Editor’s note: The following is the second of two parts of a report about challenges to certain sales taxes imposed by some Missouri cities. The first part ran in Sunday’s edition.

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By Debby Woodin

dwoodin@joplinglobe.com

A bitter war of words has developed over whether the state Legislature chose not to act or whether a bill to protect cities from lawsuits challenging some sales taxes was purposely blocked as political payback.

Cities like Mount Vernon, Granby and Joplin face lawsuits that could negate some of the sales taxes residents in those town rely on for things like street projects and police protection. Purdy has already lost one of its sales taxes.

Legislation

The Missouri Municipal League, which represents 660 cities in the state, tried to avoid litigation being brought by Farmington attorney and former legislator Tom Burcham by having a bill proposed in the Legislature’s last session that would have allowed cities to impose multiple general sales taxes of up to 2 cents.

“The bill was introduced early. It had an early hearing and was voted out of committee unanimously, and then it disappeared,” said Gary Markenson, executive director of the MML.

Critics of Burcham have alleged that Steve Tilley, House majority leader, didn’t calendar the bill because Burcham funneled $110,000 in campaign contributions to him.

Burcham said he is treasurer of the Missouri Leadership Committee. “We give money to literally dozens, maybe in excess of 100, candidates a year. Steve is one of them. Steve is my state representative. I live in Steve’s district.

“But I can prove Markenson is wrong because the legislation he was pushing got nowhere in the House or the Senate.

“He can say Tilley stopped it in the House, but it got nowhere, period, in the Senate.

“Legislators are smart enough that they are not going to retroactively bless illegal taxes. The taking of money illegally from their constituents is not a smart thing to support.

“The legislation not only said to those cities that you can keep these illegal taxes but raise taxes. There’s a lot of legislators that think that’s a goofy idea.”