An election was held on Saturday and St. Tammany Coroner Dr. Charles Preston’s effort to renew a 3.1-mill property tax for his agency came up short.
It was the only parish-wide item on Saturday’s ballot.
Complete but unofficial returns show 56% voting against the tax.
Turnout was just over 8%.
Preston campaigned aggressively for the measure, running ads and mailing out copies of the agency’s annual report. He also held a town hall meeting at the Parish Council chambers days before the election, although it drew a sparse crowd.
The coroner said that tax, which generates nearly $7.8 million annually, pays for the agency’s operations and is needed to provide the same level of service.
This tax was first approved as a 4-mill tax 20 years ago, in part to build the Coroner’s Office and DNA lab.
Parish President Mike Cooper told the Parish Council last year that the Coroner’s Office didn’t need as large a millage because bonds for the facility will be paid off next year and the agency has a fund balance of more than $10 million.
