Council May Lift Ban on Fireworks Sales In City

Should the sale of fireworks be permitted within the City limits of Smithville?
Since 1982, the city has prohibited the sale of fireworks.
The mayor and aldermen may consider an ordinance lifting the ban at the next meeting in April.
City Administrator Hunter Hendrixson raised the issue Monday night. “Over the last several years I’ve had several people come to us to ask if we were going to allow the sale of fireworks inside the city limits. I’m just bringing this up to see if you want me to bring an ordinance to the next meeting. Obviously we can shoot them (fireworks) inside the city. The county allows the sale of fireworks. The state also regulates it. You have to be approved by the state first to sell fireworks. The most we would capture off that is about $1,000 per permit in the July time period and about $500 around December to New Year’s Eve. I think at the most the city stands to make maybe $5,000 to $7,000 and the sales tax as well. I just think it would be good for the city to capture permit revenues,” said Hendrixson.
“I agree Mr. Hendrixson and I don’t see a down side to it since they are so readily available already. It is legal to fire them in the city just not in the central business district,” said Alderman Shawn Jacobs.
The last time the aldermen considered lifting the ban was in December 2007 after a local businessman asked that city businesses and others have the same opportunity to sell fireworks inside the city as those outside the city limits.
The aldermen initially voted on first reading to lift the ban at a meeting in December 2007 but then two weeks later reversed the decision and voted the leave the ban in place citing complaints from concerned citizens.