Eau Claire County Mulling $30 Wheel Tax To Raise Revenue For Roads, Bridges

Eau Claire County is proposing a $30 vehicle registration fee in order to raise money for local road repairs. The county joins eight other counties and 19 municipalities in the state in charging a wheel tax.

Eau Claire County Highway Commissioner Jon Johnson says around 30 percent of his budget goes toward paying off debt.

Johnson said the county has been forced to use bonding to pay for road projects because state road aid hasn’t kept pace with inflation and state imposed limits block the county from raising property taxes to pay for local repairs. Johnson said a $30 local registration fee is one of the only ways to pay for needed bridge repairs.

“That’s how critical we are right now is if we get the money, we’ll be able to do two bridges next year,” Johnson said. “If we don’t, we’re going to have to figure out plan B where we either cancel road projects to do them or extend them out further.”

Johnson said a new state bridge repair policy called Replace-in-Kind has limited what costs the state will reimburse local governments for. He said that has increased the county’s share of a bridge replacement from around $100,000 to more than $200,000.

While most members of the Eau Claire County Board have voiced support for the $30 wheel tax, supervisor Pat LaVelle is hesitant. He said state statute only lets local governments impose wheel taxes on vehicles weighing less than 8,000 pounds.

“It’s not so much the money more than the principle,” said LaVelle. “So, the small cars, the guys with the little smart cars … they pay. They do less damage than the trucks. If they made it a fair tax that everybody would pay for it I’d consider it.”

The Eau Claire County Board could vote on the wheel tax as early as next month.