The newly-formed county sales tax advisory committee appointed by the Platte County Commission met briefly for the first time this week.
Chaired by former county auditor Sandra Thomas, the 11-member committee was appointed through commission action last week to analyze Platte County’s sales tax structure and make a recommendation that addresses long-term needs. Specifically, “dedicated funding for long-term predictable financial stability that prioritizes law enforcement operations and supports parks and stormwater operations and maintenance.”
The county’s half-cent parks, recreation and stormwater sales tax expires at the end of 2020. Last spring, the county launched an unsuccessful effort to pass a dedicated law enforcement sales tax. The committee was formed to determine how to fund parks and law enforcement, possibly through a split sales tax initiative, which would need to be approved by voters next year.
Former county auditor Sandra Thomas chairs the committee.
The committee met Monday at the Platte County Resource Center and made introductions. All three county commissioners were present and director of planning and zoning, parks and facilities Daniel Erickson was tapped to take meeting minutes. County attorney Bob Shaw gave a brief presentation on the Missouri Sunshine Law and reminded committee members that they are subject to its provisions.
“For the purposes of this committee, you are now all public officials,” Shaw said.
Thomas said she had disseminated 10-year departmental budgets to the committee members and asked members to review the documents and compile any questions they wished to ask of department heads or elected officials.
Committee member Gordon Cook questioned the scope of the committee’s work. He suggested the committee look into the entire county budget, all revenue streams and the budgets of related entities instead of focusing on the few departments outlined in the mission statement.
“To get off on the right foot here, I think the members need to agree with the mission statement,” he said.
Presiding commissioner Ron Schieber said the commission is looking for a recommendation to move forward with, which is why a wide variety of people were selected for the committee.
“Dig as deep as you feel like you need to dig to get a recommendation that’s successful and fair to the taxpayers,” Schieber said.
Thomas said she hoped the committee could complete its work by the end of the year, but Cook believed this was an unrealistic expectation for a committee that is tasked to dig deeply to create the best recommendation possible.
“I feel like we’re looking for the approval of an answer that’s already on the table,” Cook said.
After an agreement that committee members would review the mission statement and set parameters for the upcoming discussions, the meeting was adjourned after about 45 minutes.
The group’s next meeting will be at 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28 at the Platte County Resource Center. Future meetings will be posted on the county’s commission calendar at www.co.platte.mo.us. All meetings are open to the public. Group member Wes Minder suggested creation of a Google group that would allow open discussion between members. Audience member David Park suggested all documents related to the committee should be available in a dedicated space on the county website.
Members of the committee are:
Thomas served as county auditor from 1995 until 2006. Thomas and her husband, James, have lived in Platte County since 1991 and have two grown daughters.
Shane Bartee and his wife Susanna have lived in Platte County for just over 10 years and have six children. Shane spent 21 years on active duty with the U.S. Army as a helicopter pilot and JAG attorney. He is a practicing attorney in Weston and currently serves on the Board of Education for the West Platte School District.
Cook is an accountant and consultant and works primarily with privately held entities. Cook provided substantial support to the 2014 jail committee. He has lived in Platte County since 1994.
Rick Easley retired from the Kansas City Police Department as the chief of police in 2004 and the Kansas City Metropolitan Crime Commission in 2015. He is a graduate of Park University with a master’s degree in public affairs and serves as a board member on the Kansas City Metropolitan Crime Commission’s Crime Stoppers Program and the Surviving Spouse and Family Endowment Program.
Gina James, owner of a local accounting firm, has over 25 years of accounting experience and graduated magna cum laude from Park University. James volunteers as a Park Hill Partner for the Park Hill School District.
David Ketchmark, attorney, and his wife, Roseann, have lived in Platte County for 24 years and have three children. Ketchmark was a Platte County assistant prosecutor for seven years.
Jim Kunce, the current chair of the county parks board, served as the first assistant director for Platte County Parks for 13 years. He has a degree in park operations from the University of Missouri and has worked in the parks and recreation industry for 35 years. Currently he works for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
Jim McCall, is a lifelong resident of Platte County and owner and representative of a local financial and insurance firm. McCall has served on the board for the Parkville YMCA for four years and is helping to build a new veteran’s memorial in Parkville.
Minder serves as the mayor and city council’s consulting engineer, with a specialization in financing capital improvements and securing grants for the City of Kansas City. He and his wife, Jody, have been Platte County residents since 1998 and enjoy Platte County’s trail system. He also runs the Line Creek Loudmouth blog.
Angie Morrison-Mutti has served as the executive director for the Platte City Area Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Council for six years. Before joining the chamber, Morrison-Mutti served on the opening team of the Platte County Community Center North (YMCA) and joined the Platte County Community Center South team in 2008.
Aaron Schmidt, and his wife Angi, have lived in Platte County for 20 years and have two children. He is the former Platte County director of planning and zoning and is currently the vice president of development and construction at Hunt Midwest Real Estate Development. He is also involved in the leadership of the Platte County Economic Development Council.