Lincoln voters to likely decide whether city continues street-improvement sales tax

Lincoln voters will likely decide whether the city keeps or discontinues a street-improvement tax in the upcoming April 8 primary election.

Initially presented to voters in 2018, the quarter-cent tax aimed to create a stash of cash solely dedicated to improving streets and constructing new streets. The sales tax blankets a wide variety of transactions through out the city. Lincoln leaders say visitors to the capital city encompass about 30% of tax collections.

"What we want to make clear is that, that progress won't continue if this doesn't get passed," Lincoln Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird told reporters Thursday morning at City Hall.

She joined other Lincoln leaders, including the Lincoln Fire and Rescue Chief, several city council members and the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce President, to announce a joint effort to continue the citywide "Lincoln on the Move" tax.

Lincoln voters narrowly passed the tax on a 51-to-49 margin when it was put on the primary election ballot in 2018.

"At that time, people weren't — they didn't have any real experience of what 'Lincoln on the Move' could achieve," Gaylor Baird said. "Now we've seen millions of dollars annually devoted to street repair, improvement and construction, so people are feeling and seeing improvements."

City leaders expect the program to collect $102 million in sales taxes by the end of the first six-year term. Crews have completed 55 projects in the first five years of the program's implementation, with major projects improving roads in all four quadrants of the city. 'Lincoln on the Move' money helped restore 10th Street downtown, Normal Boulevard, portions of South 27th Street and portions of North 48th Street. The money also created new developments on Yankee Hill Road, West Holdrege Street in Air Park and Van Dorn near 84th Street.

Lincoln Fire and Rescue Chief Dave Engler voiced his support for the continuation of the street-improvement program, saying with the city's expansion, houses are being constructed farther from fire stations.

"In a medical emergency, we have to reach our patient within four minutes to ensure the best outcome," Engler said. "New and resurfaced streets ensure that our firefighters shave off that extra minute or even 30 seconds. That can make all the difference in those emergencies. The difference between a road filled with potholes and a road that has been newly repaved is a factor in how quickly and safely we can reach your family."

The initial ballot measure implemented the program for six years, beginning in 2019 and ending in 2025. The new proposed ballot measure asks voters to keep the program around for another eight years, extending the program to 2033.

Before the ballot measure gets to voters, the Lincoln City Council must pass resolutions, which are scheduled to be considered Jan. 13, Jan. 27 and Feb. 3. Public hearing on the tax proposal is slated for the Jan. 27 city council meeting. The final city council vote is planned for Feb. 3.