Kokomo council backs temporary local income tax increase to help fund Howard County jail

The Kokomo Common Council voted to adopt Resolution 28-51 on first action tonight, casting the city’s votes in favor of an ordinance being proposed to the Howard County Local Income Tax Council that would raise the county'wide public-safety local income tax by 0.4 percentage points for 2026 and 2027 to help finance the Howard County Jail Project.

The resolution followed a public hearing in which county advisers explained the proposal and more than a dozen residents asked questions or expressed concerns about transparency, the long-term cost to taxpayers, and alternatives to building a new jail. Max Adams, a lawyer with the firm Barnes & Thornburg representing Howard County, told the council the body was being asked to adopt a resolution so the countywide tax council could consider an ordinance increasing the public-safety local income tax. "The resolution before you is a resolution, voting in favor of an ordinance of the local income tax council of Howard County," Adams said (remarks at 741.66). Jason Simler, a municipal adviser with Baker Tilly, described the increase as a way to reduce future borrowing costs for the jail project.

Why this…