93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
Voters in Columbia and Boone County have approved local use tax ballot measures. The vote was closer in the county, with 15,278 in favor and 13,157 against.
Supporters of the measure say Boone is the last county among its contiguous counties to approve a use tax, which is a sales tax on online sales.
Former Boone County commissioner Dave Griggs chaired Boone County’s Yes on Prop 1 committee: he and other supporters say Boone County lost $3.7 million to untaxed online sales in 2020.
Supporters in both the city and county say passage will help local stores that have lost business to online retailers.
As for the city, Columbia finance director Matthew Lue tells 939 the Eagle that a use tax would generate about $5.6 million annually in additional revenue. He says Columbia could fund and maintain seven new firefighters and eight new police officers with the use tax revenue.
