Sales tax issue could come up again in Memphis

The County sales tax issue may have failed, but the City of Memphis could choose to put the issue before the voters again as a city tax increase.

About 70 percent said no to the county-wide half-cent sales tax increase, but the City of Memphis still has the option to ask the voters for a city sales tax increase.

City Councilman Shea Flinn, a backer of the sales tax, says he and Mayor A C Wharton plan to take every angle under consideration when deciding whether to ask the voters to tax themselves.

The idea already has some push back.

City Councilman Jim Strickland says the 47 million dollars in expected revenue from the sales tax is not the way to solve the budget problems.

Councilman Flinn says the sales tax could mean new programs, such as city sponsored Pre-K, or a reduction in the city property tax rate.

When the county pre-empted the city with the sales tax issue, it put the city referendum on hold for six months. The Council will make have a decision in the next few months on what to do about the tax.

Passage could mean about 47 million dollars, but it would also mean a pricey special election, probably in the spring of 2013.