DURHAM -- It's uncertain whether there's enough support in the state Senate for a bill that would allow Durham County voters to decide whether to implement a 1 percent tax on all prepared food and beverages.

The measure passed the House by a single vote last week and now awaits a hearing by the Senate finance committee.

Local leaders want to use most of the several million the new tax would generate on "cultural amenities," including a proposed Minor League Baseball museum.

Sen. Floyd McKissick, a Durham Democrat, said Monday he is "evaluating the political landscape" to determine the level of support.

The finance committee won't take up the bill unless McKissick gives the green light, because it's a local bill that would affect only Durham County.

"It will be a close vote," McKissick said. "We are getting vigorous opposition from the restaurant lobby."

The N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association has pushed hard to convince lawmakers the bill is bad policy, enlisting restaurateurs from across the state to write opposition letters to their representatives.

"We are not opposed to local sales tax if it's applied to all retail outlets," said Paul Stone, the group's president and CEO. "But to pick on restaurants ... is simply not fair. Also, this is supposed to be the session with no new taxes."

Durham officials have tried to counter that last argument.

Approving the bill would not mean approving a tax, Mayor Bill Bell and others have argued. That would be left to the voters in November.

"It all got to be political," Bell said. "There are persons in the General Assembly who feel that anything that remotely smacks of taxes, they have a concern about. ... It isn't the General Assembly, it's the voters of Durham who will decide if they want to tax themselves."

Bell noted that the measure was supported unanimously by the City Council, Durham County Board of Commissioners and every member of the local legislative delegation.

But in an election year, Bell said, some legislators "have different concerns of how their vote is going to be interpreted."