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Select Board votes to place three separate local option tax questions on 2026 ballot after lengthy debate
Summary
After extended public comment and debate about revenue targets and uses, the Morristown Select Board voted 3–2 to present three separate local option tax articles to voters (sales; meals & alcohol; rooms); board members discussed targeting proceeds to infrastructure (roads/sidewalks, bridges, public safety) and possible sunset language.
The Morristown Select Board on Dec. 15 voted 3–2 to present three separate local option tax (LOT) articles to voters at the 2026 town meeting: a 1% local option sales tax, a 1% meals & alcohol tax (meals and alcohol must be paired by statute), and a rooms tax. The decision followed hours of discussion among board members, technical presentations of state revenue data and more than a dozen public comments.
Town staff summarized the revenue estimates based on Vermont Department of Taxes data: a 1% sales LOT could yield roughly $1.3 million in taxable sales (town share after the state's portion about $1,021,000), the meals LOT was estimated at about $154,000 after the state's share, alcohol about $13,000, and rooms (last reported at town scale in 2019) roughly $8,300. Board members debated whether to combine items on a single question (to maximize passage odds) or separate them so voters can choose; concerns included fairness to local businesses, nonresident shoppers, potential displacement of development, and the town's infrastructure needs.
Several board members and members of the public urged that proceeds be targeted and transparent. Ideas discussed included dedicating a majority share to roads and sidewalks, a portion to capital building funds for public safety/highway buildings, and small allocations for recreation or library improvements; board members favored including clear purpose language on warnings so voters understand how revenues would be spent. The board also discussed a sunset period (four years was suggested by several speakers) so voters could revisit the question.
The board directed staff to prepare draft article language and to consult legal counsel and examples from other towns; the board agreed to continue deliberations at meetings in late December and January before finalizing any warning language. The motion to separate each LOT into individual articles carried 3–2.
