The Plain Facts About the Lexington County Penny
October 9, 2014
By Tiffany Boyce-Heitzman
It’s a shame that the opponents of the Lexington County “Penny for Pavement” continue to intentionally confuse the voters about the proposed one penny capital projects sales tax. The opponents want to insult your intelligence by nonsensically stating that a penny—one cent—is somehow more than a penny and more than one cent; or that the penny increase won’t actually be terminated after 8 years despite an unambiguous state law specifically requiring it. Moreover, the opposition totally disregards the fact that the process to select the list of infrastructure projects to be funded by the penny was refreshingly open, transparent, and not fraught with political influence–focusing instead on some two year-old contract for consulting services that was not even funded by Lexington County taxpayer dollars.
One opponent laments the sad mechanical condition of the county’s ambulance fleet and advocates spending money to upgrade these vehicles rather than infrastructure, without acknowledging that it is potholes and poor road conditions that have contributed materially to this problem. Without offering any alternative funding ideas, the opponents somehow believe that our crumbling roads and insufficient infrastructure will somehow just fix themselves; that population growth resulting in clogged roads and rain that causes street flooding will just go away; that we need to just accept that a fire truck or ambulance will not be able to timely respond to emergency situations due to road congestion; and that road safety for our families and recreational opportunities for our children is not worth a penny. Ironically, the very thing that the penny opponents most want to avoid—an increase in the county’s property tax—may very well occur if the Penny referendum is NOT passed!
The facts behind the proposed one penny sales tax increase are simple and straightforward. First, the ability of Lexington County’s citizens to vote on increasing the sales tax by one penny was initially approved by our elected representatives in the General Assembly. Second, each municipality in Lexington County submitted, after multiple hearings and recorded votes in public session, a list of road and critical infrastructure projects that needed to be funded by the proposed Penny increase. Next, to avoid the influence of political influence, a commission of private citizens representing each area of the county was selected to review each project submission and rank the projects according to critical need and benefit to the county. After several months of study, this commission submitted a project list to Lexington County Council, which could not change the order of the projects, nor include or exclude any projects. All the county council could do is vote to let the citizens exercise their right to vote whether or not to raise the sales tax by one penny to fund these projects. The council, after three public readings and a public hearing, agreed to do just this and the referendum is now on the November 4th ballot. In fact, the process is so transparent that a list of all the projects and the corresponding costs for each are included on the ballot for the voters to see!
Another fact that the opposition fails to mention is that the total cost of the priority projects to be funded by the penny tax revenue is actually much less than the amount that the Department of Revenue has estimated will be collected by the penny increase. This prudent, conservative approach makes sense. Only when or if there is additional sales tax revenue available will the non-priority projects be undertaken. The county council has the option to issue tax anticipation bonds to facilitate the completion of the projects, with the proceeds from the sales tax used to repay any bonds. Taking advantage of present-day low bond rates and construction costs is fiscally prudent, makes sense, and avoids further “kicking the can” down the road to our children and grandchildren to address.
It is undisputed that we have a problem and we have to fix it. Throughout Lexington County we can see daily our deteriorating roads and infrastructure. We all complain about the increasing traffic problems. We have all wondered how an ambulance or fire truck can navigate our clogged roads. We have seen or heard for years about street flooding. We have all experienced potholes resulting in tire, suspension, alignment and other mechanical issues with our vehicles. It is also a fact that Lexington County is projected to grow another 23% in the next 10 years, and with that growth inevitably comes more strain on our roads, public safety, county and municipal services, water and sewer needs, and recreation as well. County council and the municipalities can address these needs either through an increase in property taxes—a burden that is limited only to property owners–or we can vote to implement a one penny sales tax increase dedicated solely to roads and infrastructure needs for a limited period of 8 years that will be paid by residents and non-residents alike. Frankly, this penny option is the most fair and it makes the most sense.
The Penny for Pavement is just that—a mere penny—that will finally begin to address the road and infrastructure needs that we all see, that we desperately need, and that we all know cannot be delayed further into the future. A vote for the Penny in November is a vote for roads, a vote for safety, a vote for quality of life, and a vote for the most fair and common sense approach to addressing Lexington County’s infrastructure needs.
