Next Tuesday, St. Louis voters will again decide whether to keep the city’s 1% earnings tax.
That means choosing whether to continue the tax that funds a large share of basic city services or to eliminate it and force the city to cut basic services. It is a decision voters face every five years. And each time, they have voted to keep the tax — not out of habit, but out of necessity.
They should do so again.
The earnings tax is not an abstract policy debate. It is the backbone of city government, generating roughly one-third of St. Louis’ general fund, about 36%, and bringing in more than $200 million annually. The tax funds core services such as police, fire, streets and parks. Without it, the city would face a fiscal shock unlike anything in its modern history.
There is no realistic replacement. That has been studied, debated and tested. A past analysis under former Mayor Francis Slay examined a range of alternatives, including sales taxes, property taxes and other fees, and found they would fall short and require multiple new taxes, many needing voter approval. In other words, there is no simple replacement if voters eliminate the tax, only a series of difficult choices that may still leave gaps. Eliminating it would be a gamble, one that risks destabilizing the very services residents depend on most.
Still, the concerns about the tax have merit. St. Louis, along with Kansas City, are the only cities in Missouri that can levy an earnings tax, and critics argue it can discourage economic growth. Some elected officials have raised questions about how the tax is applied, including exemptions and incentives that may benefit corporations more than residents. The city has seen population decline and has faced ongoing concerns about corporate departures downtown.
Those concerns deserve attention. They deserve transparency, accountability and reform where needed. But they do not justify dismantling the foundation of the city’s finances, especially not now.
Residents already are carrying heavier burdens. Grocery and energy costs remain elevated, while housing costs continue to strain budgets in St. Louis and beyond. And although wages have risen in some sectors, they have not consistently kept pace with inflation for many working families.
The earnings tax supports the infrastructure and public systems that residents rely on every day. It is the foundation that allows neighborhoods, businesses and families to function and grow. For many residents, particularly in Black communities that have long faced disinvestment, that stability is not optional. It is essential.
Voting to keep the earnings tax is not a vote for the status quo. It is a vote to avoid disruption while continuing to push for a better, fairer system.
City leaders should take seriously the calls for greater oversight, including clearer reporting on tax abatements and a closer look at who benefits and who does not. If residents are asked to continue paying into this system, they deserve confidence that it is being managed equitably and effectively.
But the choice before voters on April 7 is more immediate.
Rejecting the earnings tax would not lower the cost of living. It would not raise wages. It would not solve the city’s long-term economic challenges.
It would simply create a hole, one so large that filling it would require painful cuts, uncertain replacements or both.
St. Louis has real challenges. But self-inflicted instability should not be one of them.
Voters should approve the earnings tax and then demand the accountability and vision needed to make the most of it’s proceeds.