Leaders in Little Rock react as voters reject a sales tax increase

Little Rock, Arkansas – We now have the outcomes of every local election after a protracted campaign. A sales tax hike was once again rejected by Little Rock voters. When it comes to finances for the upcoming year, the city is starting over.

Kathy Webb, the vice mayor of Little Rock, stated, “I’m disappointed that it didn’t pass,” “There were many positive things in there. items that we require.”

Residents of Little Rock voted against a 1% sales tax hike, despite the board of directors, municipal directors, and police and fire unions all supporting it unanimously.

A 3/8ths tax and a 5/8ths tax were the two questions on the ballot. They were both rejected by roughly 60% to 40% of the vote.

Frank Scott Jr., the mayor of Little Rock, stated, “I’m disappointed in the sales tax results, but I totally respect the Little Rock voters during this time.”

Some folks had told Scott why they hadn’t cast their ballots for it.

“As I was out and about at the polling locations, I had several voters I know who are strong supporters of me who came up to me and gave me a hug and talked about how good they believed the city is going in the right direction,” Scott stated. “They couldn’t fathom another penny at this time because of the economy.”

According to city officials, the tax would have brought in $65 million over a ten-year period.

The city is making adjustments now that it doesn’t have the extra money, but will it attempt to raise taxes on Little Rock residents once more?

It would require considerable effort before that could be reexamined, according to Webb.

Webb remarked, “[We’d need] to go to our residents now,” “Have some deep conversations about why they didn’t support it, what they would want to support, and I think we need to look back at the last time we were able to pass a sales tax and say, ‘How did they do that?'”

On Friday, the City of Little Rock will create its 2025 budget. We’ll learn more about its funding allocation strategy for the upcoming year after that.