The question of whether ballot measures to lower the cap on property taxes, eliminate sales taxes on food and utilities, and reestablish a preference for in-person local elections now rests on a count of signatures by the city clerk’s office after organizers turned in their petition books Friday.
Supporters continued collecting signatures through their deadline day seeking the 2,720 registered voters — equal to at least 25% of the total cast in the most recent municipal election last October — necessary for each of the items to make the October municipal election ballot. The clerk’s office has 10 days to determine if all of the signatures submitted are valid, with the organizers given an additional 10 days if the final tally on a measure comes up short.
“We almost certainly will need some more signatures and the clerk has already directed to print the supplemental books, which we will receive in about 10 days, give or take a day,” Joe Geldhof, a member of the Affordable Juneau Coalition that filed the proposals, said in an interview Friday evening.
The three proposals filed by the coalition include:
• An initiative setting a cap of nine mills, rather than the current limit of 12, not including additional property taxes “required to serve general obligation indebtedness.” The Assembly would have to get voter approval in a regular or special election to set a higher rate. The current mill rate is 10.04, of which 1.08 mills are for debt service. The proposed budget for next year raises the mill rate to 10.24, with Assembly members citing higher costs and anticipated loss of federal funding among the reasons.
• An initiative exempting “essential food” and residential utilities from local sales taxes, which currently total 5% (a 4% fixed tax and 1% temporary tax voters have approved every five years for decades).
• A charter amendment reversing an existing ordinance “requiring that mail-in voting take priority over in-person voting.” Instead, if approved, the amendment would require all local elections to be poll-based “unless otherwise directed by the Assembly.”
Geldhof, in a separate interview earlier on Friday, said there appears to have been more support during the 30-day signature-gathering process for the two tax initiatives.
“What was pretty obvious to most people was that the getting rid of the sales tax on utilities and groceries was extremely popular,” he said. “There was very little pushback; there was a little bit. And then, in order of priority, most people thought capping the mill rate at nine was a good idea. It got a little dicier with the poll-based (elections) and the single biggest reason was ‘I like the mail-in. It’s convenient.’”
Passage of the tax measures would cost the City and Borough of Juneau several million dollars in what is a roughly $195 million municipal operating budget proposed for next year. Geldhof said he believes there are cuts the city can make to adjust to the lower revenue.
Assembly members are discussing another tax option — a seasonal sales tax that would be higher during tourism season, with lower winter rates and exemptions for food/utilities — that also would be placed before voters if approved. But some members said they are concerned about the adverse impact a seasonal tax could have on locals making big purchases such as building materials or vehicles during warmer months.
City leaders last year got involved in a ballot measure banning large cruise ships on Saturdays by publishing a purportedly “neutral and factual” FAQ that focused largely on the industry’s economic benefits and efforts to reach cooperative agreements to reduce adverse impacts on locals. Discussions about another information effort have taken place at recent Assembly meetings as leaders face potentially difficult ballot items including those of the petitioners, as well as bonds for utilities and school projects.
The Ship-Free Saturday initiative was defeated by a 61%-39% vote in a campaign that saw heavy spending by the cruise industry. Angela Rodell, an Affordable Juneau Coalition member and mayoral candidate in last year’s election, stated in an email interview Thursday trying to get the three petitions on this year’s ballot “has been far from a high-dollar effort.”
“If one or more of the initiatives appear on the ballot, we expect the conversation to continue, but we’ll stay focused on facts and respectful civic dialogue,” she wrote. “A campaign — even a modest one — can help voters better understand the practical impacts of these measures, which often isn’t fully captured in the limited legal ballot language.”
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
