DYER — In a 4-to-1 vote Thursday, the Dyer Town Council adopted a wheel tax and license surcharge that will bring in an estimated $500,000 for road repair, resurfacing and reconstruction.
Councilwoman Debbie Astor voted no on this second reading of the ordinance as she did June 2. She said the $25 per vehicle wheel tax would be a burden to young families who often have multiple cars and to senior citizens on fixed incomes.
“Senior citizens haven’t been given a raise in Social Security in five years,” Astor said.
Several residents expressed objections to the tax prior to the vote, some citing confusion about how the wheel tax is calculated.
Interim Town Manager Tom DeGiulio explained the tax is not based on the number of wheels on a vehicle, but rather the vehicle’s weight.
Town Attorney Bill Enseln said that 100 percent of the money collected will stay in Dyer. Three-quarters of the funds or about $350,000 must be used for roads while the remaining 25 percent can be used for any “legal purpose” including buying salt for roadways.
“It’s a win-win,” Enseln said.
Town Council President Mary Tanis agreed.
“No one can take it,” Tanis said. “Last year the Indiana General Assembly faced the options of a gasoline tax on everyone or to do a wheel tax.”
However, Gov. Mike Pence opposed a gas tax.
“We can change this every year or eliminate it,” Tanis said.
The annual tax rates effective Jan. 1, 2017 are $25 for passenger vehicles, motorcycles, motor-driven cycles and trucks with a declared gross weight not exceeding 11,000 pounds. A $40 per year tax will be imposed on buses, recreational vehicles, semitrailers, tractors, trailers and trucks, according to the ordinance.
Municipal vehicles such as school buses, police cars and public works trucks aren’t subject to the wheel tax, DeGiulio said.
By passing the wheel tax Dyer is now eligible to apply for 50 percent matching grants from the state for road infrastructure.
Crown Point, Munster, Merrillville, Portage Valparaiso, Gary and LaPorte have adopted the wheel tax, while Hammond, Hobart and Schererville decided not to pursue the funding.