Wheel tax gets initial approval by Green Bay City Council

Jonathan Anderson | Green Bay Press-Gazette

Show Caption Hide Caption Video: Green Bay residents furious over massive special assessments Homeowners along Hillcrest Drive in Green Bay are speaking out about expensive special assessments to help fund street repairs.

GREEN BAY - The Green Bay City Council on Tuesday took a major step toward eliminating special assessments and ramping up street repairs — issues that have long provoked frustration and ire from residents.

In a 10-2 vote, council members gave preliminary approval to a $20 wheel tax, which would allow the city to raise more than $2 million for much-needed road improvements.

It's a move that a growing number of local governments around Wisconsin have taken in recent years to fund infrastructure projects amid tight restrictions on property tax increases and lagging state transportation aid.

"The more you put off repair work, the more it costs in the long run," said Alderman Bill Galvin, who voted in support of the measure.

The proposed wheel tax, otherwise known as a vehicle registration fee, will still require at least one more final vote by the council, possibly as early as July.

Under the plan, wheel tax revenue would enable the city to eliminate residential special assessments, which are fees charged to property owners who live along streets being repaired. Assessments can vary widely, from hundreds of dollars to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the amount of frontage.

The additional tax revenue should also enable the city to repair more roads each year, Public Works Director Steve Grenier said.

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The approval comes less than a year after the City Council voted down a similar $20 wheel tax proposal. Council support for the tax has grown in recent months, in part because some aldermen opposed to it were replaced in April by wheel tax proponents. A recent uproar over expensive special assessments also solidified support.

The council on Tuesday required that city officials develop a five-year plan for how wheel tax revenue will be spent and that the plan be reviewed and updated each year.

Alderman John S. VanderLeest, who voted against the proposal, questioned why the city couldn't find existing property tax revenue to eliminate residential special assessments, which in a typical year generate about $750,000 for roads.

"We’re not looking very deep at how we’re spending the money," VanderLeest said.

The city at present principally bonds for road reconstruction and resurfacing, but also uses special assessments to help fund the work.

Alderman Jesse Brunette voted for the wheel tax on Tuesday, but he said he wants to take time to hear feedback from residents before his final vote. Ideally, he said, the wheel tax would only be temporary.

"My vote was a reluctant yes," Brunette said, adding: "We need to get to a point that the wheel tax will not be necessary."

His district on Green Bay's far west side includes residents who are slated to be charged tens of thousands of dollars in special assessments for planned road work. The median special assessment of the 35 property owners affected by the project, mostly along Hillcrest Drive, would be more than $13,000, ranging from about $1,100 to nearly $59,000.

After the homeowners objected to the assessments, the City Council in May voted to delay the work for at least a year.

State law says a wheel tax can be applied to all automobiles and trucks that weigh 8,000 pounds or less.

The state Department of Transportation would collect the wheel tax when it bills vehicle owners for registering and renewing their license plates each year. The DOT would then retain an administrative fee and pass the remainder onto the city.

Special plates exempt from wheel taxes are antique, collector, hobbyist, ex-prisoner of war, historic military and medal of honor, according to the DOT.

If the Green Bay City Council gives final approval of the wheel tax, Grenier said, he expects it could take effect by January.