Local News in Brief : Bid to End Surcharge Defeated

A proposal to end Lawndale’s 25% surcharge on business license fees and to refund unspent surcharges already collected was rejected last week in a 3-2 vote by the City Council.

Councilmen Harold E. Hofmann, Larry Rudolph and Dan McKenzie voted against the proposal by Councilwoman Carol Norman, who had argued that the funds are being collected “under false pretenses.”

She said that when the surcharge was adopted a few years ago, it was earmarked for the Lawndale Chamber of Commerce. But this year, during city budget hearings in August and September, the 3-member council majority refused to give the surcharge to the chamber, as the city has done in the past.

During those hearings, over Norman’s objections and those of Mayor Sarann Kruse, the council majority held back the entire $70,000 that the chamber expected to receive this year, including $45,000 from the surcharge and $25,000 that the city had been paying the chamber to put on four community events. The council majority argued that the chamber should be self-supporting.

Council members differed on the original intent of the surcharge. Kruse agreed with Norman that the council earmarked the 25% for the chamber, and Hofmann said no such commitment was made.

In another twist, City Atty. David J. Aleshire said last week that it was improper for the city to funnel tax money to a private organization such as the chamber. The city can, however, pay the chamber for services rendered, such as promoting the business community or holding special events, Aleshire said.

Jerry Enis, director of the chamber, said Friday that the council action “was not unexpected.”