Godfrey Narrowly Approves Sales Tax Increase To Avoid Grocery Tax Replacement
GODFREY – The Village of Godfrey has become the first and only Riverbend municipality not to replace the state’s expiring 1% sales tax on groceries. Instead, Mayor Mike McCormick cast a tie-breaking vote to raise the village’s sales tax by 0.75%. An ordinance to raise the sales tax in Godfrey was originally set for a first reading on Tuesday before trustees called for a suspension of the rules, bringing it to an immediate final vote. After significant discussion and debate, Village Board members voted their way into a 3-3 tie, with McCormick casting the tie-breaking vote in favor. Raising the sales tax was first proposed by Village Engineer Rich Beran , who pitched it as an alternative to replacing the state’s 1% sales tax on groceries like many other local municipalities. His proposal aimed to ease grocery costs for residents by effectively lowering the sales tax rate on groceries from the current 1%, while boosting tax revenue from visitors by raising