Official Explanation:Sales tax in Ephron County has recently been raised from 7.8% to 7.85% in order to help pay for the construction of a new community center. This increase is expected to be enough to pay for a swimming pool, though some county officials believe that the center will benefit in other ways from the increase because _________
Which of the following most logically completes the passage? (A) most voters who approved the increase in sales tax said they did so because they knew that the center would have a pool.(B) the tax increase is scheduled to be reversed within a year of the community center’s opening.(C) private investors will be more likely to help fund the center once it is known that it will include a pool.(D) once the community center is built, the county expects an increase in the construction of residential houses.(E) the last increase in sales tax in Ephron County was used to pay for a botanical garden that has been extremely popular with the county’s residents.Question Type: Complete the Passage
Boil It Down: Ephron County raised their sales taxes to build a new community center, but it’s only enough to pay for a new pool. County officials think that’s fine for some unknown reason.
Goal: Find the best explanation for why county officials think the tax raise is good enough, even if it doesn’t cover the cost of more than just a pool. Analysis:This question asks for a piece of evidence (a premise) that will lead to the conclusion that the center will benefit from the increase beyond the construction of the pool.
Conclusion: The center will benefit from the increase other than directly from the construction of the pool.
Evidence: Sales tax in Ephron County has been raised from 7.8% to 7.85%, which will be enough to pay for a swimming pool.
If, as choice C suggests, the construction of the pool leads to more funding, then the conclusion is strengthened -- the center will benefit.
(A) most voters who approved the increase in sales tax said they did so because they knew that the center would have a pool.
The reason for the voters’ decision to approve the sales tax is irrelevant to the argument.(B) the tax increase is scheduled to be reversed within a year of the community center’s opening.
This does not address whether the center will benefit from the existing increase.(C) private investors will be more likely to help fund the center once it is known that it will include a pool.
This is the correct choice. Besides being directly helped by the construction of the pool itself, the center will be indirectly helped by private investors funding the center once they know that the pool is being built.(D) once the community center is built, the county expects an increase in the construction of residential houses.
This might benefit the community (or not), but there’s not enough information to conclude that it will benefit the center specifically.(E) the last increase in sales tax in Ephron County was used to pay for a botanical garden that has been extremely popular with the county’s residents.
The past increase might have been beneficial, but the question refers only to the new increase. The correct answer choice must stick to the terms of the argument. The words “last year” and “Botanical Gardens” are clues that the choice might be out of the scope of the argument. The same can be said for the words “extremely popular.”Don’t study for the GMAT. Train for it.