Increase would pay for better transportation.
Phoenix voters will head to the polls Aug. 25 to decide on a critical issue for small business owners: whether sales taxes should be raised to pay for transportation improvements.
The proposal, Proposition 104, would raise the city’s transit sales tax from 0.4 percent to 0.7 percent (or 70 cents on a $100 purchase) starting in 2016 to pay for expanding light rail and buses and fixing up roads.
Vice Mayor Daniel Valenzuela says the proposal will help small business, among others. “We’ve seen…how the city’s commitment to a comprehensive transportation strategy—including light rail, bus, bike lanes and street repairs—has created thousands of jobs, helped small businesses succeed and helped students, seniors and workers travel the city,” he told The Arizona Republic.
Transportation improvements could bring more customers to the doors of small businesses and make it easier for their employees to get to work.
But others say a tax hike wouldn’t be worth it. “I am strongly opposed to raising taxes on hard-working Phoenix taxpayers,” city councilman Sal DiCiccio told The Arizona Republic. “At a cost to you of $33 billion, it is the largest tax-and-spend boondoggle in the history of Phoenix.”
Other worries for small business include the potential for lost business during construction and lower sales if shoppers feel the tax is too high.
