1% prepared food tax election set for Nov. 8

story by Luke Hobbs
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In a special meeting on Thursday (July 28), the Fort Smith Board of Directors voted unanimously to repeal the 1% prepared food tax, reenact the tax, and send it to voters in a Nov. 8 special election.

The tax was approved by the board in February as a solution to an annual deficit with Fort Smith Convention Center operations predicted to occur when $1.8 million in annual state turnback money dried up. The state turnback program—which supported expansion or construction of tourism facilities — ended for Fort Smith in June 2010. The center has since operated on a reserve fund.

The last few months have included a petition drive to force the tax to an election and a court hearing that essentially overturned the city’s rejection of the petition drive. The furor over the tax led Director Pam Weber to propose, in the July 12 study session, that the board send the tax to the people for approval.

The board called Thursday’s special meeting because Director Philip Merry Jr. will be out of town during next week’s regular meeting, which is when the food tax was originally scheduled for a vote. The food tax was the only item on the special meeting agenda.

The meeting lasted only a few minutes, with no questions or discussion from the seven directors. The board voted 7-0 to pass both the ordinance and an emergency clause that puts it into immediate effect.

The food tax will go before Fort Smith voters in a Nov. 8 special election. Five of the seven directors — Weber, Merry, Andre Good, Steve Tyler, and Don Hutchings — have announced that they will campaign for voter approval of the tax.