Voters will decide whether to extend Cole County's half-cent sales tax in the April 6 election.
The Citizens for Proposition A campaign group held its kickoff event Friday morning with a news conference explaining what Cole County has done with the sales tax revenue in the past and what they hope to do with it going forward.
Roger Schwartz, with Citizens for Proposition A, said the most important thing for Cole County residents to know about the tax is it would be an extension and not a new tax.
It appears on the ballot every five years for an extension and has been in place since 1986.
Proposition A most recently passed in 2016 with 77 percent of the vote, Schwartz said.
Over the years, the tax has provided funding for 180 miles of gravel road upgrades to asphalt, six major bridge replacements, 28 small bridges, safety improvements and 23 cooperative projects with Jefferson City.
The tax is projected to bring in $34.5 million over the course of the next five years.
Most of the funding raised by the tax goes toward road and bridge projects around Cole County.
The county put more of an emphasis on resurfacing and concrete street replacement in its proposed capital improvements with the extension.
During the current tax cycle, $6.25 million was allocated for resurfacing and concrete street replacement. In the proposal, that number is up to $8.75 million.
Eric Landwehr, director of Cole County Public Works and committee member, said the shift comes from changing demands.
When the tax was first introduced, most of it went toward upgrading gravel roads to paved.
However, there are now fewer gravel roads in the county that need to be upgraded, so the money shifted toward preserving the current roadways.
Landwehr also explained a shift in how funding works for smaller towns around the county, which started with the current system.
This would include projects such as fixing potholes, which he said Cole County Public Works employees are already out doing.
Part of the proposed expenditures for the tax includes $5.5 million for cooperative projects with Jefferson City, and that's been in place for years.
Previously, smaller towns in the county would receive $100,000 a year for projects, Landwehr said. However, now there's a grant system where the towns can request funding for specific projects.
In the current tax cycle, he said, the county received five requests and all were fully funded.
Projects on the table to work with Jefferson City on include replacement of the High Street viaduct; the corridor from Stadium Boulevard to Southwest Boulevard, as well as toward Edgewood Drive to address traffic and sidewalk issues for an estimated $3 million; and an economic development grant match of $3 million for additional projects that may come along.
Jefferson City Mayor Carrie Tergin said the city appreciates its partnership with Cole County on the projects that need done.
Proposed capital improvements include:
Safety and capacity improvements for $1.375 million.
Upgrade roads to paved for $3 million.
Cooperative projects with Jefferson City for $5.5 million.
Major thoroughfares for $2.5 million.
Projects in cooperation with villages for $1.7 million.
Resurfacing/concrete street replacement for $8.750 million.
Equipment replacement for $2 million.
Bridge/culvert/low-water crossing/stormwater projects for $3.5 million.
Contingency for $1 million.
County facility and equipment improvements for $5.175 million.