WASHINGTON COUNTY (KFSM) -- This month the Washington County Quorum Court will decide whether to take away more than $2.2 million from cities in the county.
The Quorum Court has proposed moving 1.1 mils from the road fund to the general fund. Currently, a portion of the money from the road fund, which comes from property taxes, goes to the cities. If the mils were moved to the general fund, all of the money would stay in the county.
District 7 Justice of the Peace Rick Cochran, who proposed the plan, said the problem is a growing population that mostly lives within city limits. Between 2000 and 2010 the county saw a 25 percent reduction in sales tax revenue, according to Cochran.
“When we hit the 2020 census we are going to see a $1.2 million drop in revenue every year going forward," he said. "Somewhere this has got to end and we can't go broke, we can't not have enough money to do the county business."
Cochran said his plan would avoid putting higher taxes on residents while putting more money in county reserves.
If the Quorum Court approves the plan, Farmington stands to lose more than $46,000. Mayor Ernie Penn said they count on that money for part of their street fund.
“Fortunately, our city has adequate reserves so we can replace that money, but it will be a challenge for us in the future to replace that amount of money,” he said.
Springdale could lose more than $783,000. Mayor Doug Sprouse said that money goes toward road construction, maintenance and downtown revitalization. He also called the plan short-sized because the majority of growth is in the cities where most of the sales tax is generated.
“If we can’t properly maintain our roads or maintain our roads as well and build new infrastructure then we are limiting our ability to attract development that will help our sales tax revenue continue to grow,” Sprouse said.
The Quorum Court will vote on whether to shift around the millage at their meeting Dec. 15.
Here is a full list of how much each city in Washington County could lose if the road millage is eliminated:
- Fayetteville $1,175,677.12
- Springdale $783,303.33
- Tontitown $57,219.02
- Farmington $46,040.81
- Johnson $42,519.01
- Prairie Grove $33,403.25
- Goshen $18,258.43
- Elkins $17,093.12
- Elm Spring $16,698.93
- West Fork $13,103.90
- Lincoln $11,516.39
- Greenland $8,446.94
- Winslow $1,821.21
Source: Washington County Treasurer