Local governments weigh resolutions to advance ‘funding key services’ sales tax

(Fremont County, WY) – Members of Fremont County’s Joint Committee on Funding Key Services have been meeting with local governing boards this month to discuss a proposed three-quarter percent sales tax measure supporting the county ambulance system, public ground transportation, and commercial air service.

If the Fremont County Commission and a majority of municipal governments approve a resolution supporting the optional sales tax measure in the coming weeks, the question could appear on local primary election ballots in August.

Alternatively, the measure could also reach the ballot through a petition signed by 5 percent of Fremont County’s qualified electors.

Three-quarters vs. one-half

The proposed three-quarter percent sales tax would generate about $6.5 million annually, according to this month’s committee presentations.

Of that total, about $1 million would fund public ground transportation organizations in Fremont County, $2 million would support commercial air service at Central Wyoming Regional Airport, and $3.5 million would go toward the county ambulance system.

A half percent sales tax, by contrast, would generate approximately $4.4 million – not enough to support all three core services, with about $650,000 going to public ground transportation organizations in Fremont County, about $1.75 million supporting commercial air service, and about $2 million funding the county ambulance system, according to the Joint Committee presentations.

The City of Riverton expects to pay about $1.8 million this year to maintain commercial air service at Central Wyoming Regional Airport, and the Joint Committee estimated that it would cost about $3.5 million per year to operate an ambulance service locally in Fremont County.

The funding for ground transportation would support the Wind River Transportation Authority, as well as local senior centers, Head Start programs, and other organizations that provide public transportation in Fremont County, the Joint Committee said.

Sales tax vs. property tax

When the committee presented the proposal in front of the Fremont County Commission this month, Commissioner Ron Fabrizius said he preferred the sales tax option to the current system in which the county uses property taxes fund the local ambulance service.

“I’m a lot more in favor of the sales tax,” Fabrizius said. “That way everybody pays.”

Commissioner Mike Jones called that “a really important point.”

“This is taking it out of a property tax into a more equitable sales tax, which (is) paid by everyone in the county,” Jones said. 

During a Riverton City Council meeting later that day, Riverton City Administrator and Joint Committee Member Kyle Butterfield pointed out that the county is also facing further “reductions in revenue as it relates to property tax.”

If optional sales tax revenues could be used to fund the local ambulance system instead, Butterfield said the county could redirect some of those property tax dollars to other services.

For example, Riverton Mayor Tim Hancock said local residents have raised concerns recently about future funding for the Riverton Branch Library.

“This kind of thing ensures that Riverton doesn’t lose its library, because what you’re doing is making it so that the county commissioners have the funding available for the ambulance,” he said. 

Ambulance

Riverton City Councilmember Karen Johnson wasn’t sure local voters would support an optional sales tax for the ambulance system, though – especially without assurances that the service would be expanded and improved.

“I’m hearing a lot of support … for the airport and ground transportation, (but) I think you start losing support for this when the ambulance is included,” she said. “It would … be helpful to say you’re going to have guaranteed services in Dubois, in Shoshoni, in Atlantic City, Lander, Hudson – you know, all of these small, rural, outlying areas. (Otherwise), asking everybody to pay for a service that they don’t use is going to be a hard sell, I think.”

That was one of the issues that arose when the Joint Committee presented its proposal to the Shoshoni Town Council last week.

The town recently started its own ambulance service – a development that prompted Shoshoni Police Department Chief Chris Konija to wonder, “Why would we give money to the county (for an ambulance) when we have our own?” 

The Joint Committee has prepared a draft agreement proposing that, if the sales tax passes, each local government would send 54 percent of the proceeds to the Fremont County Treasurer for emergency medical services – but Committee Secretary Lisa Mallon said the Town of Shoshoni could decide not to sign that agreement so it could use its sales tax proceeds to support its own ambulance.

The town could also work with the county and other local municipalities to revise the draft agreement, which was proposed to be renegotiated annually, she added.

Konija seemed interested in having those conversations, as he expressed overall support for the sales tax initiative in general.

“Having a sales tax to fund the ambulance service (is) a good thing,” he said. “It’s needed as a funding mechanism, because we don’t have one currently, (and) having a way to fund the ambulance is vitally important.”

During the Riverton City Council meeting, Councilmember Karla Borders predicted that a majority of local voters would support the proposal to fund the ambulance service, too. 

“I feel like ambulance service is critical,” she said. “I don’t think you’re going to find many people that don’t want that service, because if you need it … you want it to be there.”

Councilmember Mike Bailey agreed that, even though “I’ve never had to ride in the ambulance … I still want them there because one of these days I might need them.” 

Separate measures?

When the Joint Committee presented its proposal in front of the Lander City Council last week, Councilmember Dan Hahn asked whether the group had considered dividing the sales tax initiative into three separate ballot measures – one for the ambulance service, one for public transportation, and one for commercial air service.

“I think it’s a fair tax … where everybody pays, (but) it’s kind of scary where it’s all or nothing,” he said. “There are people out there that might like a piece of the pie, but they don’t like the whole pie, (so) they vote against it.”

The Joint Committee did consider proposing three separate tax measures, Chairman Mick Pryor said, but in the end they decided it would be better to combine the proposals so that “we can move money between those three things as necessary.”

For example, he said, if the ambulance system eventually becomes more “efficient” and no longer requires the same amount of funding, the “excess money could go to where it was needed” at that time. 

The Fremont County Association of Governments also recognized that each of the key services would be “popular with one group but unpopular with another,” Pryor noted, and “we want all of the things to pass because we think that all of them are important.”