City Council Opposes State Proposed Sales Tax Increase

The City Council voted 8-0 at the recent council meeting to oppose a state resolution to eliminate income taxes and place a 5.11 percent sales tax on all goods, services and health care purchased in Missouri.

Senate Joint Resolution 1, proposed by State Senator Luann Ridgeway, R-17th  district, would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2013.

The law would have the greatest effect on seniors and those people with disabilities, said Bill Knittig, chairman of the Arnold Aging and Disabilities Commission. Knitting spoke at a commission meeting on Feb. 17 prior to the City Council meeting that night.

“As people age, they use more health care and have more doctor’s visits,” Knitting said. The proposed tax would limit people who live on a fixed income.

The proposal would also eliminate a property tax credit that benefits the elderly and people with disabilities needing to make changes in their homes, Knitting said.

A ramp into the home, a chairlift to get upstairs, or widening doors to allow a wheelchair are changes needed in the homes of seniors or people with disabilities.

The proposal would benefit Illinois instead of Arnold, said Ward 4 Councilman Jason Connell.

“A lot of people would go across the (Mississippi) river and buy their items over there (in Illinois),” Connell said during the City Council meeting after the commission meeting.

Ward 1 Councilman Randy Crisler said, “This proposal is social experimentation that is detrimental to the poor.”

As a result of the 8-0 vote, the council approved Resolution No. 11-04, a resolution opposing the Missouri Senate Joint Resolution 1, which was received in the state’s 96th general assembly.

According to the Missouri Senate website, the resolution would go into effect upon voter approval.