For the second time this year, Tangipahoa Parish voters have rejected a proposal to swap a property tax that funds the sheriff’s office for a sales tax to pay for the sheriff’s expenses.
On Saturday, voters rejected a proposal to replace a 10-mill property tax with a .75-percent sales tax by a 57-43 margin. In March, voters shot down the idea by a 53-47 margin.
Sheriff Gerald Sticker pitched the tax as a way to generate more revenue to raise deputies’ salaries, fill vacant positions, hire new deputies, and to increase the number of guards at the parish jail to prevent escapes.
Voters also rejected a proposal to renew a property tax that would funds the parish’s health units. That proposition failed by a 52-48 margin. Because the tax is set to expire in 2027, parish officials will have another opportunity next year to ask voters to renew the millage.
Four more local measures passed. Residents in Road Lighting Districts No. 2, No. 4, and No. 7 renewed property taxes that fund the construction and maintenance of road lights in those areas. Hammond residents renewed a two-mill property tax that pays for the city’s public works initiatives.