On a record-setting cold temperature November 12, about 14% of the registered voters in the City of Tulsa approved $639,000,000.00 in new taxation.
About 29,000 of Tulsa’s 201,245 registered voters bothered to cast a ballot November 12.
The new taxes are supposed to spend $427 million on streets/transportation, $193 million on “capital projects” and place $19 million in a “Rainy Day Fund.”
Instead of just funding for streets, the propositions had money for fire trucks, police cars and millions of dollars for the Tulsa Zoo, Gilcrease Museum, the Greenwood Cultural Center and the Animal Welfare Shelter.
Additionally, each of the city’s nine council districts will get a $1,000,000.00 to be spent on projects from each councilor.
Most of the funding for the tax increase will be from borrowing through the sale of bonds financed by higher property taxes and about a third will be from higher sales tax. The 6.5-year tax increase starts in 2020.
The vote totals were:
- Proposition 1 (sales tax) – 24,255 yes (82%); 5,420 no (18%)
- Proposition 2 (sales tax) – 23,270 yes (79%); 6,022 no (21%)
- Proposition 3 – 25,359 yes (85%), 4,416 no (15%)