Mayor: ordinance to ban fireworks sales will go to council after residents and vendors debate enforcement, out‑of‑state supply and tax reporting

Mayor Absher opened the public comment period and invited a visitor from the audience to speak about fireworks sales in Marion. The visitor identified his operation as Sky Thunder and asked whether the city would allow him to establish a permanent fireworks business. "Sky Thunder," the vendor said when asked for the company name.

Mayor Absher told the vendor there would be no action that night and that "we do have an ordinance prepared to give to the council to consider, which does indeed ban the sale of fireworks in the city," and that the ordinance would appear on the March agenda. Later in the exchange the mayor said the ordinance is expected at the March meeting (the mayor referenced March 24 as the likely date).

The vendor and several other speakers described changes to Illinois law that, they said, allowed retail sales of larger consumer products (cakes, artillery-style items and higher-gram items) in that state. The vendor described product classes that his operations consider legal under Illinois rules and said he would provide the council with the state law language.

Multiple Marion residents and a local business owner who identified himself as Mike said most illegal fireworks enter Marion from across the state line and that out-of-state tent operators and brick-and-mortar stores drive the local market. Mike suggested Marion residents drive to southern Illinois points of sale to purchase prohibited items and raised a concern that sales-tax reporting associated with some stands did not appear in the city's records.

The police chief described the operational burden the city faces during the July Fourth period, saying officers respond frequently to calls that are reported as gunshots and that the spike in fireworks-related calls has driven overtime and enforcement strain. "We spend the entire night," the chief said, describing extra police coverage around the holiday.

Tent operators and other vendors who spoke said they do not sell items they believe to be illegal and described theft and safety concerns they experienced while operating stands in the region. Several vendors urged clearer enforcement and better cross‑jurisdictional coordination but noted the city lacks authority over sellers across state lines.

Mayor Absher closed the exchange by reiterating that the proposed fireworks-sale ban will be on a future council agenda for formal consideration and encouraged vendors and residents to provide any additional documentation (including tax-accounting or state-law text) before the March meeting.