Website Launched For Casper’s Specific Purpose Tax
On September 10, the city of Casper launched a new website to help educate people in the county about the upcoming vote on Nov. 2 for the specific purpose tax.
The specific purpose tax is a temporary sales tax implemented to fund specifically defined projects in the county.
Pete Meyers, management analyst at the Casper City manager’s office, said in a press release:
"Voters need a reliable source of factual information about this issue. The Specific Purpose Tax has never been used in Natrona County before. If it’s passed, the tax will run for three months, and for that period of time, sales taxes will increase from 5% to 6%. Voters need to be informed about why it’s being proposed, what it’s going to cost, and how those funds are going to be used."
If approved, sales taxes will increase by one cent for a three-month period, from April 1 to June 30, 2022.
The tax would fund two infrastructure projects: the Salt Creek Waterline project that runs from Bar Nunn to the towns of Edgerton and Midwest, and the Midwest Avenue project in downtown Casper.
The Salt Creek Waterline project requires $2 million, while the Midwest Avenue project will require $2.4 million.
Most of the Salt Creek Waterline project is being funded by a state grant, but the grant requires one third of the budget to come from local sources, which is where the one cent tax comes in.
The final segment of Midwest will link Poplar Street all the way to downtown Casper.
The one cent tax is something that has been implemented to fund several other projects in the past, including buildings like the Nicolaysen Art Museum, Casper City Hall, the Metro Animal Shelter, and the Meals on Wheels building.
In the city's fiscal year 2022 budget, there is currently $3,596,451 allocated with one cent funding for various capital projects, from water distribution to aquatics to sewers to public transit.