Plans for possible 1 cent tax proposal move forward

Posted 6/16/16

Leaders from around the county agreed on Wednesday to start developing a list of around $20 million to $25 million worth of infrastructure projects that could potentially be funded with a 1 percent specific purpose sales tax. They’ll decide in a …

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Plans for possible 1 cent tax proposal move forward

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Park County leaders are cautiously getting closer to asking voters to give them an additional 1 cent of sales tax.

Leaders from around the county agreed on Wednesday to start developing a list of around $20 million to $25 million worth of infrastructure projects that could potentially be funded with a 1 percent specific purpose sales tax. They’ll decide in a couple weeks whether to keep moving forward.

“There’s no question that we could certainly use the money. We have projects that desperately need to be done,” said Park County Commissioner Joe Tilden.

The question on the minds of the Cody, Meeteetse and county officials who gathered Wednesday was if it’s worth asking voters for the money.

While a 2012 proposal for a 1 cent general purpose sales tax failed, Cody City Councilman Donny Anderson said he’s hearing more people saying they will support a tax if it’s for a specific purpose.

“I think there’s really a good chance that it will pass this time. I don’t know how they’ll let us (local governments) slide any longer,” Anderson said.

Others weren’t so sure.

“I’ll stump for it this time, but I don’t have a good feeling about this at all,” said Commissioner Bucky Hall.

Officials from the county, Cody, Meeteetse and Powell — who didn’t attend Wednesday’s meeting — have been mulling what to do since getting residents’ thoughts on a possible new tax last month.

Results from a mail survey conducted earlier this year indicated that around 52 percent of residents would definitely or probably support a specific purpose tax, with 39 percent definitely or probably opposing it.

However, consultant Paul Hanley of George K. Baum & Company warned that actual support was likely at least 4 percent lower than shown by the mail survey — and could be 8 to 10 percent lower.

Even if the local governments followed his recommendations, Hanley indicated the best-case scenario might be the tax passing with “like 50 percent plus one vote.”

Commissioner Loren Grosskopf, however, had his own, more optimistic take on the survey results. He said if you discount those who were undecided or didn’t respond to the question about the specific purpose tax, 57 percent of locals indicated they were supportive while 43 percent were opposed.

The rejection of the proposed general purpose sales tax in 2012 by a 60 to 39 percent margin was considered a resounding no from voters, so these survey results are “almost a resounding yes,” Grosskopf said.

Meanwhile, the survey showed voters continue to be reluctant to support a general purpose tax; only 48 percent of respondents said they’d definitely or probably support a sales tax hike without specifics, with another 48 percent opposed.

The government officials agreed Wednesday that a general purpose tax is off the table.

“What we all pledged to do was respond to that survey, and so if we look at that survey I would say the survey told us the general purpose tax doesn’t have the support,” said Cody Mayor Nancy Tia Brown.

Hanley had also warned the officials that going for a tax and failing can hamper the chances of getting one passed in the future. Tilden wondered Wednesday whether it might be better to wait before trying a tax.

He believes there’d be much better odds in two years, when the reality of declining government revenue has set in.

“They’re hearing it, but they haven’t actually seen it,” Tilden said of local citizens, adding, “To really understand it, they’re going to have to feel it.”

Brown said waiting is an option that the leaders should keep in mind as they compile a list of priority projects and decide whether to move forward.

If such a proposal is ultimately placed on the ballot by county, Powell, Cody and Meeteetse officials, and if it’s approved by voters, the officials said it would likely take three or four years to collect $20 million to $25 million from the additional cent of sales tax.

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