The Unified Government Commission voted unanimously Thursday night to put the renewal of a three-eighths cent sales tax for public safety and neighborhood infrastructure on the Aug. 7 ballot.
The three-eighths of a cent sales tax currently generates about $10 million a year for the UG, according to UG documents.
The dedicated three-eighths cent sales tax was originally passed in 2010 and will expire in 2020, UG Administrator Doug Bach told the commission tonight. If approved at the polls this year, it would continue at the same three-eighths cent rate from 2020 through 2030.
A “yes” vote at the polls would not result in a tax increase, as residents already are paying the same amount of sales tax, according to Bach.
Bach told the commission three-eighths cent sales tax for public safety and infrastructure passed in 2010 with 70 percent support of the voters. It applies only to the city of Kansas City, Kansas, he added.
He said the three-eighths sales tax has resulted in $54 million in revenues so far, and is expected to reach $80 million by 2020.
The issue is coming up now because the UG is currently planning its 2019 budget, and wants to know what will be happening as it starts to plan for 2020, he said.
Bach said this benefits residents by putting more of the tax burden on retail sales and less on property taxes. He added that the Village West area receives 12 million visitors a year, and the sales tax is paid by tourists and visitors, benefiting all Kansas City, Kansas, residents.
When the bonds were paid off at Village West at the end of 2016, $1.5 million and more came from the sales taxes in that area.
The current sales tax in Kansas City, Kansas is 9.125 percent, he said. There are additional sales taxes in some designated areas here. Most, about 6.25 percent, goes to the state of Kansas. One cent goes to the county, one cent to the city, one-fourth cent goes for EMS services, and three-eighths of a cent goes for public safety and infrastructure, he said.
Bach said if a person purchased a large pizza for $15, this three-eighths of a cent sales tax would result in 6 cents, and if the person purchased $100 worth of groceries, a three-eighths of a cent sales tax would result in 38 cents.
Currently, the proceeds of this special sales tax are divided in three parts, with about $3.9 million to fire operations, $3.3 million to neighborhood infrastructure, and $3.9 million for police, he said.
This sales tax has funded 25 police and 25 fire jobs, and also has purchased fire trucks, police cars, and will go toward funding police car cameras and body cameras, according to Bach. Neighborhood street and park projects have taken place throughout the city.
Bach noted that a community survey taken recently showed that residents were in line with these spending priorities. Residents’ top concern was street maintenance, and police services were ranked as the second priority, he said.
There was no opposition from the commission tonight to the sales tax ordinance.
Commissioner Brian McKiernan said residents are already paying this sales tax and he was very much in favor of continuing it. It has been in place for 10 years and will not represent any additional taxes, he said.
Commissioner Gayle Townsend discussed how some of the neighborhood infrastructure funds were being used by the commissioners to pay for Community Neighborhood Improvement Projects, including specific projects such as improving sidewalks and ball fields.
Commissioner Melissa Bynum said she would like to see the CNIP discussed at a future meeting.
The wording on the Aug. 7 ballot, according to the ordinance passed tonight, will be: “Shall the following be adopted?
“Shall the City of Kansas City, Kansas, be authorized to impose an additional three-eighths of one percent citywide retailers’ sales tax the proceeds of which shall be used for the purposes of financing public safety and neighborhood infrastructure, including the construction, repair, and maintenance of roads, curbs, and sidewalks, the collection of such Sales Tax commencing on July 1, 2020, or as soon thereafter as permitted by law, and terminating ten years after its commencement?”
More information on the sales tax may be found at www.wycokck.org/salestax.
In other action, the commission approved a second amendment to the Legends Parking Garage development agreement. According to the UG’s economic development director, it includes some new language clarifying penalties for not meeting local, minority and women business requirements.
To see more of this UG meeting, visit the YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03SDgLjNH0g.