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Supervisors discuss prior meeting payments and seek tax guidance; agree to stop accepting pay going forward
Summary
Board members reviewed past practice of endorsing meeting compensation checks and raised concerns about tax reporting; the board reached a consensus to decline meeting payments going forward and instead accept mileage reimbursement while staff will consult on repayment/tax treatment for amounts already received.
A discussion on Oct. 7 focused on how supervisors receive compensation for meetings and whether past payments had been handled appropriately for tax purposes. Supervisor Travis said he had asked the auditor to review a prior instance in which a supervisor endorsed a check from the landfill and deposited it into a supervisor general fund; Travis asked whether that payment should have been reported as taxable income or treated as a donation.
“Is that really donation back to the county then…or is that reimbursement?” Travis asked, noting potential 1099 and tax implications. Board members discussed options including repaying checks into the landfill fund or declining meeting checks in the future and taking mileage instead.
The board’s working consensus was to stop taking meeting compensation checks and to accept only mileage reimbursement going forward to avoid the back-and-forth of taking payment and repaying it later. Several supervisors asked staff to consult with the county auditor or tax counsel to determine the correct treatment for previously received amounts and to return with a process if repayment is required.
No formal motion with a recorded vote was presented; supervisors indicated informal agreement and asked staff for follow-up on tax and accounting steps.
