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Representative proposes update to joint sales-tax authority for proposed southeast Missouri lake
Summary
House Bill 149 would update a decades-old law allowing joint sales-tax votes between Cape Girardeau and Bollinger counties for a proposed lake project; sponsor said the revision reflects population and county-class changes and is intended to keep the option available while studies continue.
Representative Barry Hovis told the House Ways and Means Committee that House Bill 149 updates an older statute that allowed two counties to agree to a sales tax to finance a joint lake project. Hovis said the original language dated from the planning stage more than 25 years ago and needs revision to reflect that Cape Girardeau is now a class 1 county and to permit either both counties or a single county to move forward depending on how the project is configured. "Just to go back in history a little bit ... there was legislation passed that would have allowed the counties of both to come together and, vote to approve a sales tax that would help pay for that lake project," Hovis said.
Hovis explained the bill is intended to keep the statutory mechanism current while a multi-year study continues in the region. "We're in year 3 of this 5 year study right now," he said, and the committee would not need to act until the project’s sponsors move the proposal forward. Hovis said the change also includes modifications related to staggering board appointment elections. Committee members asked clarifying questions about which counties would vote depending on the project’s final footprint; Hovis said if the project were limited to Cape Girardeau County, Bollinger County would not vote.
No witnesses registered in support, opposition, or for informational purposes. The committee adjourned the item after testimony; no committee vote or amendments were recorded in the hearing record.
