Sales Tax Position Statement
Ordinance No. 2022-005
As a Public Safety Advocate and concerned citizen of Josephine County I have some concerns on the proposed Seasonal Sales Tax.
It is my understanding from reading the ordinance (5.50.020 B) that distributions to incorporated cities will be based on population.
According to estimates from the county commissioners the sales tax might raise $18 million annually, including $10 million for the county, $8 million for Grants Pass and $400,000 for Cave Junction. I am not sure what process the county used to come to these figures and would hope that information will be made available to us.
This tax can only be used for Law Enforcement purposes, but the commissioners have carved a slice out of the County’s potion which can be used for the Juvenile Department and the District Attorney’s Office which in my opinion is not law enforcement. But if considered Law Enforcement they need to be included separately in the distribution calculations.
The last time I checked a significant number of those incarcerated in the Josephine County Jail were placed there by the Grants Pass City police and on city charges. How come Grants Pass was not assessed a portion of those costs?
The approved budget for Juvenile Justice (excluding detention) for 2022-23 is 2,250,200
The approved budget for the District Attorneys office for 2022-23 is 2,788,100
The approved budget for the Sheriff’s Office (excluding the jail) for 2022-23 is 6,994,700
The combined total for those three is: 12,033,000 which is greater than the estimated $10 million for the county.
However, if 50% of those budgets were covered by the City of Grants Pass’s tax proceeds since it is fair to assume that 50% of the Juvenile Justice cases and 50% of the DA’s cases originate on charges out of the Grants Pass Police Department then a shared distribution makes the most sense.
(Basically, since all Law Enforcement agencies use Juvenile Justice and the DA’s office, those budgets should be shared equally and pulled prior to percent distribution)
Current Proposal / Final Distributions (based on 18 million collected estimate):
5% Contingency: $900,000 (Rainy Day Fund) (prior to disbursement percentages)
Administration Fees $5,000 (est.) (prior to disbursement percentages)
Tax Board Compensation: $7,200 (prior to disbursement percentages)
Available Balance: $17,087,800
City of Cave Junction (2.25%) $401,563 (likely used for increased Sheriff’s Patrol coverage)
City of Gants Pass (43.50%) $7,602,362
Josephine County Sheriff’s Office (excluding Adult Jail) (54.25%) $9,083,874
Internal Service Fund $961,200
Juvenile Justice $2,250,200
DA’s Office $2,788,700
Sheriff’s Office $3,083,774
Knapp adjusted Proposal / Final Distributions (based on 18 million collected estimate):
5% Contingency: $900,000 (Rainy Day Fund) (prior to disbursement percentages)
Administration Fees $5,000 (est.) (prior to disbursement percentages)
Tax Board Compensation: $7,200 (prior to disbursement percentages)
Juvenile Justice: $2,250,200 (This Department is used by all county residents)
DA’s Office: 2,788,700 (This Department is used by all county residents)
Available Balance: $12,048,900
City of Cave Junction (2.25%) $283,149 (likely used for increased Sheriff’s Patrol coverage)
City of Gants Pass (43.50%) $5,360,555
Josephine County Sheriff’s Office (excluding Adult Jail) (54.25%) $6,405,195
| Current Proposal | Knapp’s Proposal | |
| Projected Tax collected | $18,000,000.00 | $18,000,000.00 |
| 5% Contingency | $900,000.00 | $900,000.00 |
| Admin Fees (Est.) | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| Tax Board Compensation | $7,200.00 | $7,200.00 |
| Juvenile Justice | $2,250,200.00 | |
| DA’s Office | $2,788,700.00 | |
| Funds Available after Fixed Costs: | $17,087,800.00 | $12,048,900.00 |
| Estimated Distributions: | ||
| City of Grants Pass (43.49%) | $7,602,362.22 | $5,360,555.61 |
| City of Cave Junction (2.35%) | $401,563.30 | $283,149.15 |
| Josephine County (53.16%) | $9,083,874.48 | $6,405,195.24 |
| Josephine County Breakdown: | $9,083,874.48 | |
| Internal Service Fund (ISF) | $961,200.00 | $961,200.00 |
| Juvenile Justice | $2,250,200.00 | |
| DA’s Office | $2,788,700.00 | |
| Sheriff’s Office | $3,083,774.48 | $5,443,995.24 |
Questions:
5.50.020
Section B states the revenue from this tax shall be used exclusively for the provisions of law enforcement services, including administrative expenses, in Josephine County, including the Sheriff’s Office, the Juvenile Department, the District Attorney’s Office…
For clarification, does that mean that the Juvenile Department and the District Attorney’s Office can only use these funds for “Administrative expenses” and not operating costs? No, Administrative expenses are for all agencies and are pulled prior to distribution, and this includes all administrative expenses (board compensation, and other admin costs)
Why is the city of Grants Pass and the city of Cave Junction excluded from this assessment since many of the cases of those departments (Juvenile and DA) are city cases? Traditionally these expenses have always been paid by the county.
In section D it is written that at least five percent of the revenue gleaned shall be deposited into a contingency fund, is this 5 % of the total tax collected prior to disbursements to the three recipients? Yes
Who or what determines the percentage since the statement says “at least” 5 %? Tax board
Who can request use of this contingency fund and on what conditions? Any of the 5 departments can request these funds from the tax board.
5.50.030
In section G it is written Retail activity includes conversions that are delivered to a Consumer or location in Josephine County. Does this mean that internet sales from a business located in the county but shipped to a consumer outside of the county are excluded from this sales tax? Yes, but anyone, including Amazon who ships to Josephine County would have to collect this tax.
5.50.060
In section B, what is the source of the funds for the Retail Activities Tax Board compensation ($200 each per month, $6,000 total)? Admin fees prior to distribution
In section C, where do the funds come from for the annual audit and other administrative costs? Funds collected prior to distribution