Ordinance raising Kodiak’s sales tax cap advances to second reading

Mitch Borden/KMXT

At its regular meeting last night, the Kodiak City Council decided to advance the ordinance that’ll raise the city’s sales tax cap to $3000 to its second reading and public hearing.

During citizen comments, Jack Mann told the council it wastes too much money on frivolous projects like the new crane for Oscar’s Dock, the ornamental trash cans downtown, and the Kodiak Maritime Museum. He believes raising the sales tax cap will drive business away from the city.

“You can no longer spend like drunken sailors. Even when drunken sailors run out of money they stop spending. It’s time to stop spending other someone else’s money on feel-good projects.”

The council also voted on an ordinance that’d make the maximum taxable sale on real property rentals $750 and advanced it to its second reading and public hearing. If passed the ordinance would make rent above $750 exempt from the city’s sales tax.

During council comments councilman Richard Walker said the city has a lot of infrastructure projects and the council needs to figure out a way to fund them.

“We’re already 50 million dollars behind on infrastructure projects. We don’t have the feds and we don’t have the state to help out with those projects so they’re going to be band-aided along for who knows how many years unless we figure come up with a way to solve these problems.

Both ordinances will be up for a vote at the city council’s next regular meeting.