Paul Sableman via Flickr
The city has introduced legislation that calls for a sales tax increase of one half of one percent on all retail sales made in the city. If that bill is approved, a second bill would ask voters whether proceeds from a use tax increase should be allocated toward construction of a soccer stadium.
Alderwoman Christine Ingrassia introduced both bills on December 14. If finalized by January 24, they could be on the April 4 ballot.
The sales tax increase, generating $20 million annually, would also allocate funds for the following:
A north/south MetroLink line: Half of the proceeds would go toward a MetroLink line running between North County and South County, which the proposed legislation refers to as the region's most "car-less" and "densest" communities, respectively.
Workforce and neighborhood development: Mayor Francis Slay's spokeswoman, Maggie Crane, tells SLM that the proposed legislation coud benefit training programs for jobs in construction trades (plumbers, brick layers, etc.) and local programs, such as LaunchCode. "You look at what's going on in the Cortex Innovation Community and [Barnes-Jewish Hospital] doing a billion-dollar expansion of its campus," she says. "Those are real jobs that need to be filled." Proceeds would also benefit "neighborhood revitalization," according to Slay.
Security and city infrastructure: This aspect refers to the infrastructure that would connect security cameras across the city to the police departments for real-time viewing, as well as for maintenance. Proceeds would also be allocated toward maintenance of streets, alleys, waterworks, parks, and public buildings.
If the sales tax increase is approved, the city's use tax would also increase. (Use taxes are applied to goods purchased out of state and paid by local businesses). A separate bill would ask voters if a portion of the use tax increase should go toward construction for an MLS stadium. If voters reject the sales tax increase, the use tax increase is moot.
The city's current sales tax base rate, at 8.679 percent, is among the highest in Missouri. Some areas in the city are deemed transportation development districts or community improvement districts and already have sales tax rates near 10 percent. Alderman and mayoral candidate Antonio French expressed his concerns about an increase.
"I've said for years we need to be very cautious about raising revenue this way. Sales taxes are a very regressive form of taxation... Further increases should only be for our TOP priorities," he wrote in a series of tweets.
