Area officials reserve judgment on tax increase

Some public officials say they need more information about a proposed countywide sales-tax increase that would generate funds for roads and the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department.

The Cape Girardeau County commissioners will vote Tuesday whether to place a half-cent increase on the August ballot. Commissioners estimate the increase would generate nearly $6 million per year.

If voters approve the proposed increase, property owners would no longer pay a road and bridge property tax. Funds generated from the sales tax would replace the more than $850,000 the road and bridge tax brings in.

Commissioners say funding from the sales tax would also eliminate the Cape Girardeau special road district property tax, meaning the county would provide sales-tax revenue for the special road district's more than $1 million budget. Cape Special Road District engineer Ralph Phillips was unavailable for comment.

Additionally, the proposed sales tax would be used to pay the city of Jackson 25 percent of the road and bridge taxes the county collects from city residents. In August 2004, the city won a lawsuit, which requires the county to pay the city $80,000 per year from road and bridge taxes.

Commissioners said they may offer the city of Jackson an additional 5 percent to gain support for the sales-tax increase. Jackson aldermen said county commissioners haven't provided them with enough information about the proposal to form an opinion.

Alderwoman Barbara Lohr said the board has not met to discuss the issue. Alderman Larry Cunningham said he doesn't have enough information about the proposal to give an opinion.

Jackson Mayor Paul Sander said the city will wait until a final proposal is made by the county before taking a position. "We'll take a wait-and-see approach to see how the city is affected," Sander said. "If it doesn't have any effect on the city, then I don't know what our position will be."

Cape Girardeau Councilwoman Marsha Ritter said county commissioners have not met with the city council to discuss the sales-tax increase.

Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce president John Mehner said the chamber wouldn't take a position on the issue until an actual vote. "We might not even take a stand on it," he continued.

The Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department would receive approximately $1.5 million from the increase. The funds would be used to hire additional employees and raise employee salaries.

Funding from the proposed sales tax would also generate approximately $1.5 million for paving county roads. County resident Larry Hendershott said he would support an increase in the sales tax if that meant his county road would be paved. "The dust is an aesthetic problem and a health problem," said Hendershott, who lives on County Road 350.

A taxpayer with personal property valued at $120,000 pays approximately $65 in road and bridge taxes per year. An individual would have to spend approximately $20,000 per year in the county to generate the same amount in sales taxes, said County Collector Diane Diebold.

"What's nice about the sales tax is that it's drawing in money from people outside the county," she said.

According to the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce, 60 percent of sales-tax revenue is paid by Cape Girardeau County residents. The rest is paid by people living outside the county.

Commissioners say discussions of a new sales tax began five years ago when Weldon Macke left his post as county auditor. Mehner said Macke visited the chamber about a month ago to discuss the county commissioners potentially voting on a sales tax.

"We were contacted about this just as a possibility."

jfreeze@semissourian.com

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