Apache Junction residents are being surveyed by phone for their thoughts on if they would favor the city’s first property tax to replace a sales tax that is sunsetting in 2025.
The city presently collects no property tax, but has a 2.4% sales tax.
The Apache Junction City Council on Dec. 2, 2014, approved an ordinance that created a .2% sales tax dedicated to the maintenance, repair and reconstruction of Apache Junction roadways. Collections began March 1, 2015, and the tax sunsets 10 years later, on March 1, 2025.
In response to a Facebook post by an Apache Junction resident stating they received a phone call conducting a survey about a potential upcoming ballot question on replacing a city sales tax with a property tax, Councilmember Tess Nesser replied on Facebook that the city is considering its first property tax.
“What we are looking at is to replace two city sales taxes that will be sunsetting in the next year or two and replacing them with a small-percentage city of AJ property tax,” she wrote. “The reason why is so that everyone will be contributing towards the city of AJ income revenue to run the town; i.e. have parks and rec programs, have a library and future branches, have an adequate police department, etc.”
The decision to seek survey opinions from Apache Junction residents was made after the city council’s April 14 strategic planning retreat.
The retreat at Central Arizona College’s Superstition Mountain Campus focused on discussion of economic development, city operations and finance, water infrastructure, and community development, according to its agenda.
“After the city council discussed the future of the .2% sales tax and the possibility of a property tax during its open strategic planning retreat meeting on April 14, the city decided to survey opinions on how to continue to fund street improvements and its obligation to support pensions for our deserving former law enforcement personnel,” said Al Bravo, public information officer for the city of Apache Junction.
The city council this summer discussed behind closed doors adding a primary property tax. Discussion or consultation for legal advice with the city attorney regarding a primary property tax was one of the topics of the May 15 executive session, which was not open to the public, according to the meeting’s agenda.
Apache Junction residents living north of U.S. Highway 60 would be paying the majority of city sales taxes if those buying houses in new subdivisions in south Apache Junction were to shop outside the city in Mesa or Maricopa County, Councilmember Nesser said in the Facebook post.
“The city of AJ, for the most part, operates entirely on city sales tax to pay salaries and run all the departments of the city. What (I) am referring to is this — all of the new homes that will be built by D.R. Horton south of US60, those city of AJ residents more than likely will go west, directly into Mesa and Maricopa (County) to grocery shop, etc. Thus, they will be spending all of their sales tax in Mesa and Maricopa County and none of that sales tax money will come to the city of AJ,” Nesser wrote.
“Thus those AJ residents, who will still be provided with library services, parks and rec services, AJPD services, etc., will pay little to nothing towards sales tax to operate those departments. In other words, only those of us living north of the US60, who shop local and pay our sales tax in AJ, will be contributing revenue to the city of AJ. Those living south of the 60, as I said, will get all the services provided by the city to its residents, but will pay little to nothing towards the revenue to do so,” she wrote.
“But, by the city of AJ sunsetting the two sales taxes that will be ending and setting up a city property tax, 100% of AJ’s residents will contribute towards revenue to operate the city,” Nesser said.
Richard H. Dyer can be reached at rdyer@iniusa.org, or on Twitter @rhdyer. To voice your opinion on this story, connect with us at AzOpinions@iniusa.org.
Richard Dyer Managing Editor | East Valley @RHDyer
Meet Richard Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia Inc. USA since 1987, starting his career in Apache Junction as a copy editor and being promoted over the years to work as the editor of the Mesa Independent, news services editor for the East Valley office in Apache Junction, managing editor for the East Valley office, news services editor for the East Valley office and eventually also for the newspapers at INI’s then-Chandler office, managing editor again and as a news editor covering Apache Junction/Gold Canyon and Queen Creek. He helped start the Florence Independent while the news editor covering Apache Junction and Mesa news. In January 2023, he became associate managing editor for the East Valley newspapers and in August 2023 became managing editor for the East Valley newspapers of Chandler/Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek, Florence, Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, while also reporting on Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon.
Community: Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions.
Education: University of Arizona with a master of arts in journalism and a bachelor of science in agricultural communication. Also continuing education at Mesa Community College in welding in a metal art sculpture class.
Random fact: Saw his first tornado on May 31, 2010, which was classified as an EF-2, as part of a stormchasing tour group.
Hobbies: He is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows.
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