Tulsa To Ask Voters For Public Safety District

The City of Tulsa hopes to use a new tax option to provide a more stable source of funding for public safety. After years of lobbying from Oklahoma’s municipal governments, the legislature finally gave cities the ability to ask voters for a dedicated property tax to support the cost of emergency services. Tulsa plans to put a measure on the ballot in August 2022, asking voters to convert five mills of property tax into the Public Safety District tax.

City Finance Director James Wagner said it’s possible to collect $17 million a year from the tax, without increasing tax rates, by extending the repayment terms on existing bonds. Tulsa is repaying bonds that once were held for 20 years in as few as five years now.

The vote would require 60% approval from voters.

Tulsa’s City Government, like all Oklahoma municipalities, operates almost entirely on sales tax, which is subject to major swings during economic downturns. Mayor G.T. Bynum said applying some property taxes to public safety costs would help “to diversify the revenue that goes to public safety, to help protect first responders and their jobs.”

“I certainly like the concept,” said City Council Chair Vanessa Hall-Harper, but she also wants to make sure any rising tide of taxation benefits other city departments. “There are a lot of other city services and needs as well, and I would definitely want to see increases in those other city services for our citizens.”

Tulsa was forced to lay off police officers in 2008 when the sales tax dropped, but since then has created a rainy day fund, with a dedicated tax to add to it, to help cushion budget downturns. The Mayor believes adding property tax to the mix would help stabilize public safety funding, for good.