CLAYTON, Mo. — The St. Louis County Council meeting on Tuesday was cut short after protesters overwhelmed the council chambers.
While taking up a measure regarding Holocaust Remembrance Day a resident who signed up to speak during public comment called on the council to recognize what’s happening in Palestine specifically, while chanting.
District 7 Councilman Mark Harder says the chanting continued and they were unable to allow others to come up for public comment.
“We had to clear the chamber of those disruptors. Unfortunately, everyone had to go. And, so, we then went back into session and decided that we're going to continue the meeting on Friday,” Harder said.
A measure to tackle rampant expired temporary tags all over St. Louis County roads was one thing the council couldn’t get to on Tuesday.
“I think it's been a big frustration with many of our residents when they see this and people think, well, I paid my tax. Why? Why can't they pay their tax? And, especially when it's, egregious, like a two year, expiration,” Harder said.
The resolution wouldn’t change current law or penalties when it comes to expired temp tags but Harder says he hopes it would put the issue near the top of the list for county police.
“We're really dealing with about 5% of the population. And so we got to make sure that we're cracking down on that 5% that chooses not to purchase their tags,” Harder said.
He said he hopes area police can crack down on enough of them until the car dealerships can start collecting the tax directly.
“We are short revenue. And, that's kind of a byproduct of this. And it's been going on for quite some time. So we're hoping that if there is a crackdown and people do pay their tax on time, that, we'll see an uptick in the revenue that comes from that, revenue source,” Harder said.
The St. Louis County Council will be back in session on Friday at 4 p.m. but it will be virtual only and they plan to take up this issue then.