JACKSON, Wyo. — Teton County residents voted in favor of the single Specific Purpose Excise Tax (SPET) proposal on the ballot this year: $88 million for the construction of a new Teton County Justice Center.
The vote was extremely close; original results on Election Night showed the proposition winning by just 25 votes. Because the race was within a margin of 1%, votes needed to be recounted, according to Teton County Clerk Maureen Murphy. The recount yielded similar results, with the proposition winning by 28 votes.
Teton County Sheriff Matt Carr told Buckrail he was pleased with the outcome.
“It’s a win for the community,” Carr said. “It’s a good way to future-proof these services for the county.”
Clerk of the District Court Anne C. Sutton, who was active in the campaign for the project, spoke with Buckrail about the close race.
“This SPET question was a great example of how important each vote can be in determining outcomes,” she said. “I respect the opinions of all the voters and am grateful there was broad participation and input.”
Sutton said those organizing the project are looking forward to finalizing plans now that the question of funding has been answered.
“In my view, there isn’t a win or lose situation, it was a ‘which way forward’ question,” Sutton said. “The question was whether voters would approve SPET as a funding tool for the justice center project. I am grateful the voters approved the SPET measure. It allows the project to move forward without further delay, which would have increased costs. Using SPET also means the county will avoid expensive financing or other tax options that could have put a greater burden on budgets and residents.”
An informational pamphlet about the project circulated by the county ahead of the election states that at least 55% of sales tax is paid by visitors in the area. The pamphlet also states that it will take about four and a half years to acquire the funds necessary for the Justice Center project.
Sutton noted that the project team received feedback from the community about the plans, and said that most of the concerns voiced were already being considered internally, including the cost of the project and space optimization.
“I believe part of why the SPET measure passed was how much work the project team had already done to debate, prioritize and balance needs and costs,” she said. “I heard an interest in maximizing energy efficiencies as much as possible where the project budget allows. There were also many advocates for project plans to include appropriate space and proximity for critical court programs such as Victim Services, Access to Justice and the Law Library. In my experience, these interests are all shared by the project team.”
