The Village Board of Morton on a voice and roll-call vote approved Ordinance No. 26-08 to implement a municipal grocery retailer's occupation tax and a municipal grocery service occupation tax, a change the corporation counsel said is needed to continue the village’s current 1% grocery sales tax after a state law change.

Corporation Counsel presented the ordinance as the sole legal item on the agenda and said the measure was prepared at trustees' request. “The village residents currently pay 1% sales tax on grocery purchases, which goes to the village,” the counsel said, and added that a change in state law requires the village to adopt a local ordinance for the village to keep that revenue stream. “So it's not a tax increase rather than continuation of an existing tax,” the counsel said. The counsel also said, “It won't increase grocery cost for residents.”

Trustees moved and seconded consideration; the roll call recorded votes by name. Cerulli voted yes, Hilliard voted yes, Leach voted no, Minnell voted yes and Collier voted yes. The motion carried and the ordinance was adopted. The mover and seconder were not identified by name in the meeting record. The corporation counsel described the change as chiefly administrative: the manner in which the tax is imposed and collected will change from the prior state-collected arrangement to a locally imposed, state-collected tax so the village can continue to receive the funds.

No public hearing or public comments on the ordinance were recorded in the meeting minutes provided. The recording and minutes did not specify an effective date for the ordinance or any required follow-up actions by staff.