I know very few people who want to pay more taxes. I am no different and want to make sure that any taxes I must pay are used effectively. There is no free lunch when it comes to a safe, vibrant community and fixing our roads falls under this old adage. Gas tax money is simply not keeping up with demand and funding from the state and federal governments has fallen drastically. The basic fact is that we do not have enough coming in through existing taxes to keep up with simple road maintenance, much less make improvements. We must have a new source of funding. Proposition 1 is the right way to do it.
As a former council member, I swear that your tax dollars are used very effectively by your city government. Even a large citizen’s committee we appointed affirmed this fact and recommended the tiny sales tax increase in Proposition 1 is the right way to fund road and sidewalks maintenance. I strongly support this recommendation and Proposition 1. A side benefit of approval of Proposition 1 and its dedicated street revenue will be decreased reliance on the city’s general fund, meaning more money to hire one or more police officers. We have been hindered by moving money from the general fund to the street fund for several years and that has limited public safety funding.
Why is this tiny tax increase (0.002 percent retail sales tax) such a good deal for Covington taxpayers? Simply because it leverages our large retail customer base. Under Proposition 1, every person who buys anything in Covington, not including food, will help pay for Covington streets and sidewalks. Our regional draw of customers is over 100,000 people, while Covington is under 19,000. The result will be that all those other people using our streets to shop here and pass through to work will now, for the first time, start paying for their fair share. In fact, I expect it to be the far greater share. So, unless you want only Covington citizens to pay for everything, this is a great deal for us and deserves your vote.
Wayne Snoey
Covington
