Orem eyeing art-tax booty

OREM — The battle at the ballot box is over.

However, Orem city officials still have a few more items on their "to do" list before money from the voter-approved tax money can start flowing into the city for cultural arts and recreation.

During the recent general election, Orem residents approved a one-tenth of 1 percent citywide arts- and recreation-enhancement tax — the first step in funneling sales tax dollars toward cultural arts and recreation activities in the Utah Valley city.

The tax, known as a Recreation, Arts and Parks (RAP) tax in other cities, won't be valid until the City Council applies its stamp of approval by passing a resolution accepting the tax and sending a plan to the Utah State Tax Commission.

Orem City Manager Jim Reams said the city expects to complete those steps by the end of the year.

The commission has 90 days to review the city's plan before it goes into effect April 1. The 90 days allows the commission time to talk to all the retailers in the area about the tax increase and gives stores time to change their cash registers and financial systems to reflect the jump from 6.25 percent to 6.35 percent sales tax, said Charlie Roberts, the commission's public information officer.

The new tax will give Orem the highest sales-tax rate in Utah County.

With the new tax, Orem would become the second city in the state to have a citywide RAP tax. Tooele approved a RAP tax last election, which went into effect April 2005, Roberts said.

But there are many other cities who pay RAP or ZAP taxes through a county-wide application. Residents of Logan, Hyde Park, Hyrum and other northern Cache county cities also have the additional one-tenth of 1 percent tax.

And lest Orem residents think their 6.35 percent is high, residents of Draper, Sandy and Salt Lake City pay 6.6 percent in combined sales taxes. The highest in the state? Alta, where the resort-city residents pay 8.1 percent combined sales tax.

While the money will be coming in — an estimated $1.6 million a year based on the city's sales tax figures — no organization has yet received a promise for a chunk of the change.

"We can't count on any funding really," said Anne Swenson, publicist for the Hale Center Theater Orem. "The money is there for cultural arts and recreation and all the groups that are interested in those funds — which I'm sure will be many — will have to plead their causes and apply for it. For us to count on this money . . . is really premature."

Although the Orem theater plans to apply, they're still finalizing some business matters to convert the entire company to a non-profit group, a prerequisite to receiving funds.

Although there is no state-mandated process for financial dispersion, the council will seek public input and the applications will be discussed in public meetings. The council is also likely to rely on the city's Cultural Arts and Recreational Advisory Commissions for recommendations, Reams said.

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