What is Prop S?  

Prop S would allow a 2% use tax to be placed on things you buy from out of state retailers and businesses.  Shoppers pay sales tax or use tax – NEVER both.

Prop S for Safer Streets will be on the ballot April 4.  Money from Prop S for Safer Streets—a 2% use tax—would help St. Peters pay the costs for our police, streets and other City needs. The price we pay for our awesome police department, safe neighborhoods, infrastructure and roads, plowing streets after a snowstorm--these costs add up to more than 40% of the City’s annual budget.  

At least 200 Missouri cities and counties already have a use tax including St. Charles County, O’Fallon, Lake St. Louis and Wentzville. Their residents pay the same amount of local tax whether they buy at a local store or from an out-of-state business. But, St. Peters does not have a use tax like they do.  So, we can’t get the same two percent sales tax from out-of-state vendors that we would get if you bought the same item from one of our great St. Peters businesses. All we currently have are local sales tax dollars.  In the future, this could force tough choices in St. Peters to pay for services that keep our City streets safe.

More people are buying things online from out-of-state businesses.  Even now, we’re seeing empty retail storefronts in St. Peters and if this continues, we may not have enough local sales tax dollars needed to pay for police, streets and other City services.  Prop S Use Tax dollars will help pay for safer streets and other City needs now and into the future.