By Krista Duhon
news@joplinglobe.com
MIAMI, Okla. — City Council member Scott Trussler is sticking to his promise to put a sales tax increase before voters to repair city streets. And this time his half-cent compromise is getting consideration from some other council members.
Voters in Miami last year rejected a 1-cent increase, and Trussler’s latest push comes on the heels of the council’s 3-2 vote last month against putting a .65-cent sales tax hike on the April ballot.
Trussler thinks less money could go further now, in part because oil prices have dropped and the projected expense of improving city streets is down.
A half-cent increase in the city’s tax would raise the combined city, county and state sales tax burden in Miami to 9.35 cents for every dollar spent.
According to Trussler, revenue from the half-cent proposal would generate more than $760,000 a year. He believes the tax increase, with a life of 15 years, would generate enough to address the majority of the city’s street problems. The projection is based on figures calculated last week by city staff, Trussler said.
Trussler’s proposal may have drawn the interest of two council members who were resistant to putting the .65-cent proposal on the ballot this spring.
John Dalgarn and Terry Atkinson, who represent the city’s southern wards, indicated that the half-cent sales tax proposal is something they can discuss.
Dalgarn called the proposal “more reasonable” than the 1-cent and .65-cent options.
He previously stated that he voted against putting the .65-cent increase before voters because sales tax revenue continues to decline for the city.
“December 2009 sales tax revenue is down $90,000 from the previous year,” Dalgarn said recently. “That means $2.7 million was taken out of Miami.”
He also said that if the .65-cent tax passed, it would make Miami businesses less competitive and would drive residents to other communities at a time when many businesses already are hurting.
The sales tax rate is 7.825 cents in the Jasper County portion of Joplin, Mo.; 8.517 cents in Tulsa; and 9.25 cents in Fayetteville, Ark.
Atkinson said the half-cent proposal is “in the ballpark,” and noted that the council is now racing against a clock.
“By the time spring gets here, we are not going to have any roads,” Atkinson said.
Council members and city administration agreed with Atkinson’s remarks, saying the wet winter season has aggravated problems with the city’s deteriorating streets.
A consulting firm hired by the city of Miami in 2006 estimated that 65 percent of the city’s streets were in need of repair.
