Once again, Park County voters shot down a proposed 1% general purpose sales tax that would have raised additional revenue for the county government, the cities of Powell and Cody and the town of Meeteetse.

Council members and commissioners said that, with expenses rising and other sources of revenue flat or sinking, they need a new source of income to maintain current services.

But a clear majority of voters disagreed. A total of 9,779 local residents, or 60.7%, voted no on the proposal, while 6,330 voters (39.3%) supported the new tax, according to unofficial results.

The tax did draw support in four of Park County’s 29 precincts: three in the City of Powell and one in the City of Cody, but failed everywhere else. In Clark, 77% of voters were opposed.

A political action committee called “A Penny for Park County” launched an extensive campaign to push for the tax, including with an active Facebook page. But its Facebook ads ran into resistance, which ultimately foreshadowed Tuesday’s results.

As one example, Brent Metzer of Powell posted a Monday comment on the committee page that read, “Learn to budget. Cut out the fat. Just like we all have to do at home.”

Other critics of the proposed 1% tax hike cited concerns about driving Park County shoppers to Billings, where there is zero sales tax, and complained about waste. Some voters said they would have preferred to consider a specific purpose tax, such as the $13.68 million tax they approved in 2016 for a list of set projects. However, local government leaders said their current budget shortfalls are coming in their general funds, rather than specific projects.

In an attempt to reassure voters, the cities of Powell and Cody had released tentative lists of what they would fund with the money, while Park County commissioners said they would look to use much of the money on infrastructure.

In the end, however, the tax failed by roughly the same margin as a similar proposal did in 2012.

“I don’t think the electorate has a clear picture of the finances here at the city,” said Powell Mayor John Wetzel.

With the economy going south and coal not expected to rebound, Wetzel said people don’t understand how that impact will filter down to the local level.

“They’re going to have to feel the impact before they see what we’re up against,” he said.

Despite the shrinking budget, the mayor said the City of Powell will do its best to maintain services and take care of the community.

During a Wednesday meeting, Park County Commission Chairman Joe Tilden said he was “very, very disappointed in the voters of Park County, that they don’t believe that we can be trusted with spending our money. … We needed the additional revenue.”

In the meantime, Tilden and the rest of the commissioners, who have instituted a form of hiring freeze, voted on Wednesday to allow two positions in the road and bridge department and another at the Clark landfill to be refilled; those positions were in the current budget. Commissioners also allowed the Park County Planning and Zoning Department to add a full-time position that’s not in the budget; it will replace a part-time position the department previously had. The leaders of both the planning and public works departments have told commissioners that their staffs have been strained by growing workloads.

Speaking in support of replacing and adding the positions, Tilden said the county needs to remain fully staffed.

“I think it’s very important that we keep up the staff that we have, to the best of our ability, with good solid qualified people,” he said, adding, “When the well [funding] runs dry, we’re gonna have to deal with it. But right now we’ve still got a little water at the bottom of the well.”

While the county budget is getting tight, “it doesn’t seem fair to ride our employees,” Commissioner Jake Fulkerson said during the discussions.

“The voters have elected us to make these decisions,” Fulkerson said. “They [voters] don’t want the same level of quality. So I’d be inclined to, you know, close some bridges, reduce the chip sealing, do the plowing, but why ride our employees?”

However, in a separate decision on Wednesday, commissioners decided to reduce employees’ benefits. The county will no longer offer $500 payments into the health savings accounts of county workers and spouses who undertake certain health measures.

Following the defeat of the 1% tax on Tuesday, “We have to start making some trims,” said Commissioner Lloyd Thiel.

Raising the sales tax rate from 4 to 5% was expected to raise roughly $7 million a year for local governments.

(Kevin Killough contributed reporting.)