News

December 16, 2009

Levee fees not covering bills

New tax only producing half the $1.6M needed to maintain flood protection.

By Jennifer Learn-Andes jandes@timesleader.com
Luzerne County Reporter
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About $846,000 has been collected through the new Wyoming Valley Levee maintenance fee to date, or roughly half of the $1.6 million to $1.7 million in projected revenue, Luzerne County officials learned Tuesday.

County Flood Protection Authority Executive Director Jim Brozena warned county officials during Tuesday’s meeting that the fee revenue may not be enough to cover expenses next year, which means some additional money may be needed from the county’s general fund operating budget.

It was unwelcome news because county officials imposed the controversial fee so levee flood-related maintenance expenses would not have to be funded by the strapped general fund.

Authority members, including the three commissioners, decided to reevaluate the funding when the 2009 levee fee penalty payment phase ends early next year. Property owners who have not paid will soon receive reminder letters.

In addition to non-payments, Brozena attributed some of the reduced fee revenue to the removal of properties from the payment list.

Fine-tuning should be expected, he said, because the fee and projected revenue were based on property assessment records and a 1972 county planning commission map of the Agnes floodplain.

For example, the authority lowered the fees on 1,200 buildings that house two to four living units because they had been lumped into the commercial category.

The authority also voted Tuesday to remove about 140 properties – most in Exeter – from the fee roster because further investigation concluded they are not in the Agnes Flood zone. Brozena and his staff continue researching other fringe properties that may be removed, he said.

The authority did not rule out the possibility of increasing the fee amount.

“The pot is shrinking, and to secure the same amount of revenue, obviously we’d need to recalculate all of those categories again,” Brozena said during the meeting.

However, Brozena said after the meeting that county officials don’t want to increase the fee on the people who pay to compensate for those who don’t.

A $30 delinquency fee has been added to the bills of those who did not pay within the 60-day deadline, which ended last week. Additional penalties are added to overdue bills that are not paid after 45 days. Continued failure to pay will result in liens filed against these properties, Brozena said.

Brozena said he will continue to review levee maintenance budget needs for next year but is still counting on $1.6 million to $1.7 million in revenue.

The budget covers levee maintenance staff, pumping station costs, utilities and insurance. Other work must be done to keep the levee certification, such as tree removal and testing of levee water penetration, electrical systems and relief wells, Brozena said.

The giant Toby Creek impounding basin that prevents Pringle and Kingston from flooding will also be added to the levee system, which will require additional maintenance, Brozena said.

The purchase of maintenance equipment has also been put off, Brozena said.

“We were extremely lucky with the weather this year, but it’s getting to the point where we’re going to have to start doing things,” Brozena said.

The fee was applied to 15,300 properties in low-lying areas that were inundated by the 1972 Agnes Flood.

The fee for residential property owners is $46.85 per year for properties assessed under $100,000 and $93.70 for those at or over $100,000.

The fee for commercial, industrial and tax-exempt properties ranges from $225.48 to $676.44.

The authority is also contemplating lowering the fee for commercial properties under $100,000 because of concerns that a $225 fee is too high for small businesses. Roughly 350 commercial properties are valued under $100,000, including one as low as $15,000, Brozena said.

In other business Tuesday, Brozena said the authority will have to develop a plan to handle event programming and fundraising at the River Common.

A nonprofit called Luzerne County Tomorrow has been created to solicit donations and schedule events at the $23 million park along the Susquehanna River, but county officials have not ironed out details on the board that will oversee this group.

The one-mile park includes a 750-seat amphitheater and river landing/fishing pier that seats thousands.

The county doesn’t have the staff or funding to handle programming, and county officials believe people and businesses will be more likely to donate to an outside group than government.

Brozena said Luzerne County Tomorrow would likely use grants and donations to hire an employee to do day-to-day programming and possibly another worker to handle fundraising.

Jennifer Learn-Andes, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 831-7333.

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