Agenda - 06-15-2010- 7c - Laserfiche WebLink

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If the Board of Commissioners does decide to move forward with a referendum and a majority of voters approve the Article 46 sales tax referendum, the Board will be required to give ten (10) days public notice of the Board's intent to levy the tax. The Board would then hold a required public hearing and consider a new resolution to actually levy the tax. The Board must adopt that additional resolution in order for the tax to take effect. The North Carolina General Statutes currently state that the Article 46 sales and use tax can only be implemented on January 1 or July 1 of each year, meaning the Article 46 sales tax could not be implemented until July 1, 2011 at the earliest. However, legislation is currently before the 2010 North Carolina General Assembly which would allow an Article 46 sales tax to be implemented by a county at the beginning of sales tax quarters (January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1). If this legislation is approved during 2010, and based on factors such as election certification timeframes, the Board of Commissioners' meeting schedule, and requirements associated with the North Carolina Department of Revenue and North Carolina General Statute 105 -466, the additional sales tax could potentially become effective April 1, 2011. FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with considering the Resolution Calling for a November 2, 2010 Special Advisory Referendum Concerning the Levy of a One - Quarter Cent (1/4¢) County Sales and Use Tax. If a majority of voters approve the sales tax and the Board of Commissioners implements the sales tax on July 1, 2011, the Article 46 sales and use tax would generate approximately $2,300,000 annually for the County. As noted above, the North Carolina General Assembly is considering legislation in 2010 to allow an Article 46 sales tax to be implemented by a county at the beginning of sales tax quarters (January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1). If this legislation is approved and the Board of Commissioners implemented the sales tax as soon after the November 2, 2010 referendum as possible, it could have an effective date of April 1, 2011, generating approximately $575,000 during the remainder /last quarter of FY 2010 -11. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends the Board: 1) Review, discuss, and approve the Resolution Calling for a November 2, 2010 Special Advisory Referendum Concerning the Levy of a One - Quarter Cent (1/4¢) County Sales and Use Tax, pending the possible incorporation of any language into the resolution regarding the proposed use of the potential funds; 2) Provide direction to staff on next steps related to determining the proposed use of the potential funds if an approved resolution language does not include such language; 3) Consider discussing at this meeting or a future meeting any public education efforts to ensure voters are knowledgeable regarding the ballot question in the resolution; 4) Based on #3 above, consider authorizing staff to identify and allocate $40,000 for a public education campaign; and 5) Provide any other comments and direction to staff on next steps. Alternatively, the Board could decide to not move forward with a referendum at this time and wait until some point in the future to determine that a referendum on the Article 46 sales tax is a viable option to pursue.