Poll worker paychecks ready
The paychecks for poll workers in Porter County's Nov. 5 elections have been processed. Most poll workers will receive their pay in the mail, though county employees who worked the polls will receive their election pay with their regular paychecks. Our office was able to process all the poll worker pay with the county government's Nov. 29 payroll thanks to a coordinated effort with the office of County Clerk Jessica Bailey. Due to payroll deadlines, this was the earlier possible date for processing poll worker pay. Our thanks to all the poll workers for their service to the county and the election process!
Auditor to host Coffee with the Clerks Dec. 6
We are pleased to announce that our next "Coffee with the Clerks" will be on Friday, Dec. 6 at 9 a.m. The "Coffees" are an outreach effort to share information and resources between the County Auditor's Office and fiscal officers of other local government units. Agenda topics will include the upcoming December tax settlement and the 2020 budgets and net assessed values.
Porter County's 2020 budgets undergoing state review
After several weeks of budget hearings, the Porter County Council has adopted the 2020 budgets for county government departments. The budgets are now undergoing a state review and will be final after the state issues the Porter County budget order. To view the budgets, go to the "Budgets & Finance" link or click here. As part of the budget process, the council also reviewed maximum tax levies and estimated tax cap losses. To view the levy and tax cap report compiled by the Porter County Auditor's office, click here: 2020 Max Levy and Tax Cap Estimates for Porter County (PDF).
Attention county employees: Longevity pay update
The Porter County Council has approved the appropriation necessary for the second half of the 2019 longevity pay. The Auditor's Office plans to process longevity pay with the first payroll in December in accordance with the county's longevity policy. To read the policy, click here.
Auditor's Office certifies 2020 net AVs
A key figure that's used in setting property tax rates each year is the certified net assessed values (CNAVs). These values reflect the taxable value of real and personal property throughout the county. Our office certified the net 2020 AV for the county overall at $9.8 billion, which is a 2.3 percent increase over this year. The table below lists the 2020 certified net AVs for select taxing districts.
| Taxing District | 2020 |
|---|
| Hebron | $114 million |
| Valparaiso--Center Township | $1.5 billion |
| Valparaiso--Washington Township | $256 million |
| Beverly Shores | $185 million |
| Pines | $26 million |
| Kouts | $84 million |
| Portage | $1.5 billion |
| Ogden Dunes | $149 million |
| Burns Harbor | $588 million |
| Chesterton--Westchester Township | $542 million |
| Chesterton--Liberty Township | $153 million |
| Dune Acres | $102 million |
| Porter | $230 million |
New Deed Transfer Fee Now in Effect
A number of new state laws affecting county auditor offices took effect July 1. One of these is a deed transfer fee increase to $10 per parcel. Under H.E.A. 1427, county auditors are now required to collect the higher fee for real property conveyances, with the fee revenue used for developing and maintaining plat books. We began implementing this new fee on July 1, in accordance with state statute.