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At a brief special meeting, the Legislature took the final step to authorize extension of the County’s additional one percent sales tax.  With the Legislature’s action, the one percent tax, in effect since December 1, 1992, is extended through November 30, 2015.

The vote was unanimous, with Legislators Dooley Kiefer, Carol Chock, and Brian Robison excused.

The additional one percent tax represents more than $10 million in County sales tax revenue, affecting the County and its municipalities.

Last night's night’s vote was the fourth in a series of procedural steps taken by the Legislature.  Last November, during the 2013 budget process, the Legislature first voted to request the extension, then, had to repeat that action earlier this year. It then voted in support of the specific State legislation to extend it.  Now, the Legislature has authorized the extension to take effect.

Legislator Mike Lane called it “a tremendous waste of time” for both State and County government to have to go through the renewal process every two years, and called for the matter to be removed from the realm of politics and the tax to remain in place, once authorized.

As he often has in the past, Legislator Frank Proto noted that the tax, when first enacted in 1992, was supposed to be “temporary,” but said he would support its extension due to the sensitive nature of the County budget.  Both Legislators Kathy Luz Herrera and Pat Pryor expressed dissatisfaction with the sales tax as a regressive tax, Pryor saying that the State’s tax structure needs drastic change; however, since  the County has no power to do that, that she sees no alternative to approving it.

The special meeting of the Legislature was required so that a required 90-day window could be met, and the extended tax enacted as of December 1.  The County’s current authorization expires as of November 30.

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