Metro East Sun

Madison County residents defeated a proposed 1 cent sales tax increase by a margin of only 259 voters on Tuesday.

The measure would have raised approximately $23 million for capital improvements projects at area schools.

Opponents said the measure would have driven commerce out of the area as people went elsewhere to avoid paying more for the same goods. They also cited a lack of coordination between taxation at local and state levels, leaving some taxpayers with a greater burden.

The increase would have been instituted as a county school facilities tax, which proponents said was the best alternative to increasing property taxes. Funds would have been distributed to districts based on student population.

Prior to this election, 47 Illinois counties had passed such tax hikes since a 2007 law allowed school districts to put the tax increases on ballots, including eight that passed similar hikes in the November 2016 election.

Voters in Madison County opposed the same measure in 2011 by a margin of 81 to 19 percent. The difference this year was 50.3 to 49.7 percent.