Jefferson County Council opens public hearing on proposed vehicle excise surtax and wheel tax

The Jefferson County Council opened a public hearing on a proposed ordinance to impose a county motor vehicle excise surtax and a county wheel tax, saying the taxes would begin Jan. 1, 2026, and aim to raise revenue for road, bridge and maintenance work and to qualify the county for state matching grants. The ordinance text cited Indiana Code sections authorizing counties to impose an excise surtax and a wheel tax and would create two nonreverting funds into which revenues collected by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles would be deposited.

The ordinance as read sets the minimum rates the council is considering at $7.50 annually on traditional passenger vehicles, motorcycles and most collector vehicles and $5 annually on certain larger vehicles such as buses, recreational vehicles, trailers with gross weight above 9,000 pounds and trucks/tractors above 11,000 pounds; state law allows higher maximum rates (the ordinance cites maximums of up to $25 for the surtax and…