This year, the Board of County Commissioners had new faces join county leaders and worked through ongoing discussions about the future of the county — especially in regard to ambulance service and the proposed Natrium plant being built in Wyoming.
New faces
Mary Thoman began her first term as a county commissioner in January after being elected in November 2020. Thoman replaced longtime Commissioner Wally Johnson.
In June, Sweetwater County Treasurer Robb Slaughter announced his decision to resign and retire after 28 years. Slaughter’s last day was July 1.
“I will miss coming to work everyday, there’s no doubt about that,” he said. “I will miss that daily interaction at the courthouse.”
Slaughter was replaced by Joe Barbuto, whom Slaughter personally asked to consider being the next county treasurer. Barbuto started work July 21, a day after the Sweetwater County Commissioners voted 4-1 to appoint him following public interviews they conducted with candidates recommended by the Sweetwater County Democratic Party.
Ambulance service
One topic that kept coming back before the commissioners throughout 2021 was the question of providing and funding ambulance service in Sweetwater County.
In March, the county commissioners voted to continue subsidies to ambulance providers, which were originally set to end March 21, until the end of June. Green River Mayor Pete Rust and Rock Springs Mayor Tim Kaumo requested the commissioners continue providing the subsidy. The need to find a long-term funding solution was discussed, with the cities of Green River and Rock Springs expressing their inability to fund ambulance service themselves.
As the commissioners looked for alternative long-term solutions for ambulance funding, the question of establishing a 1% general purpose tax was first raised in the summer during discussions among the Intergovernmental Joint Leadership Group. The group, which consists of representatives from the Sweetwater County Commissioners and the city and town councils throughout the county, proposed a special election to allow voters to determine if a 1% sales tax should be levied. The plan was for the proposed tax to be split with 75% being used for ambulance services and 25% going towards economic development causes. The Sweetwater County Commissioners voted unanimously July 6 to pass the ballot initiative.
While the commissioners supported the tax, it faced resistance, first when the Rock Springs City Council didn’t pass the initiative in July, then again in September when the Sweetwater GOP issued a statement on its website opposing the tax.
During the October 5 meeting, the commissioners discussed the possibility of amending or rescinding the ballot question for the tax, but determined the ballot couldn’t be changed since votes had already been cast through absentee ballots, which had been mailed out in September. Commissioners decided to instead continue plans to educate residents about the the tax.
Educational mailers were sent out in October, three weeks before the election. The educational efforts were originally intended to start in mid-September, but questions of the difference between educating and promoting led to discussions between attorneys representing the county and cities and the Wyoming Attorney General’s office. It was determined taxpayer funds could only be used for education, not promotion, which led to language in the mailer needing to be made.
Despite the educational efforts, the tax was soundly voted down at the November 2 special election.
“I think voters spoke clearly that this general purpose tax proposal is something they’re not willing to support,” Sweetwater County Commission Chairman Randy Wendling said.
Without the tax passing, the question of how to fund ambulance service continued, for both the short-term and long-term. During the November 16 meeting, Sweetwater Medics Director Ron Gatti asked the commissioners for an additional $235,000 from the county to help the ambulance service get through the end of the fiscal year. Gatti claimed without these funds, the ambulance service would be forced to go out of business. The commissioners unanimously voted to approve the funds, pending changes to the contract to be discussed at the next meeting.
At the next meeting, representatives from Castle Rock Ambulance Service came before the commissioners to express their belief the commission was treating them unfairly by giving Sweetwater Medics additional funds. The commissioners voted to approve the contract with Sweetwater Medics, including the additional subsidy, so that ambulance service could continue in Rock Springs. However, they also asked if Castle Rock was interested in taking over ambulance service in Rock Springs.
This question was discussed by several groups over the next week, and an update was given during the December 13 Intergovernmental Joint Leadership Group meeting, when Castle Rock and Sweetwater Medics confirmed they are working together toward the goal of consolidating and Castle Rock taking over ambulance service. Castle Rock Director Bailie Dockter estimated the transition could take about six months.
Natrium plant
Another major topic of discussion among county leaders this year was the Natrium plant proposed to be built in Wyoming.
In June, Governor Mark Gordon announced Wyoming would partner with TerraPower and Rocky Mountain Power to build a next-generation Natrium reactor at one of four retiring coal plants in Wyoming, with Sweetwater County being one of the considered locations.
In July, the Sweetwater Economic Development Coalition put together a recruitment document giving an overview of why Sweetwater County would be a good location for the nuclear plant. Sweetwater County was the first among the counties in consideration to submit this type of document. The document was presented to the commissioners, who all praised it.
“We have this proposal now for anybody else that we are going to potentially try to bring into our community,” Commissioner Lauren Schoenfeld said.
November 16, TerraPower announced the company’s decision to locate the Natrium power plant in Kemmerer. Commissioners received the news in a video conference with TerraPower and Rocky Mountain Power representatives during the commission meeting that day. Several commissioners expressed their belief the decision could still benefit Sweetwater County.
“There are positives for both communities,” Commissioner Roy Lloyd said.
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