City option tax meeting May 15

McCOOK, Nebraska -- The City of McCook is coordinating two public meetings in coming weeks to discuss renewal of the local options sales tax.

The first meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 6 at 7 p.m., in the upstairs training room of the new McCook Municipal Center. A second meeting is scheduled at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 15.

The city's additional one percent sales tax will sunset on Oct. 1, 2018, and the 1/2 percent sales tax will sunset on July 1, 2018.

The City Council discussed the tax renewal process in March and said a 23-month waiting period was required to follow any voter-rejected attempts, indicating they would prefer to have at least two opportunities to renew the revenue stream.

Mayor Dennis Berry asked city staff to develop a summary of historical items the city had funded with the additional local tax for use during the public meetings. The meetings are intended to provide opportunities for citizens to discuss the future and past use of local sales tax revenue, as well as to assist city staff in developing a framework for how a new sales tax would be structured.

Among the possibilities discussed during the March meeting, council members indicated they would need to decide whether or not to include a sunset option on the sales tax going forward.