NoDak House Votes Down Sales Tax for Schools

Bismarck, ND (KEYZ)  The North Dakota Legislature dealt growing school districts a blow, by voting overwhelmingly against a penny sales tax bill pushed forward by district one representative Patrick Hatlestad of WIlliston. It would have allowed schools to petition city or county commissions to place the question on the ballot, and if it won, the tax would help pay down bond debt for school expansion.
Hatlestad says the vote was 58 to 30.
"So I was a little surprised that it was that 'one-sided'. We knew it was going to be a battle, and had feared a 50/50 chance of passage, and obviously certain people thought that 'ours' was not the way to fund education," Hatlestad tells News Radio.
Hatlestad says the biggest arguments used by opponents were allegations that it would be abused and also not fair to residents who did not benefit directly from the tax.
"But basically, the major argument was that this would be a new tax and everyone would leap onto the opportunity to pass the tax ...And the issue of equity always pops up. Some areas would be unable to initiate a sales tax of their own, so it wouldn't be fair for them to pay a tax in another city or county, that was not going to directly benefit them," he says.