Opposing sides of the Kenai Peninsula Borough’s Ballot Proposition 1 disagree about how the removal of the wintertime, non-prepared food tax will affect revenue for local cities.
James Price has been advocating for the reversal of the ordinance that allows general-law cities to collect a seasonal grocery tax since 2010; He believes the finances of Soldotna, a general-law city, will be fine.
Price: “The amount of the revenue for the city of Soldotna is about 45% of their total income for sales tax in total and their hit with the grocery tax will be somewhere in the area of 10% of that. I don’t believe it’s going to be a severe impact on the city of Soldotna, it won’t be any impact on the borough in general.”
Soldotna’s singular Mayoral Candidate Pete Sprague has been vocal in his opposition to the repeal of that ordinance, saying that it will severely impact the city’s finances.
Sprague: “If Ballot Prop 1 passes, it will be a $1 million plus hit to our budget, and at that time all options are on the table. Cuts, user fees, looking at our general funds surplus, increasing property taxes, so everything would be on the table.”
The borough assembly passed the ordinance allowing municipalities to collect a seasonal non-prepared food tax in 2008. Price filed a referendum for repeal in 2010 which was denied by the borough.
He appealed in the Kenai court, which failed, but succeeded last year(2014) in the Alaska Supreme Court which agreed that the people have the right to repeal the ordinance.
Voters will decide on the issue next week in the October 6 municipal election.
For more arguments from both sides tune in to KSRM’s Tall, Dark, and Handsome Show at 5:00 pm this evening.