Free ride on Tulsa'a back?
Electric: the big power plant is in Jenks. There is a peaking station near the Jenks plant. I think there is another big plant around Oologah and I know there is one near Chouteau. The last I heard, the PSO plant near downtown is not generating electricity. I don't know how much the City of Tulsa paid for the wires to my house in Bixby.
Water: COT may own Spavinaw and Eucha but they are hardly in the city proper. COT sells water to the suburbs. I believe water to the burbs from Tulsa costs more than water to COT residents. I assume the local government(s) around the reservoirs is(are) properly compensated for the loss of use of the land where the reservoirs are. I assume the property owners where the two waterlines go to get the water to Tulsa from Spavinaw are properly compensated. I remember reading they cannot even store hay on the ROW. Same thing for the property owners from Oologah to AB Jewell. I suspect that COT is freeloading off the Corps of Engineers in the case of water from Oologah and Lake Hudson.
Sanitary sewer: I believe Bixby has it's own. I know sanitary sewers were installed a few years ago here where septic tanks have been working since the 60s. There were some low areas that definitely needed them.
Storm sewers: Clean up your act. I don't want Tulsa street run-off polluting the river water in Bixby.
Trash: We have to pay a private trash hauler. They only take common household trash, not much else. I once put out an old metal lawn chair and they wouldn't take it because it was metal. They probably go to the same landfill as COT trucks but I am not familiar with the dumping fees. On free dump day, I am not allowed to participate (for free) unless City of Bixby participates (I assume at some cost). Then I only get to dump one load, not as many as I can. While the landfills may be in the city corporate limits, they are certainly not in the desirable living areas.
Fire: Bixby has its own fire department. Chances are you won't need their services unless your car catches fire.
EMSA: I pay directly each March, even though I believe my health insurance will cover the ambulance ride.
Police: Bixby has its own police force too, with patrol cars. For the one time in your life that you may come to Bixby, be sure to have a fake ID showing Bixby residency or our police will not help you if you need it. (NOT)
Sales Tax: I actually do most of my shopping in Tulsa, not Bixby. Walmart, Food Pyramid, my favorite liquor store, Quik Trip for car gas..... all in Tulsa City limits. I will admit to going to Lowe's at 111th and Memorial which is in Bixby and Aldi's and Schlotsky's both in Bixby. I rarely go to any of the new stuff on the east side of Memorial between 101st and 111th. I sometimes go to the Reasors in Jenks since I work at R.L. Jones Jr/Riverside Airport. I sometimes go to the Reasors at 71st and Sheridan (and use COT roads to get there) because they have Campbell's Pepper Pot soup there but not at Jenks. You are correct that I am not going to make an everyday purchase based on less than 1% difference in sales tax. It wouldn't pay for the gas to get there. Some jurisdictions get grabby about sales tax. Presently most states want "use" tax on stuff bought in other states. How long until it gets to the city level? Oh, you bought those peaches in Porter? You owe Tulsa "use" tax for bringing them into the city limits.
Fresh Produce: Here's an area that some of you seem to like. What have you done to help pay for the farm land and roads to get that fresh produce to the Tulsa city line before they get to the "farmer's markets" in Tulsa? That is, above and beyond buying the products? Does Tulsa charge sales tax that Bixby or the local growing areas don't get? Maybe Bixby should charge a special export tax for produce going to Tulsa.
Other goods and services: How much of the stuff you buy is actually grown, manufactured, etc within the city limits, or even Oklahoma? Probably not much (except for Marshall's beer). Is Tulsa getting a free ride on the infrastructure outside the city limits? Roads, police, fire, free toilets on the interstate outside of Oklahoma,......
BOK Center: County project? Should it have been located in Jenks, Owasso, somewhere else? Is Tulsa getting a free ride on the county?
City income taxes:
The best I could find on the internet is that Houston and Dallas have no city income tax. The max sales tax allowed is 8.25%, including the state sales tax. Texas is clever though and I'm sure they make up for it somehow.
I did some checking on my old nearby stomping grounds (pre 1971) of Philadelphia, PA. It appears they have some sales tax devoted to the city. They do not have a personal "income" tax. A funny quirk in PA law a long time ago didn't allow them to tax unearned (interest, investment) income. They do have a wage tax on compensation. If you live in the Phila city limits, for Jan - June 2010 you pay 3.9296%, regardless of where you earn that money. Suburban companies are required by state law to withhold that for Phila. If you pay an income/wage tax in the place where you work outside of Phila, OK, you still owe the whole 3.9296% to Philadelphia. Non-residents who work in Phila pay 3.4997% for the first six months of 2010. Doesn't matter what other income taxes you pay, including your home town. The rates for the 2nd half of 2010 aren't posted.
I'm glad I don't live or work there. For more info:
www.phila.gov/Revenue/FAQs.html (And other pages within the site.)
I agree a company won't choose a location based only on taxes on its employees. It may be a contributing factor in order to pay competitive salaries/wages. Look at the few (advertised) percent the Tulsa police and firemen got caught up with, the reason for this thread.
My point is that no place is a stand-alone sustainable entity. Not the city, not the suburbs, not the rural areas.