Posted: 7/5/05
County facing change in tax system
By David Heiller
Argus News Editor
Houston Countyís tax computing system will be changing over the next three years.
County representatives at a regional Minnesota Counties Computer Cooperative (MCCC) meeting on June 30 voted 26-21 to go with Manatron over their current one, Affiliated Computer
Services (ACS).
Houston County information systems manager Carol Hauser and auditor Pete Johnson opposed the change, and expressed that to the county board at its June 28 meeting..
The county board agreed, and told Johnson to vote accordingly at MCCC meeting.
It will now be up to each individual county to ratify the Manatron contract, Johnson told The Argus on July 1.
ACSís contract will not expire until 2008, but the conversion process will take several years, which is why the vote is happening now.
The system calculates things like property tax values, tax capacity, tax rates, and tax distribution for the auditor, treasurer, and assessor.
Johnson told commissioners last week that 10 county representatives from the southeastern region of MCCC discussed the pros and cons of switching. Some representatives felt that ACS hadnít kept up with the latest technology. But that wasnít entirely ACSís fault, Johnson said, because some of their recommendation were not followed because of the conservative nature of the counties.
ìI think the system we have is very functional and a strong system,î Johnson said.
Hauser viewed the new product at a meeting on June 20. She worried that there could be some underlying costs that havenít been considered.
The Manatron system also hasnít demonstrated its ability or support in Minnesota, which has a complicated tax system, Hauser said.
She felt that ACS could be brought to another level, but that the user group needs to decide to do that. Itís up to county boards to put money into it, she said.
It can take her ìa lot of timeî to prepare a CD of data from the ACS system when someone requests information. But ACS will be converting to a different program and platform that will make these things easier, she said.
The projected cost of the two systems varies depending on who does the calculating.
Contract with Blue Plus
The board approved an agreement with insurance company Blue Plus to provide service to elderly people who are eligible for Medicare or Medical Assistance but havenít used those services.
Itís a new requirement to comply with the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. Details havenít been spelled out completely, public health director Linda Grupa said. ìIím sorry, I wish I had clearer answers for you,î she said.
There are eighteen people in Houston County that qualify for Blue Crossís pre-paid medical assistance program, Grupa said.
The contract isnít required until January 1, 2006, but Grupa wanted to space out the cases and get staff trained in time.
Other business
ï The board approved a plat for Norlienís Subdivision in Money Creek Township. The subdivision, located east of Money Creek Campground off of Highway 76, contains five lots.
ï The countyís annual government auction will take place on Tuesday, August 16 at 4:30 p.m. at the fairgrounds in Caledonia.
ï The board approved an unpaid leave of absence for mechanic Tom Moenck from July 25 to August 23.
ï Kevin Kelleher reported that he had met with county engineer Allen Henkeís staff to spread out Henkeís duties. Henke resigned effective July 1. Last week was his last county board meeting. He is moving to North Carolina.
ï Kelleher reported that a proposed prescription card program from the National Association of Counties is on hold for six months. Commissioner Tom Bjerke said that he and Linda Grupa met with local pharmacist Tom Witt, who has a plan for a prescription card program that is administered by local pharmacists and is more fair to the consumers.
ï New jail programmer David Prachar of Duluth will be in Caledonia on July 6 to meet with the Criminal Justice Planning Committee to start making recommendations for a new county jail. Prachar was hired by the county board to oversee the project.
ï The board approved consultant design requests for seven bridge projects. The 2006 projects include Creamery Drive in Yucatan Township; Whitetail Drive in Crooked Creek Township, and a bridge in section 25 of Winnebago Township on County Road 31. The 2007 bridges are in section 19 of Sheldon Township on County Road 10; section 13 of Union Township on County Road 20; on Elm Drive in Spring Grove Township, and on Peyton Valley Road in Winnebago Township.
ï Commissioners awarded the 2005 bituminous sealcoating bid to Fahmer Asphalt Sealers, Inc, for $176,538.
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