City of Harris seeks late penalty waivers from the state/fed IRS

Posted 3/21/01

City of Harris seeks late penalty waivers from the state/fed IRS

By Danielle Strenke

The City of Harris has formally asked the Internal Revenue Service at both the state and national levels to consider waiving late penalties and interest charges connected with taxes owed by the city for previous years.

The City Council approved a letter to the Department of Treasury for the Internal Revenue Service at its meeting Monday, March 19.

The issue deals with back taxes owed for employee deductions, which were apparently never paid, some as far back as 1998. The IRS has attached late fees and other penalties to the taxes owed, which Mayor Richard Hanson called, ěa substantial amount of money.î

In the letter, the council informs the IRS that neither the mayor, nor the council, were aware of the past due payments. ěThis responsibility was of the previous clerk who has since resigned,î the letter states.

ěWe are going to send this and hope for the best,î Mayor Hanson said.

Clerk Kim Hugger told the council she had already received correspondence from the state, informing them that all penalties at the state level will be waived.

GIS mapping

A considerable amount of time was spent at the council meeting discussing the practicality of spending city money on a GIS mapping system.

A grant of $7,200 is being awarded to the city, to be used to hire one or two people who would begin the mapping and platting process. At Mondayís meeting, the council approved the hiring of John Hanson and Cathryn Hanson, neither of whom is related to Mayor Hanson, for the position.

Although the $7,200 can be used for roughly 400 hours of work between the two, the council would have to look at whether or not it is feasible to spend additional dollars now and in the future to update and maintain the intricate computerized GIS system.

ěIs it worth it for the city to invest in this now?î asked council member Dan Walton. ěOr is this something we can look at doing in the future?î

Henry Gregoire, a member of the Harris Planning Commission, asked the council whether he should view a GIS system now being used in Forest Lake, and whether there was interest in one or two council members or the mayor viewing it as well.

Costs for the GIS system will vary greatly, and each time the system is updated or modified in the future will mean additional costs. ěWhy canít we set up the system with the amount we have for the grant, and add to it later?î Walton asked.

ěI think we should decide what we need first,î council member Wayne Buisman said. The city clerk told the council that Chisago County is preparing a GIS system, but would charge the city of Harris $15,000 to have the system installed for Harris.

Walton said the size of Harris probably didnít even warrant such an involved system. ěI can see doing it if they expect Harris to add 10,000 residents, but weíre not the size of a city like Shakopee-this is Harris,î he said. ěWhat happens when we have problems with the original system, and we have to abandon the project and it sits there collecting dust.î

The council did feel it was appropriate to go ahead with the hiring of the two interns to use the grant money, and to view the Forest Lake system, but did not make any decisions on the GIS system specifically.

City Hall remodeling

The small remodeling project being done at city hall will be temporarily on hold, after part time maintenance worker Butch Johnson resigned at Mondayís meeting.

Johnson discussed with the council earlier in the meeting three bids he had received on electrical work, ranging from $400 to $1,300. Council member David Christianson had an issue with Johnson soliciting the bids himself. ěI think the whole procedure is totally irregular, and I think we should be doing this ourselves,î he said. The council voted to approve the hiring of D & G Electric, with the low bid of $400. Christianson abstained from the vote.

At its March 5 meeting, the council had authorized Johnson to solicit bids for the project himself, because costs involved were relatively low.

Johnson returned to the meeting later, turning in his keys to city hall. ěIím resigning after horrendous treatment from David Christianson, and you can thank him for losing an employee,î he said.
Work on the remodeling of the city hall offices will be temporarily put on hold, until someone can be found to complete the project.

Subdivision ordinance

After months of work, the cityís subdivision ordinance was approved by the council, with recommended changes from the planning commission. The zoning ordinance with changes was also reviewed by the planning commission this week, and could be brought to the council for approval at one of its April meetings.

In other business, the council:

ď Heard from fire chief John Pelant of a request from Fish Lake Township to look at Harris taking over as its fire department. A contract with Sunrise Township will be looked at, to determine costs for service to Fish Lake Township.

ď Approved an increase from $400 to $500 a year in retirement benefits for the fire departmentís relief association members.

ď Renewed the liquor license for the Harris Bottle Shop.

ď Heard a report from city engineer Steve Thatcher, regarding interest from existing businesses to expand city water and sewer to the area around I-35.