Covington residents set to vote on sales tax

Covington residents will be voting on a tax increase this fall that would raise sales tax 0.25 percent for a total of 9 percent sales tax.

The proposed tax, which must be approved by voters, will appear on the ballot in November. The sales tax would expire in 20 years, and still trail Mandeville’s 9.25 percent sales tax.

The tax is needed to help fund police and fire department salaries and would generate about $900,000 a year. Covington Mayor Candace Watkins said the tax would be dedicated to the salaries and would not be able to be used for anything else.

Covington City Council President Matt Faust is not sure the sales tax is the answer.

“I will not oppose this going to the voters,” Faust said, “But in general, I’m not in favor of a new tax because of general economic factors. I would have preferred this go through the finance committee.”

“We have become the training ground for everyone else,” said Watkins. “We now have a compression salary problem. In order to attract qualified patrolmen, the beginning salary is high. However, there is no step salary program to allow increases for seniority. Patrolmen get a few years’ experience, then leave for other law enforcement agencies that pay more.”

She added other agencies are reaping the benefits of Covington’s training programs and the programs are not cheap, costing at least $77,000 per officer.

Capt. Jack West of the Covington Police Department said it is stressful to constantly train new officers to have them leave after a few years.

The city of Covington is about nine square miles in area and has a population of about 9,500, and there has only been one murder in the past four years. Recent drug busts by the Street Crime Unit has resulted in 100-plus arrests in the past year. Fires are few, with more medical calls than other emergencies. In order to keep a qualified fire and police department, Watkins wants to offer better pay in a step program, which will cost money.

Watkins said that the concept of a sales tax helps spread the cost of the salary increases to those who use the city’s services everyday, not only those who live in the city. During a normal business day, the city’s population increases between 25,000 to 30,000 people, said Watkins. A property tax would have only those living in the city paying the bill for services that others also benefit from.

Covington Police Chief Richard Palmisano said that the cost of training an officer is very expensive, $77,000 to $100,000 per year. “We need a career plan for officers to look at so we can keep seasoned, experienced officers,” he said. “Let’s bring the issue to the voters in Covington.”

In other cities, officers can look at the step plan and know how much their salary will be in five or ten years. Covington has no such plan.

Palmisano said that currently there are 37 commissioned officers, included four on the Street Crimes Unit and SWAT Teams. He is one officer short of the 38 that will make a full department. Palmisano said he has lost five officers in the past 16 months, leaving for more lucrative law enforcement positions, even losing one to Homeland Security.

Fire Chief Richard Badon agrees. “There has been a drastic decline in volunteers for the department, due to various reasons. Right now we have two firefighters on duty at a given time. We need more to prevent putting the public at risk.”

Badon said that additional personnel would help the department meet goals and deliver services. The following facts were included in a news release prepared by the mayor’s office. Only about 33 percent of a Covington resident’s property tax bill goes to the city. Covington derives only 12-13 percent of its annual budget from property taxes.

Covington gets 2 percent of the current 8.75 percent sales tax. Covington’s sales tax is 8.75 percent compared to Mandeville’s 9.25 percent. Shared revenues from parish sales tax are dedicated to roads, bridges and drainage.

A 10-mill property tax currently exists to fund Covington’s Fire Department, while other fire districts have millages as high as 25 mils.

The city dedicates 5 percent of one cent of its current sales tax to police protection.

Watkins said that living in Covington is a bargain when compared to other areas of the parish.