Walnut Hill Town Hall Meeting Explores Use Of LOST Dollars In Escambia

September 16, 2014

The first in a series of Local Option Sales Tax public meetings was held Monday night in Walnut Hill with Escambia County Commissioner Steven Barry and a host of county officials.

The county is holding the meetings over the next several weeks to inform residents more about what LOST dollars have done over the last several years — from paving dirt roads, to building libraries and community centers, to public safety improvements, drainage improvements and the purchase of emergency vehicles and more.

LOST is a revenue source that places an additional one percent sales tax on most retail purchases in Escambia County that residents and tourists alike contribute to through the purchases of goods and services. It was first approved by voters in 1992, then again in 1997 and 2006, with the current round expiring in 2017.

Voters will be asked on the November ballot to continue the tax beyond 2017.

LOST is a revenue source that places an additional one percent sales tax on most retail purchases in Escambia County that residents and tourists alike contribute to through the purchases of goods and services. Tourists alone support 35 percent of LOST proceeds.

Upcoming meetings to explain what LOST has done and solicit input from residents regarding t he Local Option Sales Tax will be held:

  • Monday, September 22, 6 p.m. at Ferry Pass Middle School, 8355 Yancy Lane
  • Tuesday, September 30, 5:30 p.m. at Lexington Terrace, 700 South Old Corry Field Road
  • Thursday, October 2, 5:30 p.m. at Charity Chapel, 5820 Montgomery Avenue
  • Monday, October 6, 5:30 p.m., Ransom Middle School, 1000 West Kingfield Road
  • Tuesday, October 14, 5:30 p.m. at Brownsville Community Center, 3100 West DeSoto Street
  • Monday, October 20, 5:30 p.m., Hillcrest Baptist Church, 800 Nine Mile Road
  • Thursday, October 23, 5:30 p.m., Jim Bailey Middle School, 4110 Bauer Road
  • Tuesday, October 28, 6 p.m., Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Beach Community Church, 918 Panferio Drive.

Pictured top: Escambia County District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry explains the use of LOST dollars on road projects as Director of Public Works Joy Blackmon listens. Pictured inset: A presentation on LOST was given during a public meeting Monday evening at the Walnut Hill Community Center. Pictured inset: Residents listen to the presentation. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.

Comments

12 Responses to “Walnut Hill Town Hall Meeting Explores Use Of LOST Dollars In Escambia”

  1. M in Bratt on September 18th, 2014 5:37 pm

    In response to Taxpayertoo; The excuse that “the county had a smaller population when we had a 4% tax is the same excuse the politicians use as an excuse to raise every tax. It a very simple equation if you think about it; More people=more purchases which equate to more sales tax. The same equation would also apply to property taxes. None of the politicians in this country, either local, state, or federal have an income problem, they all suffer from some compulsive need to spend more than they have, except our state and local politicians don’t have their own printing press. I think about their waste every time I have to gas up in Escambia County, and have to pay .10 to .25 cents more a gallon than our neighbors in Fl. and Al. because of the local option gas taxes.

  2. taxpayertoo on September 18th, 2014 8:01 am

    1. 4% sales tax was at a time when the population was smaller in the county and was
    able to survive on 4%

    2. is it possible to have a flat tax and lower property taxes so everyone who makes a
    purchase in Escambia County

    3. look at your ppropert tax statement, it might not say tax but all of it esentially is a
    tax

    4. also, is there a “built-in” increase for county commishses via state legislation

    5. flat tax flat tax flat tax across the board for all to pay; why do we want to redistirbute
    weatlh instead spreading the tax burden via retail, and goods and services
    purchasing

    anyone else with me on this

  3. M in Bratt on September 18th, 2014 5:29 am

    I wonder how in the world Escambia County made it when we had a 4% sales tax, no gas tax or franchise fees, no fire tax, and lower property taxes? We lived within our means is how it was done. Commissioners need to figure out how to cut costs, not raise revenue. The LOST tax is one tax that is very aptly named; It’s lost the minute you hand it over at the cash register, never to be seen or heard from again.

  4. David Huie Green on September 16th, 2014 10:26 pm

    CONTEMPLATING:
    “Sometimes public roads remain unpaved because of landowners unwilling to cede right of way for the project. ”

    Don’t care.
    Pave it anyway.
    Yes, it would be better if the shoulders were proper with ditches and clearance, but just paving the part which is graded would stop erosion and siltation and keep the road in better shape than is currently the case.
    Even a ditch shape like Pine Barren Road north of County Road 4 is better than nothing.

    David for half a loaf rather than none

  5. bad road on September 16th, 2014 4:43 pm

    All land on Haupert Ln was givin to the county years ago on a promise to pave. Now we gotta beg to get it graded !

  6. Oversight on September 16th, 2014 4:20 pm

    Molino Jim….

    I’m only speaking about the one penny local option sales tax – not franchise fees on utility bills, four cent per gallon gas tax, bed tax on hotels, or the many other revenue streams the board of county commissioners has its teeth into.

    I’m sure that the beach pulls in lots of tax dollars through extra taxes and fees; however, that’s not the issue here because I’m disputing that tourists pay 35% of the LOST revenue collected in Escambia County as claimed by the county commissioner. I believe that the numbers are inflated to garner support for continuing the tax. By the way, bed tax revenue does not go into the same pot as LOST funds.

  7. Bryan Bethea on September 16th, 2014 4:08 pm

    Sometimes public roads remain unpaved because of landowners unwilling to cede right of way for the project. One such case is Blackberry Lane in Molino. One owner along the route wasn’t willing to work with the County on right of way, so the County just moved on. I agree with the County that it wasn’t worth the effort to go through eminent domain hurdles to pave a road that is less than half a mile long.

    I bring this up only to remind everyone that things aren’t always black and white and sometimes county government actually does the right thing.

  8. jeeperman on September 16th, 2014 3:54 pm

    The L.O.S. tax is on all purchases and services that are also sales taxed by the state (6%). County gets 1.5% now plus the states 6% = 7.5%

    Molino Jim is eluding to the Tourist Development tax (bed tax) of 4% for renting any accommodations in Escambia county for 6 months or less.
    And is separate from L.O.S.T.

    The tax rates on Santa Rosa Island (Pensacola Beach) are as follows:
    ◦7.5% Sales Tax, 4% Bed Tax, and 2.55% SRIA Tax
    .
    Staying on PB (versus elsewhere in the county) will cost another 2.55%
    So no, the taxes paid on Pensacola Beach do not nearly equal the purchase.

  9. David Huie Green on September 16th, 2014 12:49 pm

    Pave ALL public roads first.

  10. molino jim on September 16th, 2014 10:51 am

    @ Oversight– taxes from the local and beach hotels and other places all goes into the same pot. I had friends staying on the beach and the taxes were almost as much as the bills. Think about the people who are in town for “the Blues” “Pride week” and other events that pay for rooms and food after the beach is booked up. Unless you’re paying for hotels rooms it does not effect you–but the taxes coming in helps everyone in Escambia county.

  11. Tategrad94 on September 16th, 2014 8:10 am

    I would support the LOST tax only if they would repeal the ECAT Tax we did not get to vote on.

  12. Oversight on September 16th, 2014 5:15 am

    “Tourists alone support 35 percent of LOST proceeds.”

    So the county’s bean counters are telling us that 35 percent of all taxable sales in Escambia County are purchased by tourists? This may be true on Pensacola Beach. But for the overall economy, this figure has to be inflated to gain support for it.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News