The Fort Wright City Council is pleased to announce the passage of Ordinance 04-2021 which reduces the City of Fort Wright Occupational License Tax, effective July 1, 2021.
The Occupational License Tax, more commonly referred to as the Payroll Tax, is imposed on all wages earned below the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) Cap of $142,800 for labor, work, or services performed by an individual working within the City limits.
Payroll Tax Rates vary from City to City in Northern Kentucky. The City of Fort Wright's current rate of 1.15% will be reduced to 0.99% beginning July 1, 2021 making the City of Fort Wright the community with the lowest payroll tax rate in all of Kenton County.
For a full list of the payroll tax withholding rates currently imposed by all Kenton County Cities please click here.
Mayor Dave Hatter and Councilmembers Margie Witt, Jay Weber, Scott Wall, Dave Abeln, Bernie Wessels, and Adam Feinauer unanimously supported the tax reduction initiative citing the need to deliver upon a promise to our citizenry to keep taxes as low as possible and to ensure that Fort Wright remains business friendly. It's worth noting that roughly 57% of the City's revenue is derived from business related taxes and fees.
This action comes on the heels of a five (5%) percent property tax reduction on real property located within the community delivered in the Fall of 2020.
Mayor Hatter stated that he and the Fort Wright City Council are united in their efforts to be good stewards of the communities finances. They take their responsibilities of governing very seriously and are striving to provide top notch services at the lowest cost feasible. This move continues to strengthen the community as a whole and demonstrates our "open for business" philosophy.
The City of Fort Wright utilizes Open Gov technology, an online reporting software that allows the public to access real time city financial information via our website: www.fortwright.com. You can also view a wide variety of other financial information including the City's yearly budget on the website.
For more information please contact: Jill Cain Bailey, CAO at 859.426.3100.
Thank you.