ELDON —
Eldon voters will go to the polls today to decide if they want to renew a long-standing sales tax.
The 1 percent Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) will sunset on Dec. 31 if voters do not renew it during a special election today. The renewal of the sales tax was defeated by just two votes in the November general election.
The small town of nearly 1,000 people would miss out on approximately $93,000 every year starting next year if the sales tax is not renewed, officials have said.
“Just to put it into perspective, if somebody took 26 percent of your salary away from you, what would you have to do to try to compensate for that?” asked Eldon Mayor Shirley Stacey. “[Today’s] special election means between $92,000 and $96,000, or 26 percent, of our budget is at stake. We certainly hope that the citizens know how important this election is to the functions of the city.”
And because every other municipality in Wapello County voted to approve the sales tax in the November election, those Eldon residents who shop elsewhere in the county will have to pay the tax anyway — but the dollars generated from the tax will no longer be seen in Eldon.
“I really think it will pass this time,” Stacey said. “I really thought that the last time, but I think this time the difference is it’s the only thing on the ballot they’re reading. There’s no judges’ names or anything else.”
Special election information
Election Day poll hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today. Eldon’s polling place will be the Eldon Library Hall, 608 W. Elm St.
To vote in a special city election, one must be a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old and a registered voter in the city in which one lives. To register on Election Day, you must show a photo ID that has not expired and contains your name and picture and proof of residence in the precinct where you live.
For more information, contact the auditor’s office at 641-683-0020 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Wapello County
March 5, 2013
Eldon gets a second chance at LOST
- Wapello County
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- Tornado creates local questions OTTUMWA — If there's a tornado in Wapello County, where would I go afterwards? It isn't hard to understand why local callers are asking Wapello County Emergency Management that question. Josh Stevens, emergency coordinator for the county, said since
- County to learn about disaster declarations OTTUMWA — The county is a step closer to finding out if they'll be getting money from the federal government. "FEMA was here last week, doing a damage assessment," said Wapello County Engineer Brian Moore during a meeting of the Wapello County Board
- Roaring winds Southeast Iowa in clean-up mode after storm passes through OTTUMWA — Work crews in and around Wapello County put in a lot of hours. And they were ready to do it again. “We had the storms roll through there last night,” said Ryan Stensland, a spokesman for Alliant Energy. “Down in southeast part of the state,
- Mixed reactions to tax reduction OTTUMWA — During past public forums in Ottumwa, Sen. Mark Chelgren, R-Ottumwa, told voters the state should follow its own laws and make taxes equal across the board. This week, legislators in Des Moines took a first step toward that goal, which is a
- Budget shift on county agenda OTTUMWA — There's nothing like having some money in the budget to cover a project that doesn't have enough money on its line item. The Wapello County Supervisors will need to move some money to an item that has spent all of its funding, according to
- Wellness challenge asks people to live healthy OTTUMWA — Are you ready for the Live Healthy Iowa 10-Week Wellness Challenge? Some of the city employees joined Live Healthy Iowa, and Jody Gates, the city's health director, was captain of one of the two teams of about a dozen people. "Our goals for
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Agency couple has provided foster care for 38 kids in last decade
AGENCY — School pictures of 38 grinning children look out into Angie and Terry Hamm's living room, evidence of the years of work and love they've given to those who needed it most. Their house — currently filled with five children, ages 7, 10, 10, 11
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Severe weather returns to forecast
OTTUMWA — The National Weather Service believes severe weather could return to Iowa this weekend. The storms are expected to arrive late in the weekend and could extend into the next work week. Meteorologist Kurt Kotenberg said Sunday and Monday have
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Health clinic in Ottumwa joins Mercy Medical
OTTUMWA — Though their future was uncertain, two local health care practices will continue without any interruption in services to patients and will remain at their current locations in Ottumwa. Ottumwa Internal Medicine North and Ottumwa Family Prac
- 90th Street closed until 2014 OTTUMWA — Not only is 90th Street closed for this summer, it's also closed until the summer of 2014. Wapello County Engineer Brian Moore said Wednesday that the road will be closed for a year while Moore and his team work on the road's design. "There
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