Next month, Cleveland voters will decide on the city鈥檚 first income tax hike in 35 years. would increase the tax to 2.5 percent.
says without the half-percent income-tax hike, city services will have to be cut. But he says the extra $80 million a year would improve services, including police department reforms. , the area鈥檚 chamber of commerce, has endorsed the tax hike. President Joe Roman, believes it will keepsmaintain the city鈥檚 momentum by bolstering services.
鈥淗ousing inspectors, safety services, all the kinds of things that are crucial to a neighborhood being ripe for investment, including downtown. We do have neighborhoods of the city beginning to grow again and we need more of them to do that. But in order to accomplish it we need the services. People need to see they have the services in the neighborhoods they can count on.鈥�
The proposed tax hike has received little opposition. That鈥檚 because nearly 90 percent of Cleveland鈥檚 income tax is paid by commuters who live outside the city.
