Levy to affect unincorporated areas

Shoppers will pay less sales tax at the new Walmart near Gretna than at the Walmart stores in La Vista and Bellevue.

The new store, opening in mid-September, is outside Gretna city limits, so only a 5.5 percent sales tax is levied.

But that could change if Sarpy County voters in November approve a new sales tax for unincorporated areas.

All five Sarpy County Board members said they would vote next month to take the tax proposal to voters. The 1.5 percent tax would increase the total sales tax for those areas to 7 percent.

The extra revenue would pay to upgrade technology at the county’s 911 center and address future building and jail needs, county officials said.

“No one likes extra tax, but when it’s only used for public safety, then this is something I can support,” said Joni Albrecht, board chairwoman.

Under state law, proceeds from a county sales tax may be used only to fund public safety improvements.

Only residents of unincorporated areas of Sarpy County, including those living in sanitary and improvement districts, could vote on the ballot measure.

County Administrator Mark Wayne said the new tax would generate about $2.5 million a year. He said upgrading the system’s radios and other equipment over the next seven years would cost about $10 million.

“We are at least a couple generations behind Douglas County,” he said. “We need new radios and software, just a more modernized system.”

The alternative, he said, is to raise property taxes.

Omaha, Papillion, La Vista, Bellevue and Gretna already levy a 1.5 percent sales tax, on top of the state sales tax of 5.5 percent.

County Board member Tom Richards called the new tax “fair.” He said there’s no reason shoppers at the new Walmart near Interstate 80 and Highway 370 should pay less tax than shoppers at the other two stores.

“It just doesn’t make a lot of sense,” Richards said.

Although there hasn’t been much resistance from the business community, some business owners aren’t happy about the new tax, said Jane Nielsen, president of the Sarpy County Chamber of Commerce.

“Our customers are going to question it,” said Sharon Shaw, owner of Soaring Wings Winery near Springfield. “Why is Sarpy County raising it so much? Maybe if they raised it a little less it wouldn’t be such an issue.”

Paulette Cramer, general manager of Sapp Brothers Truck Stop along Highway 50, said the new tax would mostly affect local residents. But the majority of her business comes from travelers buying fuel, which wouldn’t be affected by the new tax.

If the new tax is approved, Sarpy would become only the second county in Nebraska to levy a sales tax. Dakota County is the first.

“This is something we have to put out there for the voters,” said board member Rich Jansen. “Any time you take a tax raise to a politician, it makes them shiver. But this will be fair.”

If approved, the tax would take effect in April or July 2011.

Contact the writer:

444-1336, leia.mendoza@owh.com

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