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Cuyahoga County Council, as expected, introduced legislation on Tuesday that would send a 20-year renewal of the county's "sin tax" to the May ballot.

(Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The debate on a possible renewal of Cuyahoga County's "sin tax" has officially begun.

As expected, County Council on Tuesday evening introduced legislation that would ask voters in May to approve a 20-year renewal of the county's tax on alcohol and cigarettes. The money, which projects to $260 million over the next 20 years, would pay for maintenance for FirstEnergy Stadium, Progressive Field and Quicken Loans Arena, according to advocates for the tax renewal.

The proposal would renew the county's tax on cigarettes at 4.5 cents a pack, 16 cents per gallon on beer, 32 cents per gallon on wine and mixed beverages, 24 cents per gallon of cider and $3 per gallon of hard liquor.

The proposal still needs "yes" votes from eight of council's 11 members before a Feb. 5 filing deadline to make it on the May ballot. Two public hearings have been scheduled for Jan. 21 and Jan. 28 to debate the renewal and to get more information from the Cavs and Indians on how the money will be used. And more are possible, said council President C. Ellen Connally, a Democrat.

"We reserve the right that we may have some other special meetings on the sin tax issue because it is such an important issue, and we want to make sure all sides are heard," Connally said.

No members of the public showed up Tuesday evening to comment on the proposed tax renewal. The teams have not yet said publicly what they would do with the money if voters approve the renewal. Sample ballot language included in the resolution introduced Tuesday says the money could be used for "paying for the costs of constructing, renovating, improving, or repairing sports facilities" or to "reimburse a county for costs incurred" in the construction of sports facilities.

Spokesmen for the Cavs and Indians didn't return messages seeking comment on Tuesday. Joe Roman, CEO of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, which is pushing the tax renewal, said he expects team representatives will appear before County Council on Jan. 21 to talk about their plans.

Democratic County Councilmen Dan Brady and Pernel Jones, along with council staff, on Monday met with representatives of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the three sports teams and R Strategy Group, a political consulting group that will be working on the campaign if the issue makes it to the ballot. The two sides discussed broadly what it would take to get the issue through council, as well as how the political campaign would proceed, Jones said on Tuesday.

Jones, who is sponsoring the tax renewal legislation, said he supports measure under the expectation that county residents who pay the sin tax would be hired to perform the work on the stadiums.

"I do understand the political dynamics here ... But I see this an an opportunity to make a difference for the community," he said.

Councilman Mike Gallagher, a Republican, currently is leaning against the tax. He said he has an open mind, but prefers that debate would have started before this month.

"I don't think much thought has been put into this by the backers," Gallagher said. "As you know, the people in Northeast Ohio are taxed out. We’ve got one of the highest bed taxes and one of the highest sales taxes. It’s tax, tax, tax. People have had it."

Council has scheduled public meetings to discuss the sin tax for 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Jan. 21 and 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 28. A third meeting is tentatively set for 2 p.m. on Jan. 23, according to council staff.

Voters first approved a 15-year sin tax in 1990 to build new downtown stadiums for the Cavs and the Indians. In 2005, voters approved a 10-year renewal to pay off the debt for what's now called FirstEnergy Stadium, which houses the Browns.