Commissioners discover county owes $8,000 in sales taxes

By Sara QuamRock County Commissioners Tuesday discussed their displeasure in having to pay old sales tax bills to the state of Minnesota.Commissioner Bob Jarchow said, "I don’t want to go down quietly on this one. I can’t believe that we just got audited and this started in 1992, and now we’re supposed to pay?"Newly elected Chairman Jane Wildung said, "We should pick our battles; it’s only $8,000."The state of Minnesota started a policy in 1992 requiring public bodies to pay sales tax on purchases.The county does a fair amount of business across state lines — largely for Highway Department equipment at dealerships in nearby Sioux Falls.In the past, the county has paid sales tax in South Dakota and paid the state of Minnesota the difference if it was more in Minnesota.County Administrator Kyle Oldre said, "Clearly there was no intent to not pay the tax since we paid the difference."State auditors now say the county is exempt from paying the sales tax in South Dakota, and it should pay the total to Minnesota, no matter where the purchase was.Now, the county is supposed to collect that sales tax from South Dakota. The board laughed at that notion. The county will have to pay Minnesota $8,200.The county will change its practices from now on while making purchases. It is armed with a letter from the auditor to show businesses explaining the South Dakota sales tax-exempt policy.In other business Tuesday, commissioners:
Adjusted the salary of County Engineer/Public Works Director Mark Sehr. There was a $3,000 miscalculation (short of what it should be) in the amount passed at the previous board meeting.His salary is $78,000 and will increase to $83,000, $88,000 and $93,000 in consecutive years, beginning Jan. 1 this year.
Set a public hearing to receive comment on the new election process. The state has mandated the purchase of new machines, and township officials and other election workers will need to learn new procedures. It is in compliance with the Help America Vote Act, which ensures that all polling places are handicap accessible.The hearing will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19, in the Rock County Family Services building.
Reviewed snow removal routes on county roads. Commissioners and the Highway Department have received compliments throughout this winter. However, there have been complaints about roads in the Hills-Beaver Creek area not being cleared in time for school buses and working commuters.The board said it would set up a meeting about the timing of route work with the school district. The board also acknowledged that wind and continuous accumulation make it nearly impossible for roads to be in perfect condition at all hours of the day. Each snowfall is different, and workers can’t work 24 hours a day.