Jackson Free Press

Wednesday evening, Gov. Haley Barbour signed SB 3268 into law. The bill authorizes the City of Jackson to impose a special 1 percent sales tax to raise much-needed revenue for police and fire protection, and road and sewer repairs.

Sixty percent of Jacksonians must approve the increased sales tax prior to its enactment.

In a statement this morning, Barbour said he would not have signed the bill without giving Jackson citizens a choice in the matter.

"The citizens of the City of Jackson must be given the opportunity to decide whether to raise the sales tax in their community," he said.

Barbour said the bill places "an unlimited, open-ended tax burden on those doing business in the City of Jackson."

Because the bill does not have a "clear definition of completion" and automatic removal, it does not meet his criteria for a local sales tax increase, he said; however, Barbour acknowledged that the bill had bipartisan support in the Mississippi Legislature.

"n these challenging economic times, we must be careful not to overburden our business community … For that reason, I do not personally support this bill," Barbour said.