Date: Tue, 4 Feb 2020 12:52:15 -0500
From: Phillip Spangler
Subject: Proposed Sales Tax increase (Tarus Balog)
I see this as non-partisan. (so tired of he said she said & time for everyone to own up)
Adding ,25% sales tax to what?
So Chatham County current consumer goods are gas stations, car washes, auto parts, restaurant’s, thrift store, one grocery store and a pharmacy. We have two Walmart stores, some Mom and Pop furniture and feed stores. oh and Lowe’s. ( This is the tax base for this increase more or less) We are all going outside the county to Wake, Orange, Durham and Lee to the big box stores paying the higher tax on goods we need that can’t be purchased here in Chatham (clothes, shoes, ipad’s phones appliances, new cars, new farm equipment, I shop at Food Lion in Sanford their prices are cheaper than Pittsboro get the picture?) thus giving other counties our tax base.
So again this is a non partisan issue but a demand on the future County Commissioners to get off their butt, find a way to bring the Big box stores that will compete among each other to earn your trade. Manufacturing,and more than one New Car Dealership to the county.
You will see more tax revenue this way vs taxing the tired Chatham county residents from carrying much of the tax burden and not being heard. the incoming industry and retail will add much more revenue and not have to raise the current tax another .25%, Then maybe people would come from Wake, Durham and Orange counties to share their money with us since our tax will be cheaper LOL?
-Phillip
Date: Mon, 3 Feb 2020 11:58:06 -0500
From: Tarus Balog
Subject: Proposed Sales Tax Increase
Gang:
It was on the Chatlist that I first heard about the proposed sales tax
increase and now I’ve seen a bunch of “Vote No” signs popping up around
town (it looks like they are sponsored by the Chatham County GOP).
I am eager to hear why this is such a bad idea. I don’t know of anyone who
likes to pay taxes but in order to have a government you have to pay for it
somehow, and no matter what method you use you can consider it to be a tax.
At the moment I can think of three main types of taxes: property, income
and sales. All three have pluses and minuses, but I kind of prefer the
sales tax since it taxes consumption: i.e. those people who consume more
things pay more tax. Seems the most fair.
The NC State sales tax rate is 4.75% and counties add anywhere from 2% to
2.75% on top of that, for a sales tax range of 6.75% to 7.5%.[1]
Currently, these are the rates for Chatham and surrounding counties:
Chatham: 6.75%
Alamance: 6.75%
Orange: 7.5%
Durham: 7.5%
Wake: 7.25%
Harnett: 7.0%
Lee: 7.0%
Moore: 7.0%
Randolph: 7.0%
Raising the sales tax to 7% would bring our county much more in line with
our neighbors and shouldn’t negatively impact sales in the area.
Just to put it in perspective, that 0.25% increase is equivalent to a
quarter for every $100 spent. I’ve seen people walk by a quarter on the
ground in the Food Lion parking lot and not bother to pick it up (I am not
one of those people [grin]).
I’m just curious as to why this is such a big deal. Seems to be low impact
to individuals, high value to the county, and as far as taxes go, pretty
fair.
-T
[1] https://www.ncdor.gov/sales-and-use-tax-rates-effective-april-1-2019
<https://chathamchatlist.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=305aea8554c20ab1053525294&id=434ce71d97&e=23847e2146>