Ron Warpness: The 1/2 Cent - Worth One More Cycle

I would like to add my thoughts on the issue of our ½ cent tax and the many discussions that are ongoing about whether it should or will pass this November. I have been a close follower of this issue for some time and have been in many conversations with folks in positions of power, i.e Mayor Hancock, Administrator Kyle Butterfield, Allan Moore, and IDEA Board, FCAG open meetings as well as coffee clutches with many citizens regarding what we should do and why.

In those meetings, all parties agreed that keeping the ½ cent tax is critical to the continued operation of our regional airport as well as supporting ground transportation in our county. Where we start to disagree is how 70% of the funding is being used in our county for “economic development”. I will not go into all the “gory” details but suffice to say some of this use has not been an ethical use of my tax dollars (in my opinion).

Because of my questioning this “use” of our tax dollars, I have been accused of being “stupid,” “envious,” ” short-sighted,” ” not caring about our community” etc. None of these are true, except perhaps the stupid one.

These are all citizens that I have talked to with the best of intentions, who are interested in the well-being of our county. Their efforts are all legal and above board, but in my opinion, this ½ cent local option tax is based on a flawed design. It was passed on the enthusiastic wave of building a new hospital but its flaws started showing up when the large amounts of money started rolling in with the consequent pressure of how to disperse it and to whom. That is where the fuzzy definition of “economic development” started to show its many faces. With seven different boards across the county and human nature being what it is, it should not have been a surprise to anyone that there would be problems.

Having had a lot of experience in getting our 1 cent tax passed as well as setting up our FORCC (Fix Our Roads Citizen Committee) and serving on that board for several years, I have some concern that if changes are not made to the process of this ½ cent tax it will not pass this time.

Because of this tax’s many problems, I have told several citizens in the past that I will not support it. Attending the FCAG meeting this morning (8/8/24), firm assurance was received that the MOU (memorandum of understanding) as described by FCAG chairman, Joel Highsmith, and the other six members of FCAG will be changed to reflect a significant reduction in the economic development funding from 70% to 20%.

This MOU is a formal agreement within FCAG, that all members and their communities agree to comply with. These changes will allow for additional support for our county ambulance service and additional monies to the revenue guarantee for the airport as well as additional monies for ground transportation. With those assurances, I will vote for this needed tax and encourage all my friends to do the same. I will be happy to visit with anyone who would like to better understand my change of heart as this was not an easy decision for me.

I can tell you from experience, that to get a local option tax passed is not a small accomplishment in this diverse county. Having been instrumental in the passage of our 1 cent tax I can speak with some authority. The financial assistance to our county for the above programs is worth the “heartburn,” in my opinion, with the 20%, questionable use, to me, being worth the risk at this time. In four years we will either have solved this problem or have another shot at killing it. At any rate, for me, it is worth one more cycle, as the airport, ground transportation, and ambulance service are worth the risk. These needed county efforts are going to have to be paid for one way or another. This tax is the best possible way to do it as about 30% of it is paid by the traveling public. I hope that the voters will agree.

Ron Warpness, Concerned Citizen