Cape's balancing act

Getting voters to approve tax increases isn't impossible. Taxpayers who believe more money will be put to good use are inclined to approve tax increases. Sikeston voters did it earlier this month. Obviously, voters there agreed with city officials who cited public safety and other needs. School districts in our area have turned down some spending plans, but they have heartily approved those that made sense.

Cape Girardeau has been wrestling with its finances for a couple of years. The city's coffers haven't been as full as officials would like. This is because the city is heavily dependent on sales taxes and enjoys a relatively low property tax. The economy has had a bad spell, and the city has felt the impact through sluggish sales-tax receipts.

Last year, voters turned down a sales-tax plan. The city council considered another vote this month but put it off while it looked again at spending cuts. Now the council is prepared to make some of those cuts -- to take effect July 1 -- and also appears prepared to put a sales-tax increase on the ballot in June.

During a review last week, council members pretty much agreed on spending cuts of $158,000, fee increases of $61,800 and fund shifts that would free up more than $300,000 in general revenue that was earmarked for storm-drainage projects, which will now come from the sewer fund.

Some of the proposed cuts eliminate popular city services that aren't considered essential. One idea is for council members to forgo their stipends for a year at a savings of $9,000 -- which is approximately the extra cost of having a single-issue vote in June instead of waiting until the August primary election. But voter approve of the proposed quarter-cent sales tax -- generating an estimated $2 million a year -- would increase the flow of revenue to the city as early as December of this year, months earlier than if the vote was put off until August.

Two other considerations deserve a high priority during council deliberations Tuesday as it makes a final decision on the cuts, fee increase, fund transfers and sales-tax vote:

1. The economy has improved significantly in recent months. This portends higher sales-tax revenue. The city says sales-tax income so far this year is below budget forecasts. But a real economic turnaround could mean a huge boost in city revenue. This certainly needs to be factored in to any tax-increase proposal.

2. The council cannot, in good faith, ignore the need for a sunset provision on any plan to increase taxes. Sikeston officials believe having a sunset provision on its recently approved ballot measure was a strong factor in obtaining voter support. A provision that would end the proposed Cape Girardeau sales tax in 10 years would be a signal to voters that the city won't continue the tax unless its both needed and submitted once again for voter approval.