TUPELO, Miss. (AP) - Residents in a Mississippi city have voted to keep a local tax that pays for road construction.
The election Tuesday renewed Tupelo’s Major Thoroughfare Program for a seventh time. The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports that the tax will continue for five more years.
“I’m relieved that we get to continue the progress that we have made and proud to live in a community that is this progressive and community minded,” said Greg Pirkle, chairman of the Major Thoroughfare committee.
There was some concern that the COVID-19 pandemic would hamper outreach efforts to encourage people to support the program’s renewal, but nearly 90% of voters backed the program.
The program is expected to generate around $5 million in revenue each year, meaning that it’s anticipated to collect around $25 million over the next five-year phase. Of the 10-mill tax levy, a quarter would go toward road maintenance, and the rest would go to building new infrastructure.
One mill equates to $1 of tax for every $1,000 of value. For an owner-occupied home assessed by tax officials at $150,000, the 10-mill tax levy imposed by the program equates to $150, disregarding any homestead exemption claimed by the owner.
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