Morton shoppers are paying a village sales tax for the first time in the village's history.
The .75% sales tax went into effect last Tuesday. Morton will begin seeing revenue from the tax in September.
The sales tax was approved by the Morton Village Board in February. A 1% sales tax was proposed, but the board reduced it to .75%, as suggested by board member Nate Parrott, and approved it by a unanimous vote.
Morton Mayor Jeff Kaufman said a state law change in 2024 allows a non-home rule community like Morton to adopt a maximum 1% sales tax without a referendum, so the village took advantage of the opportunity.
"The .75% sales tax is estimated to bring in about $2.4 million annually to Morton in additional revenue," Kaufman said. "We have major expenditures coming up for wastewater improvements, village hall improvements, and public safety measures including a full-time fire department and replacing the downtown fire station. The sales tax will help us cover those costs."
The Village Board's passage of the sales tax ordinance created a bit of controversy.
Village Clerk Zo Evans resigned the day after the sales tax vote, pointing to the vote and the runup to the ordinance approval as his reasons for resigning. Evans had about two months remaining in his four-year term as village clerk when he resigned. He didn't run for re-election April 1.
Evans left his seat at the board table the night of the sales tax vote, walked to the public comment podium, and asked for the vote to be delayed until the next Village Board meeting in two weeks so residents could learn the reasons for the sales tax.
"There's nobody in the audience tonight," Evans said. "Morton residents don't know about this sales tax. Even if they knew to look at the Village Board meeting agenda when it was posted 48 hours ago, the sales tax ordinance is difficult to read because of the heavy legal terminology.
"The community needs to know why we need this sales tax. I think the sales tax would get support from the community if residents knew the reasons for it. Everything was done legally in putting the ordinance on the meeting agenda, but we shouldn't be voting on it tonight."
In his resignation letter, Evans wrote, "If citizens aren't going to be given an opportunity to understand and discuss potential ordinances that impact them, then our elected officials aren't property representing them."
Kaufman didn't respond to Evans' comments other than to say, "We appreciate Zo's service to the village as the clerk. It's a position that's important to the village."
At least two Morton business owners -- Megan Fleming from Renewed Radiance, 101 S. Main St., and Lena Grimm from Mud Creek Mercantile, 104 W. Jefferson St. -- said the the Morton sales tax was a surprise to them when it was implemented.
"I was wondering why my coffee cost a little more this week," Fleming said. "The sales tax isn't a big deal for a cup of coffee, but it adds up on my big ticket items, like a package costing more than $2,000."
Each business has been open about 1 1/2 years.
Shoppers in Morton are now paying a 7.50% sales tax, which includes the 6.25% state sales tax and .50 for the Tazewell County public safety tax, outside the village's business district. Within the business district, the sales tax is now 7.75%. Revenue from a .25% business district sales tax goes into a business district fund.
Village Attorney Pat McGrath did research on sales tax rates in communities near Morton. Here are his findings:
"Washington is 9.0%. East Peoria is 8.5% outside of the city's business districts and 9 or 9.5% in the business districts. Peoria is 9% outside of the city's business district and 10% in the business district. Pekin is 8.5% outside the city's business district and 9.5% in the business district. Canton is 8.75% outside the city's business district and 9.75% in the business district. Bloomington and Normal are each 8.75%. Galesburg is 9% outside the city's business district and 10% in the business district," he said.
Kaufman appointed former village clerk Sam Ritthaler to replace Evans shortly after Evans resigned. Ritthaler was the lone village clerk candidate in the April 1 election.
Ritthaler was appointed the village clerk in 2016 after the death of Joe Nohl, who had served in the position since 2007, and elected in 2017. He didn't run in 2021 because he was moving to Peoria, but he returned to Morton in 2024.
