LUTHERAN QUILTERS – Members of the Quilts for Comfort Group stand between pews draped with some of the 205 quilts they made, in the Sitka Lutheran Church Tuesday. The group made the quilts for five local non-profits and one in Anchorage. The remaining quilts are sent to Lutheran World Relief which distributes them to places around the world in need, such as Ukraine, as part of Personal Care Kits. Pictured are, from left, Helen Cunningham, Kathleen Brandt,Vicki Swanson, Paulla Hardy, Kim Hunter, Linda Swanson and Sue Fleming. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
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Daily Sitka Sentinel
Voter Option Is Part Of New Tax on Cars
By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Assembly passed a new vehicle registration tax on first reading Tuesday night, replacing the version of the tax approved on first reading five weeks ago.
Before voting on the new ordinance, the Assembly approved an amendment reducing the fees on passenger vehicles and increasing the tax on commercial vehicles.
The ordinance passed on a 4-3 vote, with Ben Miyasato, Pete Esquiro, Mike Reif and Mayor Mim McConnell voting in favor. Aaron Swanson, Matthew Hunter and Phyllis Hackett voted against. If passed on final reading the new taxes will go into effect in Jan. 1, 2016.
The latest version of the ordinance calls for the Assembly to place an alternative tax proposition on the October 2015 city election ballot that would raise the same amount of revenue as the registration tax. Between now and the 2015 city election, a committee of private citizens and city officials is to work on the alternative tax proposition for the ballot. The registration tax will not go into effect if the alternative measure is approved by the voters.
The vehicle tax approved on first reading Tuesday night would be collected by the state every two years when a Sitka vehicle registration is renewed with the state Division of Motor Vehicles.
As amended, the ordinance calls for a $125 tax, covering two years, on a private vehicle. Before amendment the proposed fee was $200 ($100 per year). The amended fee schedule shows a $450 ($225 per year) charge for commercial vehicles, up from the $400 as originally proposed.
The next public hearing is scheduled for the Sept. 9 Assembly meeting.
The new tax would raise $676,000 annually for street and road maintenance and construction in Sitka, the city said. The public works department says about $2.7 million a year is required to maintain city streets.
After introducing the ordinance on July 22 the Assembly scheduled the second reading for more than a month later to allow all members to be present for final consideration.
All of the public testimony Tuesday night was in opposition to a motor vehicle tax.
The section of the new ordinance that calls for Sitkans to vote on an alternative tax in 2015 was designed to put pressure on vehicle tax opponents and other members of the public to come up with some other tax, such as sales, fuel or property taxes, that would generate just as much revenue for the city.
Pete Esquiro made the motion to amend the fee schedule in the new ordinance.
Esquiro’s amendment passed on a 5-2 vote, with Reif and Hackett opposed. The ordinance, which will require two more public hearings, includes the following fees, which would be collected every two years:
– $50 for motorcycles.
– $45 for noncommercial trailers, down from $100.
– $125 for noncommercial vehicles, down from $200.
– $450 for commercial vehicles, up from $400.
(A proposal for assessing a $25 fee for bikes was dropped.)
Assembly members said they had received comments for and against the tax. Several said they’re no longer as enthusiastic about the tax as they were previously.
“All the feedback I’ve gotten, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me,” McConnell said. “I don’t think it’s fair.”
She said the Assembly still has two more readings to discuss the ordinance, and even if it passes, the public has the chance to come up with a better alternative to put on the 2015 ballot. But she said the issue of paying for road maintenance needs to be addressed one way or another.
“In the five years I’ve been on the Assembly, taking care of roads has always been an issue,” McConnell said.
Reif agreed that roads has been a long-standing issue, going back to the first time he served, about 20 years ago. But he said this ordinance would “give citizens the spark under their feet to do something.” He said he’s dedicated to not passing on the problem to future generations.
“If not now, then when?” he said.
Hackett said she has appreciated all of the ideas that have come in to pay for roads since the ordinance was proposed. She said she’s interested in pursuing a new fuel tax, which she said appears to be more fair.
Hunter said he had worked on a committee with two other Assembly members a few years ago which favored a fuel tax as the best method. He said the proposed ordinance “doesn’t sit well with me,” including the section that calls for a vote on an alternative tax.
Hunter said he is more interested in looking into the possibilities for a fuel tax, which earlier had been ruled out as unworkable to implement.
Miyasato said he would vote in favor, and added that the ordinance allows for some room for the public to get involved and come up with a better solution in 2015 before the new tax is implemented.
Among those who testified against the registration tax, Lindsay Evans said it would put a $225 annual burden on her family for their two cars and boat trailer, funds which would otherwise be spent on groceries, charitable donations and utilities.
“It’s time for you ... to look at who this is going to affect,” she said. Evans also encouraged the city to be more aggressive at marketing Sitka’s fresh water to solve some its financial problems.
Bobbi Daniels voiced her strong objections to a law that would triple the cost of renewing a vehicle registration. She said the city should instead be working on how to make it easier for businesses to succeed here, because that’s a major source of city revenues. She said the city has a history of harassing law-abiding businesses, and cited a few examples of ways the city has raised the cost of doing business here, ultimately losing sales tax revenue for the city.
There was some back-and-forth between Daniels, the mayor and the clerk after Daniels asked for more than the allowed three minutes to finish her statement. Daniels was encouraged to submit her complete statement in writing to be included in the record.
David Durham said the proposed new fee should be studied before being implemented. He said in his work with the Coast Guard the agency had three criteria for judging a mission: whether the mission accomplished what was intended; whether it came in within budget; and whether it was done on time.
He said the city is not doing so well on a few of those fronts on recent projects, and that the city should move cautiously on this proposal.
“Move with great caution versus the ‘damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead’ approach,” Durham said.
Don McCarthy also objected to the vehicle tax. He said vehicle ownership didn’t necessarily reflect how much the vehicles were used on the road system. He said he has three vehicles, but doesn’t use them at the same time.
Library Expansion
In other business, the Assembly approved awarding of the library expansion project bid to Dawson Construction for $5,097,000.
The motion approved included reducing the scope of the project by $312,497, transferring $357,114 from the undesignated working capital fund balance, and another $200,000 from the commercial passenger excise tax, to cover all of the costs.
The project is being funded mainly with a $5.7 million appropriation from the state, plus nearly $500,000 in donations from the community. The library will be operated in the Stratton Library on the SJ campus during the one year the project is expected to take.
Assembly members made a number of comments on the project before approving the bid award on a 6-1 vote, with Esquiro voting against.
Hunter spoke in favor, noting that the library – without the expansion – already needed $2 million in upgrades, which the city would have had to pay for without outside help.
“We’re getting a bigger, newer, upgraded library out of the deal,” he said.
Other Business
On other items, the Assembly:
– appointed Dr. David Hunt to the animal hearing board.
– authorized a month-to-month lease for Coastal Excavation for 17,000 square feet of property at the Granite Creek industrial area for $382.50 per month.
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20 YEARS AGO
March 2004
Advertisement: Tea-Licious Tea House & Bakery 315 Lincoln Street Grand Opening! Freshly Baked Scones, Cakes & Pastries Innovative Salads, Soups & Sandwiches Harney & Sons Tea. Lunch * Afternoon Tea * Supper.
50 YEARS AGO
March 1974
Photo caption: National Republican Chairman George Bush takes a drink of water offered by Jan Craddick, Sitka delegate, during the Republican convention held here. Mrs. Craddick explained to Bush that the water was from Indian River, which means, according to local legend, that he will return.