After the fiscal year ended on June 30th, the City of Indianola moved into FY2023 receiving strong Local Option Sales Tax funds, which has continued since the implementation of the tax in 2016. City of Indianola Assistant City Manager Andy Lent tells KNIA News while the pandemic did limit travel and canceled the normal revenue generating events such as the National Balloon Classic and the Warren County Fair in 2020, LOST funds did not significantly drop.

“Surprisingly enough, and this is across the state, not just for Indianola, Local Option Sales Tax did not take much of a hit. There was a state law that went into effect a few years ago that was before the pandemic that forced sellers online to collect sales tax and remit that to the state. So when the pandemic hit and people went online to purchase items, the sales tax stayed strong so that was sent to the state and recouped by the city.”

Lent also said the city is in a good financial state going into the next year, even with several large ongoing projects.