On Aug. 3, McPherson voters have a say in their own economic future when voting on the city’s half-cent sales tax for road and sidewalk improvement, and they need to understand the stakes involved.
McPherson has $194 million worth of streets, some of which, at this point, require extensive maintenance and repair - the price tag of which is in the neighborhood of $30 million. While the city has fared better than others in Kansas during the recession, its assessed valuation has gone down, interests from investments have decreased from $800,000 to $78,000 and if the mill levy remains the same as it is, the city will see a drop of $41,000 in revenue from that. Additionally, the city now has less than $3 million in its reserve fund, meaning if a natural disaster were to strike, that fund could be depleted quickly, with no guarantee of a quick federal or state assistance.
In response to this bleak picture, the city has, to date, made nearly $1.2 million of cuts to the budget. These cuts have affected everything from city mosquito spraying to the city’s water park, and citizens have felt the sting.
The proposed half-cent tax would provide an estimated $1.2 million per-year for infrastructure, and sunset in 10 years. The city had the option of going to a 2 percent general tax, but chose to keep it specific to roads and sidewalks.
Our point, without endorsing or condemning the tax, is simply that if the tax is voted down, McPherson citizens will lose any authority to complain about road conditions for the foreseeable future. One way or another, the city will have to find funds for infrastructure repair in any way it can, including a possible increase in the mill levy. That’s not a threat by city officials. It is the cold, hard reality of our economic times.
An electoral truism is that the lower the issue is on the ballot, the more likely it is to impact our daily lives. This issue will be on the back of the ballot. While the idea of a new tax is unsettling to anyone, this tax will play a huge role in determining the quality of life we enjoy, as well as what opinion visitors and potential residents and employers form about our community.
We encourage all citizens to consider the issue carefully and cast their vote on the tax accordingly.
The McPherson Sentinel
