Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019
Should Mecklenburg County's sales tax be raised to shore up funding for the Arts & Science Council and the local arts sector? That's a question Mecklenburg voters could face this fall. Mike Collins talks with the ASC about its funding challenges and the request for taxpayer help.
The Arts & Science Council went to Mecklenburg County commissioners last week with a request for a voter referendum on a quarter-cent sales tax increase to save the arts sector from a funding "crisis."
The tax increase, if approved by voters, would generate an estimated $20 million for arts funding, and would make up for a sharp drop in giving to the ASC, which like other cultural groups across the country is still reeling from the Great Recession.
Valecia McDowell, the incoming ASC board chair, told the county board that the ASC's current funding is the same as it was in 1997.
Commissioners said they're supporters of the arts, but the board could face heat for seeking a sales tax increase as they also wrestle with the property revaulation.
What's the ASC's case to the county? To taxpayers?
GUESTS
Valecia McDowell, incoming board chair, Arts & Science Council
Stacey Anderson, co-chair, ASC's Designated Revenue Study Committee