The Coon Rapids City Council will vote Tuesday on whether to repeal an ordinance that requires customers to prepay when pumping gas.
The ordinance, in effect since August, requires customers either to pay at the pump or inside the gas station before fueling up. It has been criticized by station owners who say they have lost significant business.
Owners say customers spend less on gas and buy fewer store items when prepaying inside. Some motorists, they say, go to stations outside the city.
The City Council approved the ordinance 5-2 in February 2012 after Coon Rapids police said the nearly 500 gas drive-off thefts in 2011 sapped valuable police resources that should be used on more serious crimes.
Two of the five council members who voted for the measure last year have since left the council. They were succeeded by members who voted to introduce the ordinance to repeal the prepay rule earlier this month.
kevin burbach
kevin.burbach@startribune.com
