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Commissioners table sales tax referendum

Posted on August 21, 2008August 21, 2008 by Staff

By Rich Fowler

There will not be a referendum to raise the county’s sales tax on the November ballot. The Orange County Board of Commissioners decided Tuesday night to table the referendum for this election cycle.

If the measure had been approved by voters, the county could have raised the sales tax rate by one-quarter cent, which could have raised about $1.8-$2.2 million.

Timing played a large role in the decision to keep the referendum off the ballot for now.

“All the reasons to go forward are valid,” Commissioner Alice Gordon said, “but I’m not sure we have time to do it right, and I’m not sure it would pass even if we did.”

Other commissioners had concerns over the economic impact of a sales tax increase on county residents.

“Not only is now not a good time,” said Commissioner Moses Carey, “but I’m not sure when there’s going to be a good time, because we’re passing along a lot of other expenses to our residents that are basic necessities of life…. They’re at their limits.”

Board Chair Barry Jacobs said that the proposed sales tax would be needed eventually to regain what the county lost in the reshuffle of Medicaid financing.

Sales tax referendums have been proposed in 21 counties and have only passed in three of them.

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