The Mayor Board of Commissioners Study Session and Regular Meeting is tonight, the study session starts at 5:00 pm while the regular meeting begins at 6:30 pm. During the study important issues like a potential county sales tax increase to renovate the county jail and the Parks and Recreation Department’s 5-year plan.
During the meeting itself, the most pressing issue is whether or not the city will approve the proposed budget for the 2022-2023 year. The budget was formulated after a 2-day presentation by different city departments to the commissioners last week.
At the study session Garfield County Jail Administrator Ben Crooks will be presenting his view of a sales tax being necessary to expand the jail which is currently overcapacity. However, some within the city’s chamber of commerce believe that another sales tax would make it more difficult for Enid to compete economically with neighboring cities.
There was also concern that the sales tax would be permanent, leaving little leeway for the city to pay for future projects with a sales tax increase. Earlier in the year in an interview with Enidlive, Crooks laid out his case for a sales tax increase.
Editors Note: Click on the highlighted word interview to read the story about the interview with Crooks.
