Shall a proposed Haines Borough ordinance that “eliminates the designation of one percent of borough-wide sales tax proceeds for use in tourism development and promotion of economic development from Section 3.80.220(A) of the Haines Borough Code become law effective July 1, 2012?”
Members of the Haines Borough Assembly on Tuesday said they want some of the above words changed to help residents understand what they’re voting on during an October vote that would determine the future of a 1 percent municipal sales tax designated for tourism promotion and economic development.
“I don’t know how the education process is going to go to explain this, because I think if you didn’t have the ordinance with this and you just read that (ballot proposition), it’s going to be pretty confusing,” said member Joanne Waterman.
The tax was an assembly discussion item for the second straight meeting, following a request from resident Sally McGuire. She has considered a citizens’ ballot initiative to abolish the tax, which generated $460,457 in fiscal year 2010.
The tax has been collected since the 1980s to support tourism promotion, and later was extended to cover economic development efforts.
Assembly members last month showed interest in a public vote that could shift the tax revenues into the general fund.
Borough attorney Brooks Chandler drafted an ordinance that included an example of how the proposition could be worded on the ballot for the October municipal election.
“As requested, we have prepared a proposed ordinance designed to eliminate the language of current Borough code designating one percent of general sales tax revenue for use in promotion of tourism and economic development,” Chandler wrote in a memo. “The ordinance will only become law if approved by the voters this October.”
According to the ordinance, if the tax no longer is designated for tourism promotion and economic development, the money “shall be used for areawide general municipal purposes.”
The distribution of borough-wide sales tax revenues would be 0.5 percent to support the provision of medical services in the authorized area of service, 1.5 percent for areawide capital projects and 2 percent for a general municipal use.
The ballot proposition refers to eliminating “the designation of one percent of borough-wide sales tax proceeds for use in tourism development and promotion of economic development,” and member Steve Vick said he would like it to have “a little more emphasis on the fact that it’s just taking away the designation but keeping the tax.”
Borough clerk Julie Cozzi said the ordinance likely would be introduced at the assembly’s next regular meeting on Tuesday, July 26.
She said the borough has used advertisements and mailings in the past to educate voters, in line with Alaska Public Offices Commission rules.
“The money that gets spent on something like that has to be specifically appropriated by the assembly, and in the past, it’s been something like $1,000,” Cozzi said.