Juneau budget debate winds down; Assembly members pitch options for food sales tax break

Most Assembly members want to exempt groceries from the city’s sales tax and come up with a way to make up for most of the foregone revenue. Last month, consensus appeared to be forming around tying the new exemption to an October ballot question. It would ask Juneau voters to approveThe city finance director estimates that on average, residents’ savings from the year-round food exemption would outweigh the extra sales taxes they would pay on everything else six months of the year by $143.

Instead of a 1% seasonal sales tax, Assembly members Carole Triem and Maria Gladziszewksi are interested in a smaller, 0.5% year-round sales tax increase. It’s estimated to cover about three-quarters of the cost of exempting food. Gladziszewski said that might get more support from the business community.

For now, that doesn’t mean streets won’t get plowed or that school class sizes will balloon. The budget the Assembly settled on in committee on Wednesday isn’t going to make big changes to address the budget gap. Most members of the Assembly are OK with riding out at least the next fiscal year with savings.

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