Fordyce seeks approval of sales tax proposal

FORDYCE — Fordyce could be the next town in Cedar County to collect a local sales tax.
Village board members passed a resolution calling for a special election which will allow the registered voters in Fordyce to have the final say on whether a local sales tax should be used.
The special election, which will be held Nov. 8, will be conducted by Cedar County Clerk/Election Commissioner Dave Dowling.
“It is an all-mail election – ballots will be mailed out Oct 21. Ballots have to be in by 5 p.m. on election day -  Tuesday, Nov. 8,” Dowling said.

There are no requirements on the number of ballots that have to be returned.
A Sample Ballot for the election can be found on page seven of this week’s Cedar County News.
The vote is a “for or against” – with a simple majority winning, Dowling said.
Fordyce residents that are not already registered to vote may file the necessary papers at the County Clerk’s Office at the Courthouse but the last day to register to vote before this special election will be Oct. 28, by 6 p.m.
Village Clerk Diane Limoges said the funds from a local sales tax would help cover a loss of between $1,100 and $1,500 of state funds.
“This would off-set the state aid that has been eliminated,” Limoges said.
If the local sales tax proposition is successful, each business will remit the sales tax to the Nebraska Department of Revenue. The funds will be electronically deposited in an account for the Village of Fordyce by the State Treasurer’s Office.
“If it passes we won’t receive any funds until at least April 1 of next year,” Lemoges said. “That is – if all the paper work is filed by Jan. 1.”
The loss of state funds is the main reason the village board is asking for the local sales tax, according to board member Dan Thoene.
“We are losing state aid. This money would be used for street improvements first,” Thoene said. “Then – depending on the amount – we might build a shed, which would be used for village equipment,”
Not all board members are in favor of a local sales tax in Fordyce.
Board member Chuck Kramer said he voted against the resolution as he has several concerns with the tax.
“It is just another tax for people to pay,” Kramer said. “It will be added to our water, electric, fuel and sewer bills – these are necessities that people have to have. We have some empty houses in Fordyce – some people are struggling to make it – this is just too much.”
It seems like a sales tax should only be on items we can choose to buy or not to buy, Kramer said.
The estimate on the amount of funds the Village would receive by applying a local sales tax was done by looking at sales in Fordyce from prior years.
“They think it will possibly raise $2.400 but there is no way to figure that out for sure,” Kramer said.
Kramer also thought the board should find out what the price tag is for calling a special election before passing the resolution.
If the Fordyce voters cast their ballots “FOR” the local sales tax the funds that are generated will stay in the community and will be used for local projects.
The sales tax is only collected within the city limits, although the funds can be spent on a project outside the city limits.
If the vote on the sales tax fails – requirements have to be met before another attempt is made.
Hartington and Randolph are the only other towns in Cedar County that collect a sales tax.

The registered voters in the City of Hartington gave their approval on a one percent city sales tax in a special election May 2007 – the city sales tax went into affect in October 2007.
Randolph implemented a one percent sales tax in October 2010. The funds are used for paving projects and property tax relief.
Nebraska now has 192 communities that are taking advantage of the local option to have a one-half percent, one percent or a one and one-half percent city or village sales and use tax.
The State of Nebraska collects a 5.5 percent sales tax.