San Luis eyes municipal property tax
The assessment would be a first for the growing city
SAN LUIS, Ariz. – The city council is looking at the possibility of asking voters to approve a first-ever municipal property tax in San Luis to raise additional money to pay for public services.
Based on a study by a consultant, Stifel, an investment firm that advises municipalities, the council is looking at a proposal to enact a tax rate that would collect between $140 and $263 a year from homeowners, depending on the value of their property; between $1,061 and $3,150 from business property, and $65 to $197 for vacant land or land used in farming.
Throughout its nearly 40-year history as an incorporated community, San Luis has collected sales tax as its primary source of revenue to pay for city services. But San Luis officials say the city’s rapid growth has forced them to look at collecting property taxes to meet the demand for increased police and fire protection and parks and recreation programs, among other services.
Given that no prior council has chosen to impose a property tax, the issue has become “a hot potato that nobody has wanted to grab,” says current Mayor Gerardo Sanchez.
“No one likes taxes, but at the same time we want more parks and we need more police officers and firefighters,” Sanchez said. “So now we have to do something.”
At a recent session, the council instructed the city administrator to begin the formal process that could lead to adopting a property tax. The procedures would include publishing a notice of intent to levy a tax and scheduling public hearings to allow residents to comment on the topic.
And while no timetable has been worked out for those steps, Sanchez said voters could be asked in a special election in May whether the city could levy a tax.
San Luis Police Chief Richard Jessup said his department will need additional positions for officers to keep up with growth of the city, which now has a population of more than 32,000. He said the ideal ratio of officers to residents is one officer for every 1,000. The current proportion in San Luis, he said, is one for every 1,200, although the gap could grow as the city continues to grow.
Angel Ramirez, a captain in the city’s fire department, said a property tax would allow the firefighters to better serve the city’s east side, where new residential subdivisions have been developed or are under development.
The city’s parks and recreation director, Louie Galaviz, said residents’ use of the city’s parks and athletic areas has already reached full capacity, and that another source of revenue would be needed to open new recreational facilities.
Sanchez conceded that a property tax may face opposition among residents, but said the city’s sales tax receipts are falling short of projections at a time when residents are demanding higher levels of public services.