As you may have noticed, much of this page is filled with letters and essays in support of a quarter-cent sales-tax increase for Orange County.
There is strong support for the tax. Passage of the referendum authorizing it has been heavily backed by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce and other organizations. There’s been so much support, in fact, that it was tempting for a while to go contrarian and rail against it. That inclination went away in no small part due to the tax increase’s support from Justice United, whose coalition members have traditionally argued against regressive revenue measures.
The tax is not a done deal – there’s still a vote coming up, and in a year with this much anti-government fervor anything with the word “tax†associated with it is iffy.
Many of us who will vote for this increase will do so warily. High hopes for the $2.3 million or so in additional revenue must be tempered by the fact that counties statewide are still in a hole and a new General Assembly, shaped by next Tuesday’s results, is not likely to make it any easier for them to dig out.
There will be great temptation to use the additional revenue from the sales tax to fill gaps rather than initiate long-term improvements. The fact that the lion’s share of the tax revenue would go toward deferred maintenance and improvements at our schools should tell you something.
Those charged with distributing the new monies collected will need to work hard to keep faith with the voters. Meanwhile, don’t look for instant results.
Some of the rest of the revenue from the tax is pledged to shore up emergency services and increase support for libraries. At a time when both are underfunded and, in recent years, operating under budgets that are moving targets, it will be hard at first to tell the tax’s true impact.
Likewise, improvement in the infrastructure necessary to build a more diverse and thriving local economy will take time. While that’s happening, let’s hope those in charge of building a new economic reality in Orange County step up their game.
In the past few years, we’ve been told first that a new UNC airport and then a giant destination retail and housing development on Buckhorn Road would bring a new day. Neither is going to happen.
What is going to happen is research at the university and what has to stop happening is the departure of UNC spinoffs to counties to our east. It is encouraging to hear more talk of cooperation in that area.
The proof of success in these areas will be borne out in the next census. The one just coming out shows a highly stratified Orange County with one of the highest per capita incomes, yet a poverty rate that matches the state’s dismal average. On Tuesday night, tax supporters may celebrate a win, but turning the income disparity around would be the real victory.