Fayetteville voters must decide if they want to keep a tax they've been paying for nearly two decades. It's a one percent sales tax. And it goes toward everything from fire and police to trails and roads. But not everyone is in favor of paying up.
The one percent sales tax may not seem like much, but in Fayetteville, it adds up to $15.4 million. City officials say if the tax isn’t renewed, about 90 firemen and policemen would be let go, and fire stations would have to close.
But Jeff Oland at the Washington County Tea Party says cutting safety resources should be a last resort.
“With operational tax money, first and foremost is public safety,” Oland says. “Never should it be used as a tool to increase taxation. That’s terrorism. This is government terrorism is what that is.”
The tax is up for renewal every 10 years. But Oland says residents are taxed enough, and there has to be other ways to fund the city's critical needs.
“We drop that tax and then we start working out the details later,” Oland says. “We start working out solutions to long range problems here.”
But Mayor Lioneld Jordan says it isn't that easy. Even if property taxes were increased, it would be nearly impossible to provide the same services without the more than $15 million brought in from the sales tax.
“I don't have any other way to replace that revenue,” Jordan says. “So what we would have to do is just make those types of cuts to the city.”
Mayor Jordan says he understands some voters may be hesitant to pay taxes. He reminds voters it’s just a continuation of what they've been paying for nearly two decades.
“This is not a tax increase,” Jordan says. “This is an extension of a tax increase that we have already had on the books for the last twenty years. So were not increasing taxes here.”
Early voting on the measure began today and runs through Monday, October 10th. Election Day is Tuesday October 11th. Polls will be open from 7:30 am to 7:30 pm.
