LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — On Tuesday, the Little Rock Board of Directors decided to put a sales tax proposal introduced by Mayor Frank Scott Jr. onto the November ballot.
After months of meetings with residents and officials to show what a 1% tax increase might look like for the city, the mayor finally got an answer.
The sales tax proposal was initially modified slightly, which led to some public discussion about whether there should be more.
"I wish to have some amendments to get some money for infrastructure and a couple of other things," said Vice Mayor Kathy Webb.
Vice Mayor Webb has been pushing to reallocate money in the sales tax proposal for weeks. She wanted 5 million dollars from economic development to infrastructure.
After some discussion, the directors approved a reallocation. $5 million will be used to build a new sports complex and put towards infrastructure.
Scott then opened the floor for citizen communication. Some favored the tax, saying they wanted to continue investing in the city and have a new sports complex.
Others did not favor the tax increase unless money from the police department was allocated to other areas.
After over an hour of public comment, the board voted.
All directors voted to accept the proposal except Director Joan Adcock, who voted "present," and Director Ken Richardson, who was absent.
This means Little Rock voters will now decide on the sales tax during the November election.
If approved by voters, the tax increase would last for 10 years and reported to generated around $650 million for city projects.
Scott said the tax would help transform the city with a focus on public safety, infrastructure, parks, and improving the economy.
"The best way to do this is to focus on the sales tax,” Scott said. “Which mirrors the overall growth that we've seen in Oklahoma City. We can take a page out of their playbook to continue to move and grow our city forward together."