[ad_1]
Residents of Natrona County will vote today on whether to add a sixth cent in sales tax for three months next year to support a pair of construction projects in Casper, Midwest and Edgerton.
If passed, it would be the first time the county has implemented a tax for specific purposes.
It aims to raise $ 4.3 million between April and June by adding an additional sales tax penny at the state’s 4% rate and the county’s 1-cent tax, approved by voters since 1974.
The money would be split between replacing a water line that would serve Midwest and Edgerton and renewing a section of Midwest Avenue in Casper.
Voting will be open at polling stations across the county between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
To find your polling station, you can view the online county locator and constituency map at vote.natronacounty-wy.gov, or call the Election Office at 307-235-9217.
Most people who voted in the last general election will head to the same place, as long as their address has not changed. But if you live in Ward 2-6, the area around Wyoming Boulevard between CY Avenue and Poplar Street, this time you will head to Radius Church instead of the Shrine Club.
People also read …
The results are expected to fall today after the polls close. The tax is the only issue on this year’s poll.
According to County Clerk Tracy Good, 769 people had voted early and another 534 had mailed out ballots on Monday afternoon.
Good said she expects a much lower turnout for today’s vote than for a general election – the most recent, in 2020, saw more than 35,000 voters. The last special election in Natrona County, in which voters decided on an indoor smoking referendum, saw just over 6,000 people vote.
Today’s election is also the first time voters will have to comply with the state’s new voter identification law.
This means that anyone wishing to vote today must bring one of the following: a US driver’s license or other ID card, a tribal ID card, a US passport, a US military card, a card Medicare or Medicaid insurance, or a student card from a Wyoming public school, community college, or the University of Wyoming.
If the tax passes, $ 2 million will be used to replace seven miles of the Salt Creek water line on a section that is the only source of drinking water for Midwest and Edgerton. It also serves the nearby Salt Creek oil field, the second most productive in the state. The current line is corroded and has constant leakage issues.
The $ 2 million would be the county’s local counterpart, combined with state money already pledged by the Wyoming Water Development Commission.
In Casper, about $ 2.3 million of sixth cent tax revenues would be used to renovate Midwest Avenue between Walnut and Poplar streets. Almost $ 6 million in grants and 1 cent in tax has already been spent to improve other parts of the street, and the final section is the link between downtown Casper and Poplar.
Natrona County Commission Chairman Paul Bertoglio said in June there may soon be more traffic in the area once agencies start moving into the state office building on Collins Drive Starting from February.
Follow the city and criminal reporter Ellen Gerst on Twitter at @ellengerst.
[ad_2]
