Tax will cost more than it will help

I am urging the citizens of Bonner County to vote no on the upcoming proposition to add a 0.5 percent tax to all sales in the city of Sandpoint.

“You pay more in Sandpoint” will soon become common knowledge, sending even more customers to neighboring communities to shop and dine. The merchants of Sandpoint will lose more business than the tax revenues that will be collected. There are more than 10 empty storefronts in the downtown core, and certainly more will close if this ill-conceived tax supplement is enacted.

I would like to point out that the visitors and tourists who visit Sandpoint would only be burdened by this additional tax during their short stays. Our citizens, however will have to pay this tax all year long, so the amount of revenue generated by citizens purchases far exceeds that which would be collected by visitors.

I believe that the people who use Barlow stadium for their sporting and events would be more than happy to support an improvement tax on tickets to events held at the stadium, but to burden everyone I believe is wrong. Please vote no on the local option tax on Nov. 6.

JOHN O. BRECKENRIDGE

Sandpoint