The safeguards
Accountability
Cities are asking for a larger share of a tax that already exists; no rate changes, and nothing more is paid at checkout. A larger share carries public obligations. These are the commitments participating municipalities make about what they publish, what they vote on in the open, and what an auditor reviews.
Municipal commitments
A standardized annual report
Every participating city publishes the same annual report. It shows what came in from sales tax and from online sales, what it was spent on, what was moved, what was left at year end, and any correction the Department of Revenue made.
Common spending categories
Receipts are reported in common categories for public safety, streets, drainage, utilities, parks, technology, debt service, maintenance, and other lawful purposes.
Audit coverage
Annual audit or agreed-upon-procedures coverage applies to the reported amounts.
An open-meeting vote
If a city chooses to use part of its online-sales money for day-to-day operating costs, up to the cap, the mayor and board must vote on it in a public meeting.
Published sources and methodology
Source links and methodology notes accompany every published municipal example.
Why the commitments come with the share
The same reporting that makes municipal receipts verifiable also makes the Partnership's published examples checkable. Every municipal figure published on this site carries its source, its as-of date, the definition behind it, and its rounding.
For legislators and HB 898 members
Recommend allocation integrity, a six-year path to a 30 percent municipal share, defined small-town use-tax reform, and standardized accountability for enactment in 2027.