Press Release:
City Officials Ask Voters To Support Revenue Plan
Imploring voters to maintain core city services, Columbus city officials announced they will ask Columbus voters to support a 0.5 percent tax increase on the August ballot. Mayor Michael B. Coleman, all seven members of Columbus City Council, Chief of Police Walter Distelzweig, Chief of Fire Ned Pettus, City Auditor Hugh J. Dorrian and City Attorney Richard C. Pfeiffer said passage of the plan is essential in order to provide police, fire, health and other basic neighborhood services. The 0.5 percent increase is a key part of the city’s long-term plan to sustain the quality of life in Columbus through new jobs, government reforms and new revenue.
“In order to grow our economy and fight for jobs, we must have a safe and clean city and strong neighborhoods,” Mayor Coleman said. “If citizens support our three-point plan for jobs, reform and revenue, we can maintain our quality of life for many years to come.”
City Council will vote May 11 on a resolution to authorize the City of Columbus to submit an income tax increase to the voters in August, 2009. To go into effect, that resolution must be approved by the voters.
“The citizens of Columbus have a choice to make between maintaining core city services such as police and fire protection at the levels our residents have come to expect or experience drastic cuts,” said Council President Michael C. Mentel. “The declining national economy has forced us to find new sources of revenue to fund the basic services and economic development efforts that will help Columbus succeed in the coming years.”
Columbus city government has been making tough decisions for the last decade to keep its finances sound while maintaining safe and strong neighborhoods, cutting its civilian workforce by 30 percent, spending $67 million less than budgeted and cutting $155 million from what would have been business as usual since 2001. However, the Economic Advisory Committee assembled last year by the mayor and council has said the city must have new revenue. Most of a 0.5 percent increase of the city income tax would be paid by commuters who work in the city. This is the fairest way to shore up the city’s long-term finances, while keeping the city economically competitive. Those with high incomes would pay the most, those with low incomes would pay the least, and those with no incomes would pay nothing at all. For a middle-class Columbus household making $40,000 a year, the increase would cost less than $17 a month.