1% city sales tax headed to November ballot

SANDPOINT — After nearly a month of discussion and deliberation, city councilors unanimously approved a motion Wednesday to bring a local option sales tax onto the Nov. 5 ballot. 

In two months, Sandpoint residents will decide whether to adopt the tax, which aims to create a long-term funding source for repairing and maintaining streets, alleyways, sidewalks, and paths.

“I'm excited to see what our constituents have to say about this,” Mayor Jeremy Grimm said following Wednesday’s vote. 

The idea for implementing a sales tax to support roadwork was introduced to the public by Grimm at an Aug. 7 council meeting. In the meeting, councilors told Grimm they had heard community members call for road improvements but that they sought additional details about the initiative. 

In the following month, city staff provided information about the condition of Sandpoint’s roads and councilors explored potential variations of the tax and discussed its scope. 

The final version that will appear on the November ballot asks voters if they are in favor of a 1% tax on all sales identified in Idaho Code Title 63, Chapter 36, except occupancy sales. 

If favored by the requisite 60% of voters, the tax will be implemented for a 25-year period beginning Jan. 1, 2025. That duration, however, is not set in stone. 

“We do have the discretion to go to the voters to amend this in the future,” Grimm explained at the Sept. 4 meeting. “We do have the flexibility.” 

In Wednesday’s meeting, councilors largely expressed support for presenting the question to voters. 

“In my experience, roads are talked about more than anything,” Councilor Joel Aispuro said of public interest in local street conditions. 

Aispuro also recognized that there are other city projects “that absolutely need help,” but described roads as “the lowest hanging fruit.” 

Aispuro went on to add that with presidential candidates on the ballot and a higher-than-average voter turnout anticipated, Nov. 5 will be a rare opportunity to understand the true preferences of Sandpoint as a whole. 

“I think the election year is a great sample size where we can get the loudest voice for us from our citizens,” said Aispuro. 

Council President Deb Ruehle expressed concerns about the tax, telling councilors that a focus on roadwork may lead to other critical services being neglected. 

“I don't feel like the mayor has thoroughly answered what other city services may be in dire need by the time we get 25 years down the road,” Ruehle said at the meeting. 

“I'm just asking you to process, ‘are we having tunnel vision here?’” 

Ruehle brought forth the idea of delaying the initiative to hear from officials across the city’s departments and examine Sandpoint’s other needs for the future. 

“We don't have to do it absolutely at this election cycle,” said Ruehle. “If it's important enough to the people at Sandpoint, they're going to come out to vote in the next election also.” 

Ruehle expressed support for the proposed ordinance’s inclusion of pathways, which the council president says she sees as an under-maintained piece of city infrastructure 

“We seem to be taking subpar care of those, and they are well used and very important to the public,” Ruehle said of pathways in Sandpoint’s parks. 

Ultimately, that element was key for Ruehle. 

“I think the sidewalks and pathways are super important to this town,” Ruehle said. “Based upon that piece, I'm going to vote yes.” 

With the ordinance destined for the ballot, Grimm shared his plan to help voters make informed decisions. 

“We can't say, ‘vote yes,’” Grimm said at the meeting. “We can educate the voters.” 

Grimm added that he envisioned Sandpoint will create an informational flier and that city officials will appear on local radio stations to share facts about the sales tax. 

Regardless of the outcome, Grimm has said that at the very least, bringing the initiative to voters will help Sandpoint understand what its residents want. 

“It'll take a lot of education and work, and hopefully we get some feedback,” Grimm said. 

“Hopefully it passes, and if not, we'll learn and keep going.”