COUNCIL REJECTS SALES TAX PROPOSAL

The Cape Girardeau City Council defeated measures calling for a transportation tax election and licensing of boarding houses on identical tie votes Monday night.

The 3-3 votes occurred because a seventh councilman, J.J. Williamson, was absent due to the death of his mother.

The same six councilmen unanimously had given initial approval to the ordinances at the Feb. 21 meeting. Williamson missed that meeting too.

But Monday night, Councilmen Richard Eggimann, Melvin Gateley and Jack Rickard voted against the two measures.

Mayor Al Spradling III and councilmen Melvin Kasten and Tom Neumeyer voted for them.

Spradling, who had led the tax effort, said he was both disappointed and surprised by the decision to scuttle plans for placing a sales tax measure on the Aug. 8 ballot.

The measure called for a seven-year, half-cent sales tax to fund road and bridge projects.

Following the meeting, Spradling contended the transportation tax would have been placed on the August ballot if Williamson had been present to cast the deciding vote.

"This came up out of the cold blue," the mayor said. He said none of the councilmen had given any advance notice that they planned to change their votes.

"I think it is ridiculous," Spradling said of the council vote.

But both Eggimann and Gateley said the city should seek public input on Cape Girardeau's transportation needs before even considering a tax measure.

Eggimann said the city should first look at reallocating existing street funds before seeking imposition of another tax.

"My proposal was to reprioritize the funds and repair some of the streets. I had no idea it would end up in a tax," he said.

Spradling said the tie vote spelled defeat for the sales tax proposal without it ever getting to the voters. "Tonight, my gosh, we just killed it," he said immediately after the vote.

But both Gateley and Eggimann said they would be willing to consider placing a tax measure on the ballot if public hearings show a need for it.

Spradling said the council could revisit the tax issue at its next meeting and revote on whether to submit the proposed tax to voters.

As to the other measure, Gateley, Eggimann and Rickard said they viewed the plan to license boarding houses as just another example of over-regulation.

Rickard questioned the legality of forcing boarding home operators to put in smoke alarms.

Gateley said, "It just seemed like another infringement of more codes, more rules and more government."