Anchorage voters likely won't see a general sales tax on the ballot in April, with Assembly member Bill Evans saying he wants to spend more time working on his proposal.
In interviews and at Assembly meetings, Evans said he planned to introduce a ballot measure for a general sales tax by early January. But he said recently the timing doesn't seem to be quite right.
"This first quarter of the year, we're going to be so overrun with what the state is doing as far as taxes and things like that ... it would get lost in the noise," Evans said. "I think keeping things separate is just a better way to go."
Evans also said he'd like to take more time to inform voters about a sales tax and the economic impact. He hopes the measure could be on the April 2017 ballot and coincide with the city's first mail-in election.
Assembly chair Dick Traini said Tuesday he's planning to appoint Evans as the chair of an Assembly committee on a sales tax.
At its Jan. 12 meeting, the Assembly is set to hold a hearing on a separate proposal for a retail marijuana sales tax.