At Monday’s city council meeting, city attorney Tim Weaver presented two ordinances related to the one-percent sales tax being proposed by Mayor Butch Berry. Weaver said one ordinance would set up the collection process for the tax if approved by voters, and the other directs the county to set up a special election jointly with the general election.
Weaver told council he had sent the ordinances to the Municipal League for review, but had not heard back. Therefore, he advised council not to fully pass the ordinances until the Municipal League responds. However, he said final passage would need to be in August in order to get the tax on the November ballot.
The first proposed ordinance, which became Ordinance 2244, stipulated “the revenue from the tax shall be used to fund the City Auditorium’s maintenance, repair and operation in an amount equal to one-fourth of the revenue and to fund the City’s Water and Sewer infrastructure’s maintenance, repairs and operation in an amount equal to three-fourths of the revenue.”
The second ordinance notified county election officials that Eureka Springs was putting the one percent sales and use tax on the ballot.
Alderman James DeVito noticed the ordinances did not mention the 10-year sunset clause suggested by Berry. Aldermen agreed this correction and any others recommended by the Municipal League could be incorporated into the ordinances before the final vote, so they approved the first two readings of both ordinances.