When District 2 Barton County Commissioner Barb Esfeld floated an “outside-the-box” idea on lowering county property taxes at a meeting in Topeka Tuesday, mouths were agape as it soaked in for those present. The suggestion, first proposed by Barton County Administrator Matt Patzner, involves implementing a county-wide 1% sales tax solely dedicated to offsetting the strain on the mill levy. Sales taxes are paid by everyone who spends money in the county and many consider it a more fair tax. … cities and counties are governed by different “home rule” guidelines. These cover the extent to which these units of government are allowed to govern themselves. So, it is unclear if a county can implement such a sales tax, Esfeld said. There was interest among the committee members to change home rule mandates to accommodate it. “I am the biggest proponent of county home rule you will ever find,” said County Counselor Patrick Hoffman. “What you guys are really talking about is that the Legislature needs to let counties govern themselves more than they are.”
Source: Great Bend Tribune

Barton County commissioners Wednesday morning hailed the resolution of Larry and Sheree Marshall’s conditional use permit and zoning requests to operate an auto salvage-towing business west of Great Bend as one of the county’s proudest moments from last year. “It was it was a tough year last year for all of us, everyone at the county level,” said Environmental Manager Judy Goreham of what was a long and emotional process. “And I really feel like this was a success story.” … “This was one of the resolutions where we had a laundry list of conditions,” she said. In all, there were nine he had to meet within 180 days, which he did. The last of these was the annual review to receive approval for another year. His annual application requirements will vary from year to year, she said. This year he had to provide copies of his licenses, salvage certificate and proof of bonding, and he has complied. Last Wednesday, Mark Cooper from her office drove by the property. “It was in tip-top shape. Everything about the requirements were good.”
Source: Great Bend Tribune