Truesdale residents can have their questions about an upcoming sales tax proposal answered March 18.

City officials will host a public meeting at City Hall at 6 p.m. that day to provide information about a half-cent transportation sales tax that will be on the city’s election ballots April 7.

The tax is intended to help the city keep up with maintenance and repair of city streets. It would add half of a cent to every dollar of retail purchases in Truesdale, which equates to 5 cents per $10 of purchases.

The proposal will not affect real estate or personal property taxes.

City officials estimate the half-cent sales tax will generate about $60,000 per year for street projects.

“The deteriorating conditions of the streets in recent years is due to lack of funding and the increase in (cost of) petroleum products for repairs and maintenance,” the city said in a notice mailed to residents.

City officials said street projects are currently funded from a 1-percent general sales tax that also has to support every other city operation, as well as from the state motor fuel tax. The city received about $29,000 in motor fuel tax funding in its previous fiscal year.

Meanwhile, a recent repair to stormwater drainage on Austin Drive cost Truesdale over $150,000. City officials said a 2017-2018 project to repave part of Smith Street cost $214,000.

If approved by voters in April, money generated by the transportation sales tax could only be used for transportation-related purposes.