Ponderay OKs sales tax increase

PONDERAY — Raising taxes is considered political suicide in many North Idaho communities, but the Ponderay City Council recently approved a plan meant to do just that.

At its Feb. 2 meeting, the council unanimously voted to approve a .5 percent resort city tax, which would raise the city’s sales tax to 6.5 percent. Even with council approval, the tax increase will not become law until it is approved by Ponderay residents. The council will solidify a date for the vote at its Feb. 17 meeting.

If passed, the tax would be in effect for 15 years or until Ponderay reaches a population of 10,000 people, according to Mayor Carol Kunzeman.

The proposal is drawing the ire of many Ponderay businesses, especially those who sell big ticket items.

Jeff Rokstad, owner of Ponderay’s Rokstad Ford/Mercury, said the tax would put all Ponderay business owners at a competitive disadvantage.

“I feel like it’s a bad idea. Why send people out of our community? We’re all trying to survive this thing together, and I feel like that would drive business out of town,” Rokstad said. “If you could go to Coeur d’Alene and save a half percent on a big ticket item, wouldn’t you do it?”

Kunzeman said she empathizes with business owners, but said the money generated by the tax will be necessary to maintain Ponderay’s infrastructure in the coming years.

“(Without the tax) we would not be able to repair the city’s streets in a way that would be beneficial to businesses or residents. We would have to really cut back on what we could do, and I don’t think that would be good for anybody,” Kunzeman said.

Kunzeman also disputes the idea that a .5 percent tax increase would irrevocably damage the city’s businesses.

“We’re not talking five percent or three percent, we’re talking a half of a percent, and that’s what we feel would budget us to where we could accomplish some of the infrastructure issues we have,” she said.

Kunzeman said the issue boils down to fairness, and argues that Ponderay’s 1,000 residents should not be asked to foot the bill for road damage caused by non-resident shoppers.

“These are hard times. People are frightened, they’re worried and have bills to pay. But you know what? They city does, too. We have bills to pay and we have payroll we have to meet,” she said. “This is about fairness to people who actually live here and have to foot the bill for these things and are not seeing the benefit of it.”

The public is encouraged to attend Tuesday’s council session, which begins at 6 p.m. at Ponderay City Hall.