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Utah County commissioners adopt 2020 tax rate amid heated budget debate
Summary
After a lengthy exchange over budget priorities and a late public outcry, the Utah County Board of Commissioners approved the 2020 tax rate by voice vote. Commissioners debated whether to restart the revenue-setting process or hold to the budget adopted in December given new COVID-19 and legal liabilities.
The Utah County Board of Commissioners voted to adopt the 2020 tax rate as presented after a contentious debate over whether the commission should revisit its revenue assumptions.
Staff explained that the tax rate reflects the revenue target adopted as part of the county's December budget, a process that follows the Utah State Tax Commission's truth-in-taxation framework. "When you actually look at the budget that we passed versus the budget that you proposed... the difference is the reason why there was the 19 and you were at 16, that all goes to one-time items like risk management, capital projects, building up the reserve," the chair said during the discussion, urging the commission to consider the budget as adopted.
Commissioner Lee pressed for a wider reconsideration, arguing the county should "scrap this and start all over" in response to the referendum and election results and the economic disruption of the coronavirus pandemic. Lee repeatedly said commissioners should "listen to the people" and indicated support for substantially lower revenue increases he had discussed earlier in the process.
Members debated both the political and technical aspects of restarting the process. Commissioners and staff cautioned that legal liabilities and reduced state support for certain grants have increased budget pressure since December. The chair noted new exposure for multimillion-dollar legal liabilities and the loss of some state-funded public defender grants as budget drivers.
Julie Blaney, a resident of Payson during public comment, urged the commission to consider the economic pain facing residents: "The people are suffering... Where's the talk about what can we do in the county to save the people money? That's the conversation that should be happening." Other members noted the referendum and election results but emphasized the timing of the statutory deadline for adopting the rate.
Commissioner Ivy moved to adopt the 2020 tax rate as stated in agenda item 1; the motion was seconded and adopted by voice vote. The transcript records the motion and passage but does not provide a roll-call tally for the tax-rate vote.
The commission also noted that procedural limits (the statutory deadline) constrain when the rate can be set and that significant line-item budget choices made in December remain the basis for this rate. The meeting moved on to the next items after adoption.
