Shoshone County renewing fees for digital service

WALLACE –– After navigating severe budgetary concerns for the current fiscal year, Shoshone County officials are working diligently to make sure that they don’t leave any potential revenue streams out in the cold. 

During a meeting on Wednesday morning, the Shoshone Board of County of Commissioners (BOCC), along with Assessor Jerry White, met to discuss reinstating an access agreement between the county and anyone who uses their AS400 program. 

According to White, the AS400 is the program used by counties to keep track of ownership, legal descriptions, values, taxes, and exemptions on properties. 

“It is our bread and butter,” White told the News-Press. 

Commissioner Tracy Casady led the charge in getting the agreement back in place, which had been a usual piece of annual business for the county, but at some point over the years, it went away. 

“This was an agreement that was done in the past with title companies and other agencies that have had remote access to records through the Assessor's Office,” Casady said. “Somewhere down the line, it was dropped where they no longer paid a fee so we're renewing the agreement and collecting the fees again.” 

While the system itself is supported by the Idaho State Tax Commission, Shoshone County’s IT team maintains its part of it. So, any free use of the service is coming at a direct cost to local taxpayers. 

“Title companies and realtors need this information to perform their work,” White explained. “In the old days, they would have to contact the office for each and every transaction. With access to the AS400, they can accomplish this from their workspace and not have to inquire with the County.  Seeing how it is a process that saves the Title Companies time and effort and not necessary for the average taxpayer they need to cover the expense of the privilege.” 

The fee for this service has not yet been determined by the county, but previously, each entity using it was charged $200 per quarter to access the AS400 system – With the increase in costs to almost everything, it’s anticipated that it will be more than the previous amount. 

“I think this a great idea,” Commissioner Jeff Zimmerman said during the meeting. “We’ll be collecting fees that we should’ve been collecting.” 

“Yeah, because in the absence of that it falls on the taxpayers,” Commissioner Dave Dose followed up with. 

In September of 2023, Shoshone County’s elected officials and department heads were in the midst of a budget crisis that was the result of what appeared to be millions of dollars in overspending over the course of several years. This required hundreds of thousands of dollars in cuts and the use of one-time revenues to cover the budget for the coming year. The BOCC warned that more cuts would be coming in 2024 unless significant revenue streams were found and tapped into. 

The county is still awaiting the results of an audit that was conducted to determine where any errors may have been made.