Assembly, take note: Voters gave you clear instructions

Angela Rodell. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Independent)

By Angela Rodell

The October ballot was not a referendum on taxes in general. It was more precise than that, and the Assembly should read it carefully.

Voters were asked two questions. They approved a seasonal sales tax intended for recreation, and they rejected raising the mill rate cap. I argued against both measures in this space, so I'm not writing as someone who got what she wanted. I'm writing because the split verdict sends a message that's too clear to misread, and too important to ignore.

Every incumbent on the ballot won, and it would be easy to read that as approval of business as usual. I'd be careful. In local races, challengers often struggle to show voters how they'd do things differently, and name recognition goes a long way. Incumbent wins tell us less about policy than we might think. The ballot measures are different. They put direct questions to voters with no names attached, and the answers were clear. If the Assembly wants to know what Juneau thinks about taxes and spending, that's where to look.

Here is what Juneau said.

Yes to stated purposes and no to open-ended authority. The tax that passed came with a clear statement of intent: recreation. It's seasonal, and a meaningful share of it will be paid by visitors. The measure that failed would have expanded the city's general ability to tax property, with no particular purpose attached. Voters drew a clear line between those two things. They will fund what they can see and use. They will not hand over a blank check.

The property tax ceiling stays where it is. Rejecting the cap increase was not a narrow technical vote. It was a statement that homeowners and businesses have reached their limit on property taxes, and that the city needs to live within that boundary. Any budget plan that assumes this question will be asked again soon misreads the electorate.

So what should the Assembly do with these instructions?

First, tell voters which promise you're keeping. The ballot said the seasonal sales tax is intended to help fund recreation. Its sponsors also told voters it would free up existing tax dollars for other services. Both can be true, but only if the Assembly is transparent about it. The next budget should show plainly how much recreation receives, how much of that comes from the new tax, and where any freed-up general fund money goes. Alaska law doesn't let a local tax be locked to one purpose, so the only guarantee voters have is the Assembly's word and its willingness to show its work.

Second, report on it every year, in plain terms. How much was collected, where it went and what it produced. Put that on one page, made public at budget time. This is a simple step, and it costs almost nothing. It is also the single most effective way to show voters their trust was well placed.

Third, treat the cap as the fixed constraint it is and plan around it. That means setting priorities within existing revenue instead of hoping for new revenue. It means a hard look at what the city does that it doesn't need to do, and at what it does that others could do better.

Fourth, make growth the strategy, not an afterthought. The most sustainable way to raise revenue is to grow the base. More housing, more year-round employers, more private investment and fewer obstacles for people trying to build here all serve that goal. Every decision the Assembly makes on zoning, permitting and partnerships should be weighed against whether it grows the economy or shrinks it.

Juneau voters did their job. They weighed two proposals, accepted one and rejected the other, and the reasoning behind their choices isn't hard to see. They want a city that pays for what it values, respects the limits residents have set and grows its way to a stronger future instead of taxing its way there.

The Assembly's job now is to show that it heard them. The next budget will be the first test, and we will all be watching.

• Angela Rodell is a former CEO of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. and commissioner of the Alaska Department of Revenue who is currently a business consultant and member of Juneau International Airport’s board of directors. Her column appears the second Tuesday of every month.