City leaders discuss COVID-19 impact on economy

JACKSON, Tenn. — The City of Jackson Budget Committee met Thursday to discuss the impact COVID-19 had on the city’s economy.

“Most notably our sales tax, the impact that the coronavirus has had on sales tax collection as well as our hotel, motel taxes,” said budget committee chairmen Paul Taylor.

Due to the virus, that tax revenue is expected to go down.

“We’re projecting, it’s a fluid thing that we are monitoring right now. For this year for our sales tax, we will know better as we continue to get it the reports on the sales tax collection. Those typically run about two months behind. We are kind of on a two month wait period. We are starting to see those come in for the month of March, which we were shut down for 50 percent in the month of March. April was the one that would be an identifier for us to be able to have a better idea of what those would be,” Taylor said.

Taylor says they are currently looking at a reduction of four to five percent this year and an additional 15 percent next year in those sales tax numbers.

The City of Jackson has had a hiring freeze due to COVID-19. In addition, it has implemented a capital purchasing freeze and entered into a furlough program of approximately 190 employees for 16 weeks.

“So those are the strategies that we’ve put together in order to help mitigate those expenses during this fiscal year and moving on into the next fiscal year, which would start July 1,” Taylor said.

Taylor says a city council meeting will be coming up on June 2, and a special called meeting for the council on June 9.

They hope to schedule another budget committee meeting on June 11.