With the myriad of bills being debated within the Wyoming Legislature, we’re happy to see one make its way through that will benefit local governments utilizing their special purpose taxes.
House Bill 95 was sent to Gov. Mark Gordon’s desk Friday and would allow governments to use excess special use sales tax revenues after the voter-approved projects are completed. One of the difficulties with a special purpose tax like the sixth penny improvement projects tax used in Sweetwater County is the fact that the tax cannot end until after the entire amount is collected. This issue is compounded further by the fact that the tax cannot be instantly shut off. This creates situations where an over collection of tax is guaranteed because of the time it takes to deactivate the tax after the full amount is collected. Previously, over collections were determined after the fact, or as in the case of the Child Developmental Center’s sixth penny projects, set aside to pay for the maintenance and upkeep of the organization’s buildings.
What this does is allow the city and county an opportunity to use those excess taxes on other needs. In Rock Springs’ case, it means additional funds to secure grant funding for work on the Bitter Creek, as was cited in a brief released by the Wyoming News Exchange Monday morning. For Green River, it could mean funding to help renovate the water main along Flaming Gorge Way or matching funds for grant money to continue renovation work on the U.P. Depot.
With the 2020 ballot becoming increasingly likely to see another sixth-penny tax initiative for voters to consider, it was important for this issue to be dealt with. We hope to see any future over collection of special purpose sales tax go to the areas where funding is needed most.
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