City seeks more input before sales-tax vote

When times are tough and the Cape Girardeau City Council has to carefully weigh whether or not it can afford to give even 1 percent raises to city employees, it can be tempting to rush to a potential solution. In this case, the solution being considered is a tax increase recommended by a committee of city employees.

Cape Girardeau's leaders don't seem to be falling into the put-it-on-the-ballot trap, opting instead to consider all the options to pull the city out of its financial doldrums before making a decision.

The problem: Because city sales-tax revenue has been lower than projected, the city has been operating at a deficit for the past three years, dipping into reserves to cover the difference. The current situation has been compounded by the fact that when revenue was strong and growing, the city added personnel and programs that it has to keep funding.

As a result, departments are hurting. There are leaky roofs on city facilities, high-mileage police cars, outdated buildings and laundry lists of other needs that will take money to address.

The city turned to a revenue task force for a solution earlier this year, and the task force presented one: A 3/4-cent increase in the city sales tax to go on the August ballot. Task force members said such a tax would inject $6 million annually into the city budget.

The council in May moved to reject the August ballot idea, saying there wouldn't be near enough time to educate voters. In addition, the issue would be up against a statewide transportation tax initiative, Many assumed that meant the city sales-tax issue would go on the November ballot.

But this week, some members of the council wisely indicated that a November vote isn't a done deal, either. And now they're looking to appoint another task force.

The prior committee was composed of Cape Girardeau public employees. The new one will be composed of 12 to 15 people who aren't paid by the city. One co-chairman, former councilman and hard-working volunteer Melvin Gateley, already has been appointed. Others may be appointed by council members from their wards.

Mayor Jay Knudtson said this is the first step in building consensus and educating the community about the need for a tax increase. The new group may even reject the idea of a sales tax altogether, since it will be "an autonomous group that will come to its own conclusions."

The deadline to get an issue on the November ballot is Aug. 27, but that hasn't been set as a goal for the new task force.

In many cases with government, the appointing of task forces and committees can be a sign of bureaucratic stalling and an unwillingness to make a decision that could be unpopular.

In the case of Cape Girardeau's tax needs, it is a case of weighing every possible option to lift the city out of its financial morass.