Altoona City Council questions $30 for wheel tax

Friday, July 13, 2018
Julian Emerson | Leader-Telegram

City says county's high registration fee could hinder ability to approve its own

ALTOONA - City Council members don't blame Eau Claire County officials for seeking additional money to make much-needed repairs to roads, but the proposed $30-per-vehicle registration fee is costly enough to make possibly approving such a fee in Altoona difficult, they said. 

The council voted 5-0 Thursday to approve submitting a letter to the county seeking further discussion of the vehicle registration fee, commonly referred to as a wheel tax. The County Board is scheduled to discuss the matter at its Tuesday meeting. Council President Brendan Pratt and Councilman Andrew Schlafer were absent.  

Altoona city Administrator Mike Golat said the county's proposal is a "responsible" way to address a funding shortage to repair and replace county roads. But he said he hopes county officials are willing to discuss how the issue of street maintenance impacts other local governments, particularly the cities of Altoona and Eau Claire, as well. 

Golat and council members questioned whether the fee could be less. If adopted at the $30 figure, it would tie Milwaukee County as the most expensive such fee among the eight Wisconsin counties that have adopted such a fee. 

Golat said he's unsure whether Altoona would adopt a wheel tax in the future, but county adoption of a $30 fee would make doing so more difficult for the city. The fee would be added to the $75 annual registration cost the state charges for each vehicle.

"If (the county) does that, does it pre-empt us from doing so?" Golat said. "No, but politically it does make it more difficult for us to do that."

Council members agreed, saying the county should consider a lesser fee. If approved, the county would begin to charge the fee Jan. 1. 

"I don't have a big problem with a wheel tax," Councilman Red Hanks said. "But I think it's a little high (at $30)."

Councilman David Rowe said he understands the county trying to find a way to pay for road repairs, "but I have an issue with the $30."

Altoona isn't alone in expressing concern at the proposed fee. On Tuesday the Eau Claire City Council approved a resolution seeking to meet with county leaders to discuss sharing a portion of the fee with the city for street repairs. Seventy-two percent of vehicles registered in the county are owned by Eau Claire residents, who would pay for a majority of county road repairs while receiving no county funding for city streets. 

County officials said they require the full $2.39 million annually the fee would generate or county roads will deteriorate. That money would be used for road maintenance and would reduce the amount of money the county borrows to fix roads. Continued borrowing at current levels isn't sustainable in the future, county Administrator Kathryn Schauf said. 

Contact: 715-830-5911,julian.emerson@ecpc.com

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