Cape County use tax stands after recount

Just nine votes separated voters' choice to allow a use tax to be levied in Cape Girardeau County after ballots were officially recounted Tuesday.

The April 7 election result originally showed a 12-vote difference in favor of the tax, which prompted Jackson resident David A. Larson to request a recount. The recount was conducted in accordance with state law by the Cape Girardeau County Clerk Kara Clark Summers' office.

Certified results issued Tuesday afternoon by the county clerk's office showed 3,545 votes in favor of the measure and 3,536 against. The original results the night of the election showed 3,534 "yes" votes versus 3,521 "no" votes.

The county plans to use revenue from the 1 percent use tax for new court facilities in Jackson. The tax will be levied on specific out-of-state purchases, such as vehicles.

A registered voter may request a recount if the difference between vote totals is less than 1 percent. A recount petition was filed by Larson on April 13, and Circuit Judge Benjamin F. Lewis ordered Summers to conduct the recount that was completed by a team of election judges through a hand count of ballots.

Differences in election results that show up with a machine count of ballots and that of a hand count, Summers told the Southeast Missourian in April, often happen because voters do not clearly enough mark their intent -- they will check or mark a selection instead of completely filling in an oval, or circle "yes" or "no." Judges conducting hand counts Tuesday planned to review such ballots to determine voter intent.

The hand recount changed final results in 18 of the county's 30 precincts, according to a report issued by the clerk's office Tuesday, and added 26 votes to the overall tally, including 11 "yes" votes and 15 "no" votes.

Voters in Cape Girardeau County rejected a proposal for a use tax by the county and the cities of Cape Girardeau and Jackson in April 2014 by a large margin after several nearby governments passed use-tax measures the year before.

A law signed by Gov. Jay Nixon in 2013 allowed local governments to collect use taxes as long as a voter-approved measure in favor was passed before November 2016. The law was prompted by a 2012 Missouri Supreme Court ruling that deemed collection of sales taxes by local governments on out-of-state vehicle and other purchases without a use tax was unconstitutional.

Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Clint Tracy said Tuesday the county could see revenue from the use tax as early as June or July now that the election results are certified, but the actual date for collections to start will be determined by the Missouri Department of Revenue.

eragan@semissourian.com

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