Alot of talk has been directed against the dreaded 1% earnings tax that all residents and workers of the city must pay, and although I agree that this needs to go away I still believe that this issue is used more as a scapegoat when businesses and potential residents wish not to (re) locate to St. Louis City in the first place.
Getting rid of this tax is not easy as it accounts for 31% of city revenues. To even attempt it would require drastic cuts in city services and payroll which is already experiencing a large budget shortfall. It would also force the city to raise sales and or property tax which St. Louis could then join the ranks of all the other mini munis in the metro area for fighting for the "next big thing" development of which we already have our share.
I believe this article is a good read although I do not see any statistical correlation when reading the article which directly pinpoints retraction to 1% tax.
http://www.stlbeacon.org/in_the_news/what_does_the_earnings_tax_cost_st_louis_and_kansas_city_
The only solution out there is to combine City and county and vastly restructure our government along with strengthening our advantages (our universities, workforce, cost of living, location, life and medical sciences, modernize manufacturing), while minimizing our defects (city schools, crime, sprawl and its effects).
I'm holding my breath.
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