Calculate the Advantage
(Wampsville, NY – March 2013) Madison County is embarking on a “Buy Madison County: Calculate the Advantage” campaign to educate local consumers about the advantages of buying goods and services in Madison County. Local purchases have positive impacts on local businesses and also help Madison County and local municipalities increase sales tax revenue for local government services without relying solely on the property tax base.
By educating residents with the Buy Madison campaign, county officials plan to raise awareness of the impact of everyday purchasing on the local economy. Filling up with gas in Madison County, buying a morning coffee here at home, making the effort to purchase gifts and clothing locally and dining at local restaurants can have significant impacts on local businesses and sales tax revenue that is used to support local programs.
According to organizers, if each resident over the age of 18 spent an additional $3.52 per day at Madison County businesses, the county could raise an additional $1.5 million in sales tax revenue.
Other ways to keep sales tax local include using the Madison County Department of Motor Vehicles for license, photo identification, vehicle permit, registration, plate, title and transfer applications and renewals; 12.7 percent of every local DMV transaction is returned to Madison County to help keep county property taxes down.
Madison County has a net daily outmigration of approximately 10,000 people traveling to work outside of Madison County. The goal of this campaign is to educate those individuals the importance of buying their gas, coffee, meals, clothing, etc., where they live and not where they work, so their sales tax dollars stay here and are not leaked to neighboring counties.
Buying locally ensures sales taxes are reinvested into Madison County, which helps pay for services including parks, infrastructure improvements, emergency services, snow removal, local non-profits and many quality-of-life projects in our communities.
Research shows that entrepreneurs and experienced workers will more likely live and invest in communities that preserve the characteristics of locally owned businesses.
* Keep Dollars Here: When you buy in Madison County, the sales tax collected stays in Madison County.
* Support Local Jobs: When you make your purchases here, you support and encourage job creation in Madison County.
* Help the Environment: Shopping in the community in which you live reduces the amount of driving required for goods and services, lessening traffic and air pollution.
The ‘Buy Madison County’ mission is to promote local purchasing of goods and services, from visitors and residents alike, to improve local businesses and to generate sales tax revenue for Madison County and its municipalities.
We have great business assets here; let’s help them thrive! For more information, visit www.buymadisonNY.com.