Safe roads and bridges protect you and your family. They also enable outsiders to spend in Cole County, thereby contributing to our tax base.
Prop A is the standard ½ cent Cole County sales tax that has been in place since the 1980’s. It funds the construction, upgrades and enhancements of our roads, bridges, and storm drain systems.
Prop A is the continuation of safety and investment in Cole County.
Capital Improvements Program 2027 to 2036
County officials have formulated a capital improvements budget for the five years (2027 to 2036) covered by the continuation of the ½ cent sales tax. The budget gives high priority to safety, stormwater improvements, low water crossing upgrades, pavement resurfacing
and upgrading gravel roads, as well as cooperative projects to improve communities and promote and enhance economic development efforts.
County officials have also identified a list of bridges, roads, courthouse facilities, etc., that should be given highest priority in a capital improvements program.
Since the beginning, 85 percent of the projected tax revenue will be allocated to roads, thoroughfares and bridge improvements. 15 percent will be allocated to facility related capital improvements.
Economic Impact and Benefits of Continuing the ½ Cent Sales Tax…
The fact that Cole County is a regional shopping center and that it becomes eligible for matching federal funding tends to lower the real cost of capital improvements to county residents.
A tax that brings revenue into a community that is spent for “investment” like purposes will reduce the cost of the “investment” and will have an impact upon the employment of that community. For example, the University of Missouri Extension Service estimates that 35 percent of the sales tax revenue comes from outside Cole County because of the regional status of its shopping facilities.
Using this formula, over $33 million of the sales tax revenue should be generated by the 2027-2036 sales tax from outside the County.