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The city of Heath has approved a $5 permissive license plate fee which officials say will help make improvements to the city streets.

City Council approved the measure unanimously Monday night.

Mayor Richard Waugh says that prior to 2002 the city used 20 to 60 percent of the city’s income tax which went to capitol improvements which included funding for paving. 

“In 2003, we put 0% into capitol improvements and then 3% for about four years and now we are about up to 10%, which is substantially below where it has been in the past. Street paving has suffered from that so we are looking for other sources and ways to fund street paving.”

Waugh says the plate fee increase will help generate money for paving. 

“We currently have a $5 county permissive tax and $10 of current license plate tax revenue that comes into the city. For each $5 that is put on it raises $47,500 per year.”


Waugh says that they heard no complaints from citizens about raise. 

“Everybody understands that costs money to have good infrastructure. The term user fee has been put out there many times and people that would be paying for the $5 license plate tax increase are the ones on the city streets so they will benefit from that so it is a user fee of sorts.”

Unless a referendum is placed on the ballot to repeal the tax the collections will begin in January 2009.

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