Subscriber Comments for
Sales Tax Growth

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 333440	2012-10-19 05:31 PM
Far better to grow the economy than to tax the individuals. Eg: even a weak recovery statewide is sending more money to our local schools. Taxing homeowners for schools directly is the worst way to support them. Growing the economy to increase overall revenues is the way to go - and that means cleaning up our city so others bring money to us, instead of dunning it out of locals in ever increasing amounts. Good news to learn there is this turn-around. May it steadily increase so we can get out of this artificial crisis mode that is counter-productive and inhibits were our energies need to be placed - becoming a valued tourist destination for others to enjoy so we can enjoy from what they bring to us.
COMMENT 333442	2012-10-19 05:35 PM
I highly doubt that the transients living on state street are paying any occupancy tax. Where do people get these numbers from? Get real.
COMMENT 333444	2012-10-19 05:40 PM
@422 the transient occupancy tax doesn't have anything to do with the homeless. it's also known as the bed tax and is paid for by people who rent hotel rooms in the city.
COMMENT 333453P	2012-10-19 06:06 PM
Now if we can get all the 'hidden' VRBO and unreported party palaces to pay their fair share, maybe the city and county could add to their coffers. Oil extraction taxes would also be a boon for the local schools.
COMMENT 333466	2012-10-19 06:39 PM
yeah, so we can piss it away on bulb-outs, tsunami signs, studies about moving benches on State St., red-brick crosswalks that fall apart in three months, and more exempt city vehicles driving endlessly in circles around town all day.
COMMENT 333471	2012-10-19 06:47 PM
'bout time we charged the transients
SCEPTIC	2012-10-19 08:05 PM
I guess if you raise prices for hotel and motel rooms and increase the price of everything subject to sales tax and also increase transient occupancy tax and sales tax you'd expect to have an increase in income. It would be interesting to see data adjusted for these changes to see trends in tourism and consumer purchasing.
COMMENT 333492P	2012-10-19 08:09 PM
442 hahahaha
COMMENT 333499	2012-10-19 08:23 PM
And yet, our city administration continues to cry poor. Where is all this extra funding going?
COMMENT 333492P	2012-10-19 09:36 PM
We have very good homeless assistance programs here. Actually, the city is really skimping on things like cleanliness downtown, it's disappointing to see that there is still a lot of confetti in the dirt areas around all the plants and trees. SB has always been good about cleaning up downtown. I remember walking to down to the transit center each morning when I was in High School and there would be cleaning crews washing down and sweeping all the sidewalks, State St used to glisten in the mornings. I don't think that our city does that anymore, everything smells bad & looks dirty :( Glad that we are able to get tourist $$$, now if we could spend some of that to make things improve that would be awesome
COMMENT 333542	2012-10-20 08:01 AM
When we have no money, people complain. When we get more money, people complain. Conclusion: People complain.
COMMENT 333546	2012-10-20 08:10 AM
333542 - Methinks you tripped on the driving force of the universe. "It is what it is, and it shall forever be...." But on a lighter note, can we rename TOT? Seriously...if I stay in a local hotel, I pay tax, but I'm not a 'transient'. Call it 'Lodging tax'. That's general enough. That frees up the word 'transient' for those of us that want to bash them on Edhat.
COMMENT 333440	2012-10-20 08:53 AM
Leaders listen to the complaints, and do the right thing anyway.
COMMENT 333440	2012-10-20 09:54 AM
We have done enough for vagrants who come to our town. $23 million dollars in public services and 2000 shelter beds. We have done enough for affordable housing - 17% of all housing stock is now subsidized or government price-fixed. Now it is the rest of the city that badly needs attention. Water pipes are blowing up all over town. Utilities need to be under-grounded, as promised decades ago in prior city general plans. Parks need more recreation activities to clear out the sleeping bums who have taken them over making them unsafe for those living in denser neighborhoods who have no other place to enjoy the outdoors. Public transit badly needs better signage and smart kiosk wireless bus stops. City infrastructure needs attention - not more perks and benefits for city employees - 80% of all city money now goes for city personnel, which leaves only 20% for the rest of the 80,000 residents. A plan, please!
COMMENT 333698	2012-10-20 04:28 PM
I like the way the City has decided to repave the streets in the Riveria, yet the rest of us in the "lowlands" continue to deal with potholes and promised chip seal projects from years ago, not EVER coming to our 'hoods...'
COMMENT 333745P	2012-10-20 08:00 PM
"Transient" is derived from the Latin "to travel through". It means "Remaining in a place only a brief time". Transient occupancy tax is a tax on hotel/motel rooms. "Transient" to describe a person may be more politically correct than "homeless" which is more politically correct than "bum". It isn't really correct usage as these people don't fit the definition "Remaining in a place only a brief time". It would indeed be nice if they did.
COMMENT 333751	2012-10-20 08:12 PM
less whining and more voting, people.
COMMENT 333781P	2012-10-21 06:40 AM
751, voting for or against whom or what? Your vagueness is unappealing.
COMMENT 333440	2012-10-22 10:11 AM
Now if city employees can finally realize cleaning up State Street to increase tourism tax revenues is in their best interests to support their higher salaries, benefits and perks instead of enabling more vagrants to scare tourism away, we might start seeing a difference in city attitudes. Instead of enabling the our status as magnet city, they can start working to preventing this reputation. Then we may actually see a turnaround to take back our own city and have tourists be our only revenue-enhancing transients, instead of the revenue-sucking freeloaders who routinely ply the Oregon-SB circuit.

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