A tax is still a tax, even if we don’t pay

Submitted by Karin Richard
Posted 10/24/24

Dear editor:

Voters will be asked to vote on the Park County 2% Lodging Tax Renewal this election. 

On its Facebook page the Cody chamber provides reasons why voters should approve …

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A tax is still a tax, even if we don’t pay

Posted

Dear editor:

Voters will be asked to vote on the Park County 2% Lodging Tax Renewal this election. 

On its Facebook page the Cody chamber provides reasons why voters should approve this tax renewal. The chamber includes the money generated by tourism and the financial relief that money provides to Park County households, the lodging tax being paid for primarily by tourists, the tax being in place for 35-plus years, 10% of the tax going back to the county and every municipality within the county, and the lodging tax being a good value for tourists because it is lower than the lodging tax in other destination-hubs across the country.

As a Republican I do not support that a tax is a good tax because someone else pays for it, and not me. I also do not support the position that our tax is a good tax, because we tax less than other destinations. 

There is disagreement on how many out-of-state tourists vs Wyoming residents are impacted by both the state and county lodging taxes. Here’s what I DO know. Every time a Wyoming resident stays overnight at a hotel, short term rental or campground, they pay the accommodation going rate plus 4% sales tax, 5% state lodging tax and 2% Park County lodging tax.

I am skeptical of some of the numbers that have been provided by both the Cody chamber and the Park County Travel Council. An example “Visitors paid 32.8% of the total collected sales taxes in Park County.” I am a resident of Park County and pay cash for almost everything I buy. The PCTC can estimate numbers, extrapolate numbers, use formulas to reach numbers, but they cannot say with complete certainty that tourists paid 32.8% of ALL sales tax generated in our county in one year.

A tax being in place for 35-plus years is not justification for continuation of a tax. Since PCTC is funded entirely by taxpayers and has a multi-million dollar annual budget, I hoped to learn recently that there was direct oversight by an unaffiliated county or state body. There is not. Oversight and accountability falls to the citizens of Park County.  

PCTC uses a marketing company based in Nova Scotia, Canada. Last winter they hosted a photography event and used two outdoor photographers from Seattle. Last spring they hosted a hiking retreat and partnered with an outdoor clothing company from New York City.  

Our local travel council should prioritize hiring locally, in the county and the state. If needed services are large scale, they should break those jobs into smaller components. This would open additional pathways for capable but smaller local and regional businesses to engage with the travel council. Buy local. Hire local.

If the 2% lodging tax renewal is voted down, the PCTC will not be wholly defunded. They will still receive 2% from the Wyoming Office Of Tourism. How will they operate with only half the funds they received in years past?  The travel council would do the same thing we have all had to do over these past four years of inflation and stagnant wages.  They would have to make decisions about where those limited resources will go.  

I voted NO on the 2% Park County Lodging Tax Renewal for the reasons listed above. Sketchy numbers. Lack of accountability and oversight. The need to reprioritize who PCTC partners with, and bring those dollars home to Park County. The conviction that after 35-plus years, the lodging tax should be evaluated by voters every time it comes up for renewal. The belief that taxes that benefit some, but are paid for by others, is immoral and not a conservative Republican value. 

If you want to learn more about the Park County 2% Lodging Tax Renewal contact the chamber or travel council directly with your questions. Thank you for giving this issue serious consideration, and please remember to vote early or vote on Nov. 5.

Karin Richard

Cody

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