Hutchinson officials explain proposed 0.75% sales tax that would replace stormwater fee

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson city officials told residents at an information session that voters will decide March 3 on whether to authorize a 0.75 percentage-point general retailer sales tax for 10 years, effective Oct. 1, 2026, that the city says would fund streets, parks and stormwater and would allow the city to eliminate the current stormwater utility fee.

Angela Richard, the city’s finance director, read the ballot language and said the tax, if approved, would be effective 10/01/2026 with collections beginning in December 2026 because of a two-month reporting lag from retailers to the state. "Voters are being asked whether the city council should be authorized to levy an additional .75% general retailer sales tax for 10 years effective 10/01/2026, and expiring 09/30/2036," Richard said during the presentation.

City officials framed the proposal as a response to a declining general-fund balance and rising costs. Richard said the city projects it would collect roughly $10.7 million on average each year if the tax passes and pointed to a projected 2026 ending fund balance near $2.6 million without new revenue. Mayor Scott Meggers and other commissioners said the measure is intended to cover a roughly $3 million gap between revenue and expenditures and to avoid making deeper cuts to services or staff.

Council members emphasized that the sales tax is intended to shift some of the burden to nonresidents who shop and visit Hutchinson. "If we can get more people to come to Hutchinson to spend money, they're going to help bear that burden," Mayor Scott Meggers said, arguing that the city's retail pull factor is higher than its population and that tourism and regional shoppers contribute to sales-tax revenue.

Officials said a key feature of the proposal is that it would replace the stormwater utility fee currently billed on city water bills; Richard said the average residential fee is about $4.75 per month and the city collects about $2.1 million annually from that fee. "We will propose removing the stormwater fee if the sales tax passes," she said.

Residents asked whether the mill levy (property tax rate) would remain flat; officials said the scenario modeled in the presentation assumes a flat mill levy but acknowledged the council cannot guarantee future boards’ actions. Council member Darren Truen said he will "do everything I can to keep from raising property tax," but noted he could not promise future officeholders would do the same.

The city also explained why it called a special March election instead of waiting for a county vote: budget-certification deadlines in August would leave the city without timely revenue information for fiscal planning if it delayed to November. Staff estimated the special election will cost the city roughly $36,000.

Officials said they will share the presentation online and encouraged residents to review the capital-improvement plan (CIP) list on the city's budget page for project details used to calculate the sales-tax need. The presentation and Q&A covered how sales-tax proceeds could be applied to combined street and stormwater projects that the stormwater fee alone could not fund when road excavation is required.

Next steps: the city will submit the ballot language and hold the March 3 special election; if the tax passes, staff say they will stop billing the stormwater utility fee once sales-tax collections begin (anticipated December 2026). The city plans to publish the presentation online and continue outreach ahead of the vote.