Juneau’s city clerk’s office certified a citizen ballot proposition last week that seeks to raise the city’s cap on the local property tax rate, also known as the mill rate. The move would return the tax rate back to where it was before voters approved lowering it last fall.
The certification means the proposition will appear on Juneau’s municipal ballot this fall.
Pat Race, an advocate behind the proposition, said it got an overwhelming amount of support from residents — surpassing the necessary number of signatures of support by more than 400.
“We had a good welcome from people in the community, people were eager to sign. It wasn’t hard to gather these signatures,” he said. “We had a lot of folks come to us, and I think that there’s going to be some good momentum heading into October to get these passed and to patch the hole in the budget.”
Last municipal election, voters approved a ballot measure that placed a cap of nine mills on the city’s property tax rate. An advocacy group called the Affordable Juneau Coalition brought it forward, saying the goal was to make Juneau more affordable by reducing the tax burden on residents.
However, proponents for the new proposition want to reverse it back to 12 mills. They said the lower mill rate cap doesn’t benefit Juneau’s most financially vulnerable population because it only applies to property owners.
The proposition will be on the ballot alongside another one that seeks to implement a 1% seasonal sales tax in Juneau during the tourism season from April 1 to Sept. 30. Right now, the city taxes residents at 5%. The additional 1% seasonal tax is intended to help fund the city’s indoor and outdoor recreation.
“We’re really excited to have this be on the ballot, along with the 1% seasonal sales tax,” Race said. “I think that both of these measures dovetail really well and help to fix the hole that we put in the city budget last year.”
Both propositions came about after the Juneau Assembly threatened to cut services or close some recreational facilities this spring due to a multimillion-dollar budget gap, in part due to the lower mill rate and other tax cuts. The Assembly ultimately preserved Juneau’s pools and Dimond Park Field House after public outcry, but voted in favor of closing the Mount Jumbo Gym on Douglas Island.
Election Day for Juneau’s by-mail election is Tuesday, Oct. 6. Ballots will be mailed to registered voters on Sept. 18.
