Normal Council approves 12-month pause on shared sales-tax transfers and orders independent audit

Normal — The Normal Town Council voted Wednesday to pause monthly transfers of shared sales-tax receipts to McLean County for a minimum of 12 months while the town, the City of Bloomington and the county negotiate amendments to the 2016 intergovernmental agreement that created the Mental Health and Public Safety Fund. The council also approved funding for an independent audit of the fund’s accounts and expenditures.

The pause and audit follow public comments and debate about how the county has administered the shared fund, which council staff said currently holds a fund balance of more than $20,000,000. Town staff sought the pause so the three parties can “renegotiate the intergovernmental agreement” in light of large one-time federal grants, internet-sales tax growth and other changes since the IGA was adopted.

In public comment, Susan Schaeffer, a former McLean County board member, criticized the packet materials provided to the council and urged the town to hold the IGA to account. “The background information provided in your packet is misleading and incomplete,” Schaeffer said. She also raised potential conflicts of interest involving a council member’s employer and urged the council not to “renege” on commitments to mental-health services. Corey Byrne, a McLean County board member and chair of the county health committee, urged the council to vote against pausing transfers and to “collaborate on this audit,” arguing the fund supports local behavioral-health providers and programs.

Town staff introduced the item and outlined the mechanics. “In 2015 … the Normal Town Council adopted a 1% sales tax that went…