Facing millions of dollars in unfunded infrastructure and public safety needs, officials in Santee are considering asking voters to approve a 1-cent sales tax increase on the November ballot.
City leaders approved an additional feasibility study Tuesday night that will gauge public support for a 1-cent tax to cover general government costs.
“Recognizing that our residents have a lot of different projects, programs and services they want to do, and the limitations surrounding a half-cent sales tax and the (projected annual revenue of) $7 million dollars, we have come to the conclusion that a 1-cent tax would be more beneficial,” City Manager Wendy Kaiserman said.
Officials originally hired a firm to survey approval of a half-cent sales tax for 10 years, but pivoted to 1 cent for 10 years during the recent meeting.
After deliberating, officials approved an amendment to the city’s existing agreement with TeamCivX to conduct an additional survey and increase the payment by $29,000.
Two years have passed since Santee residents rejected Measure S, a citizen-led initiative that would have enacted a half-cent sales tax for 15 years to specifically fund fire protection and emergency services.
City leaders say their hesitancy to increase taxes is overweighed by the growing list of unfunded projects, particularly when it comes to infrastructure improvements, like a new fire station.
Officials are grappling with significant unfunded infrastructure needs — with up to $41.6 million needed for priority fire projects alone — including $22 million for a new station in the southwestern portion of the city.
Reports also indicate the need for an additional $5 million in general funds to maintain and improve pavement conditions, which was identified as a priority for residents in the initial survey.
In total, the city has identified $322 million in unfunded infrastructure and service needs for the next five years, according to this fiscal year’s capital improvement plan.
“I never thought in my day that this city would ever be looking at a tax measure,” Mayor John Minto said. “The reality is that the prices keep going up, and we’re still getting more unfunded (state) mandates. We have to do something.”
Based on the results of the initial feasibility study, city leaders expect Santee voters to be more supportive of a measure that isn’t narrowly tailored to fund emergency services.
Their new proposal would allow for a variety of uses for the tax revenue — including expanding fire protection and emergency services, but also improving roads, maintaining parks, and more.
Sixty-nine percent of potential voters surveyed supported the general half-cent sales tax measure, Timothy McLarney, an official for TeamCivX, said.
“A 1-percent sales tax would actually make a difference, $7 million dollars just isn’t going to cover us, especially if we have to bond for all these different things,” Minto said, noting that a 1-cent sales tax would generate up to $14 million in revenue.
Councilmember Rob McNelis said he was hesitant to support spending additional city funds on another feasibility study and was the sole vote against it.
Residents of Santee “either believe us or they don’t,” McNelis said, noting public distrust over the city’s funding choices. Particularly, he said a general tax could deter voters due to lack of transparency with how the money will be spent.
The council will make a formal decision on the tax proposal after results of the second survey are reported out in late June.
“I don’t want to be the council that just kicks the can again,” Councilmember Dustin Trotter said. “We’ve kicked it and kicked it and kicked it for decades … and haven’t been able to put a plan together to do the things that we are fundamentally supposed to do.”