After nearly two hours of discussion at last Thursday night’s special called meeting of the fiscal court, county leaders voted 4-1 to amend the county’s occupational tax ordinance, raising the so-called payroll tax to one percent effective the first of April.

Magistrate Greg Popplewell made the motion to increase the occupational tax with the two year sunset clause along with the $800 cap on payroll tax and net profits following the second reading of the ordinance.

The motion was seconded by Magistrate Ronald Johnson and supported by Magistrates Jimmy McQueary and Larry Holt. Second District Magistrate Brook Cochran cast the lone no vote. The court will revisit how to look into the net profits of a business to determine how much should be paid in the coming weeks after agreeing it was in their best interest.

The payroll tax amendment, which was about a month in the making, includes a two-year sunset clause, which means it will end on April 1, 2013 unless amended again at a later time. At that time the payroll tax will be reduced back to the previous .25 percent. Another key point to the amendment is that it includes an $800 cap, meaning people, including the self-employed, have the option of paying $800 annually instead of one percent of their total income. The cap also means any income over $80,000 will not be taxed at the one percent rate.

“The magistrates had it before them,” said Judge/Executive Gary Robertson following the meeting. “We had a choice to make. I recommended twice, in an open meeting to them, that since it is for a two year period only that I thought we should go ahead and remove the cap and treat everybody fairly right now.”

Robertson said he just wanted people to be aware that he recommended it, but it’s not a popular issue.

“I will have to pay more business-wise, but I can see where people are coming from, and everybody should be treated equally,” he said.

Robertson said he agreed with Stephens Pipe & Steel owner Terry Stephens’ argument at the meeting that it might affect industry locating here.

“I’ve said that the whole time,” he said. “That would have to be done on an individual basis by your industrial development foundation. They would have to be very discreet or whatever in their dealings in trying to give people x number of years of reprieve in order to get them to locate here. I can understand that argument clear.”

For much of the meeting, magistrates, Judge/Executive Robertson and County Attorney Kevin Shearer discussed whether or not a cap should be placed on the tax.

Shearer, who had conversed with KACo on the issue, said that the section of the amendment on the alternative tax from one of the previous meetings would not stand up to legal scrutiny.

“I don’t think we can treat the tax payers differently. I think we have to treat them the same,” Shearer said.