Council Approves Local Meals Tax
Story Updated 1:06PM, Monday, August 31, 2009
– Allison Goldsberry
Four members of the Medford City Council unanimously approved a 0.75% local meals tax during a special meeting Monday morning.
The meals tax is a new, 0.75% local tax that will show up on diners’ bills in every Medford restaurant starting October 1.
“…it was not an easy vote, as a councillor I hate to raise taxes period, yet I would hate for class sizes to increase. We voted on the budget in June with the increased money amount in it, so it would be hard to not only face cuts this coming year but to have to make up for that amount as well,” wrote City Council President Breanna Lungo-Koehn in an email.
President Lungo-Koehn and Councilors Paul Camuso, Frederick Dello Russo, Jr., and Stephanie Muccini Burke were present at the meeting and voted for the tax.
According to Mayor Michael McGlynn, the tax is estimated to bring in close to $100,000 in one year. He considers the tax a small one, as diners dropping $100 on a meal would only be paying an additional 75 cents.
He recently urged the Council to adopt the tax in an interview with InsideMedford.com.
“You can’t keep saying we can’t cut services and then deny the opportunity to get the revenue,†said Mayor McGlynn.
In a meeting on August 18 the Council approved a a 2% hotel/lodging tax increase. The 2% bump increases the city’s share of hotel taxes to 6%. Previously, Medford was collecting a 4% tax from its only hotel, Hyatt Place.
According to Mayor McGlynn, the hotel tax increase is expected to bring in an additional $233,000 over the next year once it goes into effect on October 1.
Both taxes are in effect for one year and the Council will review them again at the end of the fiscal year in June 2010.
The hotel and meals taxes are optional measures the state legislature put into place to help communities raise additional revenue without increasing property taxes during tough fiscal times. It is up to individual communities to determine to adopt the taxes.