Greene County Leaders May Ask Voters for ¼-Cent Law Enforcement Sales Tax Increase for Jail, Court Woes

Commissioners say crime is increasing and law enforcement is eroding

August 08, 2011|Emily Rittman, Ben Knaup | Reporter, Photographer

Springfield, Mo — Greene County leaders may ask voters for a law enforcement sales tax increase. The Springfield-Greene County Safety & Justice Roundtable asked county commissioners to put a ¼-cent sales tax on the November ballot. Members reviewed the issues facing Greene County's criminal justice system. If commissioners decide to ask for the increase, they must have it certified by August 30.

Inside the Greene County Jail, one correctional officer often watches over more than 100 inmates in a pod. “Each day that we have corrections officers in harm’s way is living on borrowed time,” Greene County Presiding Commissioner Jim Viebrock said. “I cringe to think at any given morning we could have a riot or a fight break out in the pods.”

Greene County Commissioner Harold Bengsch says the overcrowding is part of a systemic problem. “These are things that trouble me a lot,” Bengsch said. “They also carry with them the potential of major lawsuits that the county cannot ill afford.”

After two years of review, members of the safety and justice roundtable asked for several solution scenarios. They decided a 1/8-cent sales tax would only place a "band-aid" on critical issues. “It’s a hard time to ask people to vote to raise taxes but on the other hand people are very concerned about their safety,” Greene County Commissioner Roseann Bentley said.

Leaders discussed educating voters about the issues the criminal justice system is facing. “I don't know of anyone who wants to see taxes increased including me but sometimes stark reality tells us a different story of what it's going to take to deal with an issue,” Bengsch said.

Viebrock says leaders must decide if November is the right time to ask voters for an increase. “There is a very real possibility that the county spends $120,000 for an election and the answer from the tax payers is ‘no’ and that's money would could have used for correctional officers in the jail,” Viebrock said.

If a tax is not passed, Greene County Administrator Tim Smith says the county will spend 400,000 to 900,000 housing inmates in other counties. Either way commissioners say something must give. “We'll weigh every possible alternative,” Bentley said.

If the sales tax is passed the county would remodel the current jail to add a minimum security wing for 50 to 75 prisoners. It would also add staff in the sheriff office’s, juvenile division and prosecutor's offices. It would also add more courtrooms by relocating the sheriff's office in an effort to move cases more quickly through the system.

According to the county administrator, a ¼-cent sales tax equals one-cent on a $4 hamburger, 25-cents on $100 worth of groceries and $1.25 on a $500 appliance purchase.

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