Citizens panel to audit use of sales tax funds / LJWorld.com

Archive for Monday, November 17, 2008

November 17, 2008

Lawrence city commissioners are set to follow through on a campaign promise of allowing the public to audit how new sales tax dollars are spent.

Commissioners at their meeting on Tuesday are expected to approve the creation of a citizen sales tax audit committee that is designed to ensure that funds from three newly approved sales taxes are spent only for public transit and previously agreed upon infrastructure items.

"I think it is our responsibility to involve the public in this process since they are the ones who voted on these sales taxes," Mayor Mike Dever said.

Voters on Nov. 4 overwhelmingly approved three citywide sales taxes - a three-tenths of a percent sales tax for a host of specific infrastructure items, a two-tenths of a percent tax for basic transit operations, and a five-hundredths of a percent tax for expanded transit operations.

The committee won't advise commissioners on how to spend the sales tax dollars, but will review revenues and receipts to ensure that the money is being spent only on items that voters authorized. The ballot language for all three sales tax questions specifically limited how the tax collections could be spent. In particular, Question No. 1 limited its uses to rebuilding or maintaining existing streets, purchasing firefighting equipment, replacing a stormwater pump station in North Lawrence, and building a hike and bike trail in east Lawrence.

Questions No. 2 and 3 restricted spending to public transit items.

Commissioners at their meeting on Tuesday are not set to appoint specific individuals to the committee. Instead, they are expected to approve an ordinance that creates the committee.

Among the details:

¢ The committee will consist of five city residents, who will be appointed by the mayor. Members will serve three-year terms, except in the beginning the terms will be staggered.

¢ The group will meet at least once every six months, and will provide a written report at least twice a year to the City Commission.

¢ The committee can review any of the city's "records, receipts, invoices or other materials" that a majority of the committee deems necessary to do its work.

¢ The group will meet in public and its work will be subject to the Kansas Open Records Act.

Dever said he wants to have members appointed by early 2009. He said the committee should be made up of a variety of types of residents, and said he'll be seeking nominations from neighborhood associations and the city's public transit advisory committee.

The audit committee is a first for Lawrence. City Manager David Corliss proposed the idea after seeing other areas, such as Sedgwick County, use the process to monitor sales tax spending.

Corliss said the committee should provide residents with a greater level of accountability, but he said it also could be useful if future commissions ever decide to seek voter approval to renew the sales taxes. All three taxes will expire in 10 years.

"We would be able to point to the results and say we delivered the progress that we promised," Corliss said.

Discussion

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17 November 2008
at 1:10 a.m.

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igby (Anonymous) says…

In the mean-time all shopper will buy their goods on the web and skip the sales tax robber-barons.Local free trade agreement 101!
17 November 2008
at 8:44 a.m.

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SettingTheRecordStraight (Anonymous) says…

And Lawrence accelerates its race to the bottom of the list of least-taxed Kansas communities.
17 November 2008
at 9:26 a.m.

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gl0ck0wn3r (Anonymous) says…

Something for Richard Heckler to do during the mowing off-season and between planning roundabouts.
17 November 2008
at 10:09 a.m.

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skinny (Anonymous) says…

I've had it with Lawrence having the highest tax rate per capita in the state. I am fighting back and not spending any more money in the City of Lawrence.After the voters in the city of Lawrence pasted their sales tax increase for the empty T I will be buying all my stuff on the net. On a 1,000. purchase I'll save well over 80.00.The City of Lawrence administration had better start thinking about this as I am not the only one that has had enough of their BS.
17 November 2008
at 10:19 a.m.

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just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (Anonymous) says…

Does that mean you won't be using any city services, either, skinny?
17 November 2008
at 10:31 a.m.

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skinny (Anonymous) says…

That is why I pay property Taxes Bozo!!!!
17 November 2008
at 12:43 p.m.

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merrill (Anonymous) says…

It's a good idea to have some people review where the money went. It will also be a good idea to watch the spending of existing general fund dollars which together = about $7-$8 million annually.A truly signifcant issue would be how USD 497 is spending 2.3 million tax dollars on high dollar sports facilities that remain not used the greater majority of the time. How many times will taxpayers pay for this unwise use of USD 497 tax dollars? How much more will this cost all taxpayers which was not discussed initially. Even more interesting the tactic used toavoid a taxpayer vote on the matter.Prairie Park Elementary,Deerfield Elemetary and Central Junior High Schools could have used this moneyUSD 497 cannot afford it's current programs which is why parents must pay to play. So why add further costs onto the program? My guess is the city and USD 497 will come back to the taxpayers for more in order to staff and maintain the new tax dollar burner.Then some cheer lead the development of residential and new warehouses areas without thinking how much will these project cost YOU to make the local developers even more money. YES we have all been trained to believe that blowing tons of tax dollars on new infrastructure for new housing and low paying warehouse jobs cost YOU and ME nothing. “Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense (And Stick You with the Bill)”http://www.democracynow.org/2008/1/18/free_lunch_how_the_wealthiest_americansRemember where new infrastructure goes so goes all of these big time tax increasing projects:* the $88 million sewage treatment plant,which in and of itself increases the cost of community services* water and sewer lines* streets and repairs***houses (((If residential growth paid for itself and was financially positive, we would not be in a budget crunch. But with increased numbers of houses you have increased demand on services, and historically the funding of revenues generated by residential housing does not pay for the services, they require from a municipality. Why not impact fees or excise taxes? Local real estate developers are still laughing all of the way to the bank on the backs of taxpayers. )))*public schools* fire stations* law enforcement manpower*sidewalks* snow removal* bike trails and cross walks* Traffic signals* Traffic calming* developers requesting more tax dollar assistance(new infrastructure) or TIF for theirwarehouses and retail strip malls.*In general increases the cost of community services to all taxpayers.Apparently local complainers truly do love the largest of tax increases that accomplish the least the for overall community and benefit the very few…..aka duped.

17 November 2008
at 12:50 p.m.

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just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (Anonymous) says…

“That is why I pay property Taxes Bozo!!!!”So does that mean you'll only use those services that are paid for through property taxes? If your house catches on fire, will you make sure that it doesn't get put out with one of the new fire trucks that gets paid for with the new infrastructure tax?
17 November 2008
at 1:26 p.m.

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gl0ck0wn3r (Anonymous) says…

“Richard 'give me your money' Heckler (Anonymous) cut-and-pasted: Apparently local complainers truly do love the largest of tax increases that accomplish the least the for overall community and benefit the very few:..aka duped.”Local complainers? Are you writing about yourself? You certainly champion taxes that harm the most and benefits the few.
17 November 2008
at 1:27 p.m.

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JackRipper (Anonymous) says…

This is good, sounds like there will be more accountability for a few million in Lawrence then $700+ billions by the those handing out the bailout funds.
17 November 2008
at 5:50 p.m.

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cowboy (Anonymous) says…

As a proud local complainer….this is about as effective as having the coyote babysit the rabbit , the Neighborhood Kommittees will nominate members for the panel . As long as that neighborhood is getting projects what is to complain about . This appears the typical Lawrence city staff copout , appoint a committee so I don't have to perform my fiduciary duty. I'll remind all that we have an $87,000 per year auditor on staff. Can you tell us what return we have received on that position ? While were talking about return on staff positions , A company I worked for typically would measure your performance by whether you had paid for yourself or not. A simple question to motivate and measure. But what did we get? A panel , of non professionals , to review spending , and write a report submitted to city management and the commission , that by the time it is reviewed and publicized the funds will have been spent for , I'll bet over 12 months.Brilliant !
17 November 2008
at 6:06 p.m.

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gl0ck0wn3r (Anonymous) says…

“cowboy (Anonymous) says: A company I worked for typically would measure your performance by whether you had paid for yourself or not. A simple question to motivate and measure.”Clearly they didn't measure your performance by your ability to write or use punctuation. If so, you would have starved.
17 November 2008
at 6:18 p.m.

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cowboy (Anonymous) says…

bite it glock , nothing more irritating than grammar police
17 November 2008
at 6:26 p.m.

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JackRipper (Anonymous) says…

And cowboy has more intelligent stuff coming out of his mouth then you do glock.
17 November 2008
at 7:30 p.m.

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gl0ck0wn3r (Anonymous) says…

“JackRipper (Anonymous) says: And cowboy has more intelligent stuff coming out of his mouth then you do glock.”You've hurt my iFeelings. Yeah… I forgot it's unreasonable on the LJW forum to expect an adult (I assume) to use punctuation and spaces correctly. i Mean , where i used to work , we were”nt measured by how readable our kkkoments were !

17 November 2008
at 8:23 p.m.

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JackRipper (Anonymous) says…

Hmmm, so it is style over substance? Many very smart people in the past couldn't write and yet made significant contributions to society. Think right now we have a perfect demonstration of how the smartest people in the world could fall for the great ponzii scheme we find ourselves in now. Didnt mean to hurt your feelings though.
17 November 2008
at 9:09 p.m.

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gl0ck0wn3r (Anonymous) says…

“JackRipper (Anonymous) says:Hmmm, so it is style over substance?”Did I write that?
18 November 2008
at 9:16 a.m.

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toe (Anonymous) says…

Buy nothing in Lawrence, especially big ticket items. The sales tax will be paid by the poor, but the wealthy who winter in the south pay nothing. Sales taxes are just another form of confiscation of peoples hard earned money. Buying less is even better than buying out of town. It looks like buying less and living better is starting to catch on.