Olmsted County Sales Tax Rising. Here’s Why…

Olmsted County will be raising its sales tax by a quarter-cent this summer. The money raised will be 100% dedicated to transportation projects, of which there are many.

Olmsted County Commissioner Ken Brown explained the need for the revenue Tuesday morning on KROC-AM. He said the state has neglected to fund transportation projects for the past couple of years and that Olmsted County can't assume that they will get the needed funding this year, either. So, the County has taken matters into its own hands, adding to the sales tax to raise funds for the much-needed road projects.

So, isn't there transportation money available from some of the existing tax money?

Not nearly enough..

The tax will take effect July 1st of this year and is expected to bring in about 7 million dollars per year.