 $1,133,506.40
- 2016 $1,430,596.49
- 2017 $2,401,086.71
- 2018 $4,379,479.45
- 2019 $5,743,767.96
- 2020 $3,059,624.49
- 2021 $1,526,400.20
- 2022 $3,752,624.83
- 2023 $14,751,254.91
- 2024 $16,000,000.00 (Estimated)
A reliable source has told me that the 2024 projected investment income is closer to $20,000,000.00. This was significant factor in the decision to build a $205 million Public Safety Center, formerly known as a “jail”. The question is will this level of investment income continue?
If you think that is impressive just look at the County’s General Fund Expenditures over the years:
- 2009 $62,106,517.24
- 2010 $60,852,447.57
- 2011 $59,922,658.46
- 2012 $62,597,827.15
- 2013 $61,046,325.64
- 2014 $60,332,128.73
- 2015 $58,514,804.76
- 2016 $61,347,618.54
- 2017 $62,416,691.83
- 2018 $64,476,714.60
- 2019 $69,540,022.30
- 2020 $68,726,497.04
- 2021 $74,706,537.04
- 2022 $79,700,705.11
- 2023 $92,962,224.00
- 2024 $92,306,126.83 (Estimated)
Ladies and gentlemen, that equates to an increase of 48.6% in 15 years.
If you think that is impressive, take a look at the Lake County Crime Lab cash reserves versus annual expenditures:
Year Cash Reserves Annual Expenditures
2009 $4,792,220.98 $1,695,940,28
2010 $5,105,087.59 $1,582,742.42
2011 $4,847,457.04 $1,865,377,90
2012 $4,202,105.15 $2,184,906.34
2013 $3,761,820.39 $1,966,552.81
2014 $3,343,552.94 $2,046,581.17
2015 $2,798,776.88 $2,142,672.04
2016 $1,877,975.82 $2,514,810.47
2017 $1,466,352.31 $2,201,129.70
2018 $ 757,305.88 $2,367,508.02
2019 $2,362,562.87 $2,439,478.86
2020 $3,892,468.89 $2,671,644.49
2021 $5,533,301.58 $2,602,603.47
2022 $6,891,965.40 $2,909,933.14
2023 $8,700,841.89 $2,712,350.79
The Prosecutor’s office controls the Crime Lab. They have two property tax levies:
Passed in 1999 a .30 mill levy collects $1,210.758 per year
Passed in 2018 a .40 mill levy collects $2,305,561 per year
We were told by a State legislator that Prosecutor Coulson only needed a .34 mill levy in 2018, but the Commissioners allowed him to “round up” to .40 mill. When asked why did the Prosecutor’s office ask for more money than they needed to operate the Crime Lab, the answer was that they would not have to go back to the citizens for another levy for 12 – 15 years.
We are deeply concerned that Lake County government is growing at such a rapid rate, the private sector will not be able to afford to pay for all the services.
No one ever considers giving money back to the taxpayers. We had to expose a 30 year problem of overpaid property taxes NEVER being returned to the rightful owners. The Commissioners had no incentive because they benefitted from the interest earned on the money.
Why is this happening while the average Lake County taxpayer is being priced out of their homes with ever-increasing property taxes, and rampant inflation is destroying their savings?
The answer is that there are no checks and balances to guard against excessive property taxes in Lake County. Commissioner John Hamercheck is the only one that agrees with us that “ANY TAX THAT CAUSES A CITIZEN TO BECOME HOMELESS IS IMMORAL”.
The Budget Commission, composed of the Prosecutor, Auditor and Treasurer, is merely a rubber stamp for the various taxing authorities in the County. Prosecutor Coulson’s interpretation of State law and Supreme Court rulings has allowed the taxing authorities (Deepwood, Metroparks, Crime Lab, schools, libraries, etc.) to accumulate obscene cash reserves.
Here is a video of Auditor Galloway and Prosecutor Coulson giving their viewpoint of the role of the Budget Commission:
At the request of Auditor Chris Galloway, we tried to collect 3,000 signatures of registered votes to allow us to ask voters to add two citizens to the Budget Commission. Unfortunately, we did not collect the number of signatures for the November 2024 ballot, but we will continue to collect the signatures for next year’s ballot.
We tried to get support from the Lake County Commissioners, but bucking the Prosecutor is a fool’s errand in this County. Commissioner Plecnik was not in favor of our petition because he stated that it would simply give the Democrats a chance to hold elected positions in Lake County. [Party before the people, seems to be his motto.]
With the massive influx of cash into the County, the only Republican that I have heard mention property tax relief for the Lake County citizens is Commissioner John Hamercheck. He and Commissioner Rich Regovich stumbled when they voted for the 1/2% sales tax increase for the jail without securing a vote of the citizens. Hamercheck paid for that decision and should have lowered the inside millage, as former Commissioner Dan Troy did. Commissioner Regovich has kept a low profile since that decision hoping no one would remember in November.
We continue to state that the Lake County government cannot continue to “suck the lifeblood” out of the citizens. The money needs to remain in the hands of the citizens to help the local economy thrive.
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