General Election 2022

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How to vote

Inform your vote

To help readers inform their votes, we sent questionnaires to each candidate in local races. Their answers have been trimmed for print due to limitations on space. Find the full Q&A’s online at JHNewsAndGuide.com.

The News&Guide also partnered with the League of Women Voters, Teton County Library and local media to host candidate forums. Watch those videos on demand at TCLib.org/candidates.

This general election also features a hefty list of ballot requests for specific purpose excise tax funds. Our team of reporters sharpened their pencils and tackled each SPET item so you can know before you vote.

By voting yes or no on SPET, you’re deciding whether revenue from collecting one penny of sales tax on every dollar can go toward these projects.

This section also explains contested statewide races and two constitutional amendments on the ballot.

Thanks for taking time to read up on the ballot and casting your vote.

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— Eds.

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Dr.

SUPERVISOR:

Hoskins,

MANAGER: Jayann

Arne Jorgensen, incumbent

Lives: East Jackson

Years in Jackson: I am a Jackson native and have spent a total of 43 years in Jackson, I was for tunate to return home permanently in 1989.

Occupation, and how it has prepared you to be a town councilor: I’ve been an architect working in Jackson since 1989. I’ve also served on multiple public and nonprofit boards. For example, I’m a founding board member and emeritus mem ber of the Jackson Hole Community Housing Trust, a Wyoming Community Foundation emeritus board member after serving on the board for over 20 years, a past governor-appointed member of the Wyoming Board of Architects and Landscape Architects, where I served for 12 1/2 years, and I’ve served on many committees of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards.

Each of these experiences prepared me to be a thoughtful and effective member of the Town Coun cil, including awareness of both the intent and im plementation of regulations and working with wide ly diverse groups of public and private stakeholders to efficiently implement appropriate policy direction.

Why are you running for town councilor?

I am running because Jackson is a community of people in an incredible community of place, and it is critical that we retain a sense of — and protect — both communities. When I was growing up in Jack son my parents instilled in me an awareness and deep appreciation of our environment. While spend ing time both in and out of Jackson, I have come to recognize the uniqueness of our people and that many are not represented in our political discourse. I have the appropriate interests and skills to ask the unasked questions and would be honored to continue to serve on the Jackson Town Council. What will you do as councilor to make headway on our affordable and workforce housing shortage?

I’ve worked hard under the guise of “all of the above” when it comes to a discussion of housing tac tics. My efforts with affordable housing for nearly 33 years have been based on four guiding principles from which I have never wavered: (1) Provide op portunities to those who are committed to our com munity, (2) Develop and support efforts that deliver housing security and stability, (3) Ensure that any homes that are presented as affordable or available to community members are protected as such over generations of residents, and (4) Be respectful.

I support the three-pronged approach our com munity is pursuing: (1) Shift density to appropriate locations, (2) Mitigate for impacts of our individual actions, and (3) Wide community-based efforts such

Katherine ‘Kat’ Rueckert

Lives: East Jackson Years in Jackson: 4

Occupation, and how it has prepared you to be a town councilor: I am a project engineer for a local construction company. I believe my skills for budget management and project organization will be beneficial as a town councilor to balance the budget and manage the operations of the Town of Jackson.

Why are you running for town councilor?

I believe our representative government flour ishes when elected offices are a revolving door of new people, new ideas and fresh perspectives. I see running for local office as my civic duty, not a career path. I’d like to get in, get stuff done and get out.

What will you do as councilor to make headway on our affordable and workforce housing shortage?

Jackson has available land that is designated for housing. It’s time we develop northern South Park with affordable, high-density housing and afford able, single-family homes for local families.

What is the first initiative you would work to put in action to ease traffic congestion?

I will remove the bollards lining Willow Street. It is an immediate action that will open up more park ing and, in turn, help alleviate traffic congestion.

What would be your strategy to manage growth in Jackson Hole?

Prioritize the most pressing issues. (Examples: housing, traffic and infrastructure.)

Review the town’s budget to determine how much money we have to work with, and reprioritize if funds aren’t available.

as private donors and public tax support. What would be your strategy to manage growth in Jackson Hole?

Our first Comprehensive Plan was adopted in the late 1970s and, along with subsequent land de velopment regulations, has been updated to reflect our community goals of managing change in Teton County and Jackson. These documents, with town and county budgets, serve as foundational docu ments that should be reflective of our community priorities and should establish our community vi sion. They are not static and require ongoing review and work to ensure that our path forward achieves the goals we have set for ourselves. It is critical that LDRs be designed to achieve clearly articulated goals; we should not rely on intended or unintended consequences of regulatory action to achieve indirect growth and change related outcomes.

Should the town look to more property tax as a revenue source? Why or why not?

Yes. Although this should be dependent on an in crease of meaningful property tax relief programs structured to provide relief to those on limited or

fixed budgets, renters and small-business owners. This would then permit both the town and county to strategically use the current unassessed proper ty tax. These programs could include a homestead exemption, capped or limited rate of growth in tax increases, the creation of different classes of resi dential property, and more robust refund options for small businesses and lower-income renters.

This being said, an optional property transfer tax should take priority. This is the tool that most di rectly targets the source of the issue, high property values, and can be structured to reduce impacts on the vulnerable in our community.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Jackson?

We need to do better on recognizing that we are at the center of the largest intact ecosystem in the lower 48 states. This fact, along with a history of large landscape conservation, is what distinguishes us from nearly every other gateway or resort com munity. Our stewardship of this place must always be in the forefront of our policy discussions.

How we balance the needs of our ecosystem with those of our community is our greatest challenge. The new Housing Preservation Program is a great example of how this can be done. This is a volun tary program that purchases restrictions on existing homes, thus providing ongoing affordability and ac cess while removing an existing home from the spec ulative market without the addition of a new home.

Do you support implementing paid parking downtown? Why or why not?

Yes. Any such implementation must be based on a communitywide effort to actively manage our park ing infrastructure. The town has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in our parking and street infra structure. Such investment should be more actively managed. Whatever the details of long-term solu tions are, they should be based on the most updated tested technology.

Do you agree with the community goal of housing 65 percent of the local workforce?

Yes. A diverse community supported by housing stability is a higher priority than a percentage metric.

In order, who is responsible for providing affordable housing?

Government, free-market developers and em ployers are tied for No. 1. Our most effective com munity housing goals are best met by a wide range of broad-based solutions.

What is your position on further hotel de velopment in Jackson? Not “either or.” The ques tion is what are the impacts of any development, hotel or otherwise.

revenue problem, we have a spending problem. In stead of raising taxes I propose we cut spending.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Jackson?

Conserving the character of Jackson. This means upholding our Western heritage, revitalizing the community of Jackson, embracing our land and wildlife and encouraging local, longtime residents to remind/educate us of the small-town way of life.

Do you support implementing paid parking downtown? Why or why not?

Nope. I think there are a lot of unintended conse quences that will come with paid parking. For one, the extra policing needed will be substantial and, frankly, the police in our community have much more pressing issues than writing citations for ex pired parking slips. Also, there will be drivers who will not want to pay for parking, and I foresee park ing spillover into the neighborhood side streets, which will not be welcomed by homeowners.

Do you agree with the community goal of housing 65 percent of the local workforce?

Deliberate on appropriate solutions, and allocate budgets, with stakeholders and community members.

Execute on projects within the allocated budget.

For sustainable growth the town government should operate within its means — as in, complete the prioritized projects when it has the funds to do so. This helps keep the government, and spending, in check while giving the community what it needs most.

Should the town look to more property tax as a revenue source? Why or why not?

Absolutely not. How can we expect to retain work ing families in our town if we tax them into oblivion? After reviewing our town’s budget we don’t have a

No. How is this 65% achieved? Not everyone wants to live in high-density housing.

In order, who is responsible for providing affordable housing?

No. 1, free-market developers,.No., 2 employers. No. 3, government. The Town Council’s role is to make standards to keep things fair and affordable, not develop as it sees fit.

What is your position on further hotel development in Jackson?

(Did not answer)

Arne Jorgensen

COURTESY PHOTO

Katherine “Kat” Rueckert

Jonathan Schechter, incumbent

Lives: Indian Trails subdivision Years in Jackson: 35

Occupation, and how it has prepared you to be a town councilor: I am a Jackson town councilor. I am also founder and executive director of the Charture Institute, a nonprofit think tank helping communities and ecosystems simultaneously thrive.

Charture studies the causes and consequences of the rapid growth and change upending places like Jackson, then helps residents address challenges and embrace opportunities.

My work has given me a singular understanding of the range and complexity of Jackson Hole’s challenges and opportunities: economic, social and environmental. It also gives me a unique ability to offer meaningful solutions to our increasingly difficult challenges.

Why are you running for town councilor?

To help Jackson Hole sustain what matters. What matters is our environment. Our community. Our economy. The qualities that make Jackson Hole one of the most remarkable places on Earth.

I have spent the past 20-plus years of my professional life studying and working with Jackson and similar communities across the country, helping them identify and sustain what matters to them.

As a town councilor, over the past four years I have focused on the town of Jackson, helping us face unprecedented growth- and change-related challenges. All of the pressures and challenges we face will only accelerate during the next four years, and I want to continue using my skills, knowledge and ability to get things done, helping the community, the re-

gion and the people I love so dearly and who have given me so much. What will you do as councilor to make headway on our affordable and workforce housing shortage?

While running for office is a “me, me, me” exercise, governing is “we, we, we.”

By myself I can do nothing to address community issues. Working collaboratively, though, I can do two things:

Continue to work with other electeds to support and enhance affordable housing efforts. Work with staff, electeds and other partners to explore and pursue all ideas for funding and developing more housing.

While we need to do more, we’ve had great success. Since I took office we’ve added 201 affordable homes (44% of all homes built), and 604 more deed-restricted homes are in the pipeline. Add in northern South Park, and during my time in office we’ve built, approved, and planned over 1,500 new affordable and workforce homes.

What would be your strategy to manage growth in Jackson Hole?

Profound changes in technology, the economy, transportation and values have made it increasingly easy to live here, creating unlimited demand for our tiny supply of land and housing. These trends will accelerate, making it even harder for Jackson Hole to sustain what matters. To effectively manage our future will require government not to solve our problems but bring us together for a clear-eyed conversation about what’s occurring, why it’s occurring, what we value and what steps we are willing to take.

Should the town look to more property tax as a revenue source? Why or why not?

For a number of reasons, raising Jackson’s property taxes is a bad idea. Raising the sales tax by 1 cent is fairer and more efficient. Sales taxes produce 80% of Jackson’s core revenues yet account for only 15% of our economy.

Given the rising cost of services, the community has a basic choice to make. If it’s OK with fewer government services, then the current system is fine. If it wants government to do more or even just maintain current services, we will eventually need to generate more government revenue. What is the most important conservation issue facing Jackson?

The Jackson/Teton County Comprehensive Plan’s vision statement reads: “Preserve and protect the area’s ecosystem in order to ensure a healthy environment, community and economy for current and future generations.” Not the town’s nor

county’s ecosystem, but the area’s ecosystem.

This is why I led the effort to create Jackson’s fi rst-in-the-nation ecosystem ste wardship administrator position. The position lets the town take a holistic approach to dealing with the area’s many and interrelated conservation issues. We can’t address only one issue and hope to preserve and protect the area’s ecosystem.

Do you support implementing paid parking downtown? Why or why not?

Paid parking downtown is inevitable. Far less clear is how to do it fairly. Figuring that out will determine when it is implemented.

Our current parking system works well much of the time. The challenge is to complement the current system with a fair “high-demand” system that addresses peak-period problems (e.g., employees taking up parking intended for customers). Any plan I support must equitably address both issues.

Do you agree with the community goal of housing 65% of the local workforce?

Yes. It’s fine, but my work shows it’s a made-up figure; a guess at what we need to sustain community

In order, who is responsible for providing affordable housing?

Employers, Free-market developers, government.

What is your position on further hotel development in Jackson?

The key question is “What’s tourism’s future?” Hotel growth is a symptom, not a core issue facing us.

Jonathan Schechter

Devon Viehman

Lives: East Jackson

Years in Jackson: Since I was 10 (roughly 30 years).

Occupation, and how it has prepared you to be a town councilor: As a Realtor for 18 years I’ve seen homeless youth and the conditions some families in our community live in, which is why housing is at the forefront of my goals.

I’ve served on local, state and national boards. I’ve been treasurer for a multimillion-dollar budget. I served as the youngest ever Teton Board of Realtors president. I know how to work cohesively with others and govern an entity. Many policy decisions made in Cheyenne and Washington, D.C., affect us locally, and I have built meaningful relationships as a lobbyist for housing protections and chair of the Land Use, Property Rights and Environment Committee for the National Association of Realtors.

I will work tirelessly to make the changes we need to create more workforce housing and not luxury real estate. Before I am a Realtor, I am a Jacksonite. My heart is with this community.

Why are you running for town councilor?

I am running because our community is frustrated and so am I. Individuals in the working and middle classes increasingly can’t afford to live here, and if they do, most of their monthly budget goes toward housing. It isn’t sustainable, and we continue to lose valuable members of our community: young people, retirees and everyone in between. The quality of life isn’t what it should be in this special place. Our community isn’t a commodity, but it sure feels like that is what it has turned into. We need datadriven, but swift decision-makers at the helm. I am that person.

What will you do as councilor to make headway on our affordable and workforce housing shortage?

While I will be only one vote, I will advocate for policy, zoning and regulation changes immediately. We need to take a step back and fix what is broken. For example, transitional neighborhoods were created to encourage multifamily units, but what happened was the prices were driven so more big boxes with vacant accessory residential units were built. I will vote “yes”

for housing, and I have demonstrated that during my time on the Teton County Planning Commission.

What would be your strategy to manage growth in Jackson Hole?

We have only so much land left in our county and even less in town, so there is only so much growth that can happen here. We do need to manage the number of visitors Jackson receives so that it’s sustainable with our environment and our local residents. Do we need more luxury townhomes and hotels? No. Not until we can create stable, affordable housing for the people who keep our community running. If commercial real estate is developed, the stakes need to be higher for it regarding housing their employees. We must also strike a balance so that we do not continue to make it nearly impossible for small-business owners to develop.

Should the town look to more property tax as a revenue source? Why or why not?

No more taxes! Longtime members of our community are being forced out because they cannot pay their property taxes. That is wrong. The town enacted a small property tax recently, which could open the door for more taxes. Renters are affected by property taxes too. The landlords pass these increases onto them and force more people out. If we

keep making it more expensive to live here, we’re adding to the affordability problem.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Jackson?

Water quality is imperative to healthy humans, wildlife and wild spaces, and right now our water quality is at risk because of many factors. Hundreds of failing septic systems are in the county. The town owns the wastewater treatment plant, and it does have a maximum capacity. Sewage is the No. 1 cause of fecal bacterial contamination in our water systems, likely due to seepage from older septic systems and sewer lines near our groundwater. I would like to see the county add a wastewater treatment plant on the West Bank and create a program to help residents replace their failing systems. A new septic can cost $10K to $20K, so many folks can’t afford to replace them. It is not only a conservation issue but also a public health issue we need to address.

Do you support implementing paid parking downtown? Why or why not?

No. I do not oppose the idea of paid parking downtown. People are used to paying it in other places, and perhaps it would get more people to walk or bike. However, we need to ask some questions before we sign the dotted line. For instance, why aren’t we building a parking deck at the Home Ranch lot? How will paid parking affect local businesses? I need to learn more about all of the options before I can commit to saying with certainty that paid parking is the right decision.

Do you agree with the community goal of housing 65% of the local workforce?

Yes. I would like to see the number even higher. In order, who is responsible for providing affordable housing?

No. 1 government, No. 2 employers, No. 3 freemarket developers

What is your position on further hotel development in Jackson?

Oppose it. Not forever, just while we fix our zoning and regs.

Devon Viehman

Brenden Cronin

Job: Highway avalanche forecaster

Affiliation: Independent

in: Southern South Park

Top issues:

1. Affordable/ workforce housing

Over-tourism

services

What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

We need taxes to fund our government. Taxes need to be addressed and the amount reassessed to take into consideration whether or not individuals and families live in this county year-round. I am open to the idea of a cap on property taxes, but we need to be realistic about who and what properties get that break. For homes 2,500 square feet (not including ADUs) or less a property tax cap seems appropriate.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

Water quality. It effects our community, wildlife and potentially the economy. If visitors associate Teton County as a place with poor water quality, it may lead to a decrease in tourism dollars.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

Address the poor water quality in Hoback Junc tion. Additionally, I would work to find more fund ing for septic system inspections.

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

It can be part of the solution. The information

Wes Gardner

Job: Owner of Teton Toys

Affiliation: Democrat

in: Game Creek

Top issues:

housing/care

What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

For better or worse, we live in a state with lim ited options to fund critical community services. Re cently, as tax revenues from natural resources have plummeted to historic lows, the state government has pressured local assessors to squeeze every penny of value from property owners. During the pandemic, skyrocketing values driven by global market pres sures have further exacerbated the strain of property taxes on homeowners. I support continued efforts to diversify Teton County’s revenue stream. Adding a seventh penny of sales tax would allow the county to significantly reduce property taxes, shifting the onus of local funding from residents to visitors. I support all specific purpose excise tax (SPET) measures and increasing the lodging tax for the same reason. With decisive and creative leadership we can both reduce property taxes and increase funding for the services at the heart of our community vision.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

With soaring home values and rental costs, we find ourselves increasingly unable to house our workforce locally. The recent Integrated Transpor tation Plan Update suggests that as many as 8,000 workers commute to and from Jackson each day. These trips represent a significant percentage of our annual greenhouse gas emissions. As a member of the START board I have focused on increasing the frequency of commuter service, opening the win dow of commuter service operation, and the ability for employers to purchase passes on behalf of their employees, making transit a more viable option for these thousands of commuters.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

Situated as we are at the headwaters of the Snake River, I am committed to ensuring that the water flowing out of our county is as clean as the water flowing in. While there are a number of factors con tributing to local water pollution, far and away the most significant is improperly sited septic systems along the river’s floodplain. Additionally, the systems

that is sent to the public sets the tone for what trav elers can expect when they come to Teton County. If we let visitors know how special this place is to us their respect for this place will increase.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

The mindset of some people needs to change, and

people need to recognize that without the Latino population this county wouldn’t function. So, what can the county do? Be open and honest with the other 80% of this county and point out the fact that the Latino population keeps this county running.

What sets you apart?

I have been blessed and fortunate during the last three years to live in an affordable unit managed by the Jackson Hole Community Housing Trust. Dur ing the last year my partner and I were able to pur chase a Workforce home through the Jackson/Teton County Affordable Housing Authority. I have lived in my car (four different times) during the past 17 years to make it work in this valley, and I under stand the struggle that many in our working class face every single day. As a public servant and a critical service provider I recognize the importance of spending the public’s money wisely. What I can offer, you the voters of Teton County, is the perspec tive of a current member of the working class or workforce of this community because I, like many of you, live in that world every single day.

If your top issue(s) was not listed, please explain below

As the county continues to create and manage Affordable and Workforce housing it needs to work alongside the private sector to accomplish these goals. Also, we need to work toward a tiered sys tem of housing so people and families can “move up” in terms of housing, from one-bedroom units for a couple to two- to three-πbedroom units as their family grows. The housing also needs to sup port the lifestyle that many of us moved here for; we need storage for gear, stairwells large enough to carry bikes and other equipment up and down and a parking space for every bedroom in the house. Housing security alleviates a huge amount of stress in people’s daily lines and allows them to become more involved with their community.

deploy more lodging tax revenue for mitigating visitor impacts. We live in one of the most beautiful and most visited regions in the country. The mountains, rivers and forests are all the promotion we need. Lodging tax dollars could find a much better use if we were allowed to deploy them to fund our local governments.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

There are a number of ways the county can im prove its relationship with the Latino community. First and foremost, all public documents, surveys and correspondence should include Spanish trans lations. Second, the county can support organiza tions like One22 and our local churches to encour age members of underrepresented groups to pursue leadership positions. Achieving a diversity of rep resentation not only opens the door for better com munication but also sets the stage for others in the Latino community to serve as well. The county is currently negotiating a number of housing opportu nities. Commissioners must ensure that in exchange for any concessions, the community receives assur ances of affordability tied to income levels.

What sets you apart?

serving both Teton Village and The Aspens are aging and potentially dangerous. Any type of failure last ing more than a few hours in either of these systems would result in untreated sewage being discharged directly into the aquifer. I propose the deployment of a high-tech water treatment plant on the west bank of the Snake River. This investment would solve both of these critical issues

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

On the one hand, Jackson Hole has relied and will always rely on tourism as our primary economic driv er. On the other, it doesn’t take a spreadsheet to realize the dangers of overtourism for both our ecological and social ecosystems. In recent years the Travel and Tour ism Board has shifted most of its focus from promo tion to education, encouraging our visitors to behave responsibly. I appreciate this shift in strategy and en courage its continued expansion. My main critique has less to do with the work of the TTB and more to do with the primary funding mechanism behind it. The lodg ing tax represents an enormous windfall for our local governments, but only 40% is allowed to support miti gating visitor impacts. I support both increasing the amount of the tax (we can double it to 4% according to state statute) and continuing efforts in Cheyenne to

I am compassionate as I consider the struggles facing our community. I am creative in developing working solutions. I am committed to doing whatev er it takes to get the job done. My successes, whether in academics, business or life, have depended on my steadfast belief that all problems are solvable. If elected, I will act with creativity, compassion, cre ativity and commitment to ensure that Teton County remains the special place that we all cherish.

If your top issue(s) was not listed, please explain below

The top issue facing any Teton County commission er is the development of affordable workforce housing. Over the past couple of years we have seen dramatic decreases in the number of affordable rental units provided by the private sector. Unprecedented global market pressures have transformed entire swaths of town, as previously affordable homes and rental units disappeared only to be replaced by largely vacant in vestment properties. Thousands of residents have re treated down the road or have simply left the area for lack of housing. If we are to avoid the fate of so many other resort towns whose workforces have been priced out, we must act boldly in the face of current oppor tunities. If elected I pledge to always seek a fair deal for the community, thoroughly and thoughtfully ex amining the details in any negotiation. The devil lies in the details. I’ll be there too, making sure that any concessions aren’t given away to developers without our getting a fair deal in return.

COURTESY PHOTO

Brenden Cronin

Wes Gardner

Peter Long

Job: Small, local family-owned business operator

Affiliation: Republican Lives in: Moran

Top issues:

workforce housing

Water quality

Traffic

Funding social services

What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

As your commissioner I will work to bring great er accountability to your tax dollars and ensure ev ery dollar serves the needs within our community, rather than more government growth.

There are parents and grandparents living in campers with their children because they have been taxed out of their homes. Meanwhile, the county ap proved a more than $95 million budget in July, a nearly 40% increase year over year. Rather than using its resources to lower property taxes or drive a legislative fix at the state level, our local govern ment is finding ways to spend the windfall, adding more employees and administration, further exac erbating the housing crisis.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

Our workforce, which is quickly becoming an en dangered species. Years of saying “no” to good op portunities to get workforce housing in the ground has choked supply, pushing our housing shortage into a crisis. The problem is compounded by sky rocketing property taxes, rents and costs of living.

Opportunities like northern South Park and the recently approved rezone in Horse Creek dem onstrate that by working with the private sector (landowners, builders, nonprofits and community advocates), we can make a difference to keep our workforce in Teton County. If elected I will work to zone more workforce housing, rebuild partnerships with the private sector to get projects done on time and on budge.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

Develop a countywide water quality vision plan and secure sustainable funding to protect our wa ters. Contamination of our local waters is a fastemerging problem. In Hoback some households’ tap water is not drinkable. Unsafe E. coli and bacteria

Kasey Mateosky

Job: Self-employed; president at KM Construction Affiliation: Republican Lives in: Hog Island

Top issues:

Affordable/workforce housing

Preserving agricultural and open space What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

No one likes being taxed in excess. However, if it’s collected and spent according to Teton County’s vision, mission and values statement, I’d say we have done our job. I will stand behind this state ment if elected as your commissioner.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

Conservation, preservation and protecting our open space and wildlife go hand in hand with growth management and affordable housing de velopment. We need to add density so that we can minimize traffic congestion and develop less open space. We need to utilize existing infrastructure and expand workforce housing in areas where we have already invested (i.e., Munger School infra structure). We must also incorporate our water quality knowledge when building new structures and developments.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

I support the water quality improvement efforts that Teton County is currently working on. There is already a comprehensive water quality planning project, called Protect Our Water Jackson Hole,

Peter Long

BY SOPHIA BOYD-FLIEGEL

levels have been detected in Fish Creek and Flat Creek. These problems affect all of us.

I support developing a water quality plan to guide the development and deployment of infrastructure needed to ensure the integrity of our waters and aquifer. I support leveraging the county’s resources and a specific purpose excise tax initiative to cre ate long-term funding. I support practical solutions, like incentives and relief funds to help families re place failing septic systems and septic testing when homes are sold.

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

It’s easy to pin blame on travel and tourism promotion, but let’s not forget that many — prob ably most — residents here first experienced Teton County as visitors. Small businesses, which create jobs that allow us to live and work here, overwhelm ing rely on the tourism industry. I appreciate that the Travel and Tourism Board has limited promo tion to shoulder seasons to help build a year-round

economy, which supports our working class. It de serves credit for helping drive mitigation efforts and raising awareness among visitors to reduce impacts.

Our elected leaders need to better manage the effects of growing visitation. For example, to con sider how new development (i.e., more hotels) will affect traffic on our roads, to increase use of public transportation (bus lanes and better routing) and to embrace common-sense solutions to traffic, like smart lights, pathways and road redundancy.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

The Latinx community is a critical part of Teton County. Sadly, it is also one of the most vulnerable and under-represented. Our Hispanic population faces disproportionately high housing insecurity, which is likely under reported. Latinx workers are more likely to earn less, work multiple jobs and struggle with costs of health care and child care. Organizations like the Latino Resource Cen ter provide critical services to help bridge divides within our community. Our local government can and should support that work, and it can do more to ensure our Hispanic community’s voice is heard. Much of that is common sense. If elected I will work with the county clerk to hold public meetings at times that work for working families (most people juggling jobs, children and daily life don’t have time to sit through hourslong meetings in the middle of a work day); provide translation services; and create a volunteer Latinx advisory board, to build relations and bring the issues facing our Hispanic population to light. Latinos and Latinas are a vital part of our community, and we are stronger when they are actively involved in shaping our future.

What sets you apart?

As a fourth-generation Teton County native, small-business owner, husband and father, I under stand the challenges facing our working class.

As your commissioner I will fight to get work force housing in the ground and ensure that it ben efits you, our working class. I will work with our state leaders and be your advocate in Cheyenne to cap property taxes, which are getting passed to renters and pushing out homeowners. I will fight to make child care and health insurance more accessi ble and affordable by removing barriers to in-home child care and launching a small-business health care plan. And I will bring greater accountability to your tax dollars, to ensure your government works for you. I understand these issues because my fam ily and I grapple with them every day.

tions we develop so that we are less impacted by the amount of tourism.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

Teton County has done a great job supporting the Latino community by integrating the dual im mersion program into Munger Mountain Elemen tary School and by establishing the Hispanic re source center. Our Latino community is critical to this town, and moving forward we need to focus on providing additional affordable housing or rentals, enforcing fair wages and developing additional re sources for families.

What sets you apart?

that will improve our surface and groundwater re sources and protect them from future degradation. We should work together as a community to expand education and participation in this project.

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

The Travel and Tourism Board is a great asset to this community. Jackson has always relied on tourism to support its economy. For example, in fis cal year 2021 alone the town and county received $2,753,875 from the lodging tax. Jackson tourism revenue also helps subsidize the impacts of tour ism on our infrastructure. However, I do believe that we need to be more effective with the solu

I care deeply about our community, and my family has been here since the 1930s. I have observed and participated, firsthand, in the growth Teton County has experienced, having served over a decade on the Teton County Planning Commission and by spending 13 years on the Teton County Weed and Pest board as treasurer. I am also a proud lifetime member of the Elks B.P.O.E. 1713 Lodge, an Army veteran and a small-business owner. My family has given back to the community by building baseball fields, sponsoring sports teams, women’s softball leagues, events and through volunteer work. Now I want to make an even larger impact by donating my time and efforts to help Teton County navigate the issues, fears and frustrations it faces. A vote for me is a vote for you.

Other: If your top issue(s) was not listed, please explain below.

I would work hard to have Teton County be wel comed back into the fold of other Wyoming commu nities again. It is possible, and I will do my best to make it happen.

Kasey Mateosky

Mark Newcomb, incumbent

Job: Economic consultant, mountain guide, ski guide, outdoor professional

Affiliation: Democrat Lives in: Kelly

Top issues:

1. Affordable housing

Water quality

Commercial growth

4. Preserving agricultural and open space

Why are you running for office?

I am driven to serve you, the citizen, and seek to promote the health and welfare of Teton Coun ty. I strive to create opportunities to thrive for the broadest possible cross section of the community. I’ll strive to protect our natural resources, includ ing water quality and wildlife. And I’ll strive to protect key elements of our history. I will support ongoing efforts to build hundreds of dwelling units restricted to the local workforce in areas close to services and schools. I’ll guard against threats to our rural areas. I will strive to support families by creating more access to early childhood education and ensuring our transportation network includes the choice to drive, bike, walk or take transit.

What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

Taxes should match the needs of the community. I identified some needs above. Revenues come from 2.32 pennies of sales tax out of every six levied on transactions for goods other than groceries. The town and state receive the rest. We levy 6.879 mills of property tax, down from 9.154 in 2018. In addi tion to the needs above, I support adequate com pensation for employees and sound maintenance of public facilities.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

Growth threatens our water quality, wildlife, agriculture and open space and is forcing out the middle class. Unprecedented levels of high-end residential and commercial development are driv

Luther Propst, incumbent

Job: County commissioner

Affiliation: Democrat

Lives in: Indian Trails subdivision, town of Jackson

ing property values through the roof and posing an existential threat to our character. We’ve taken some actions to mitigate the impacts of growth but need to do more, like address loopholes in our land development regulations and scrutinize mitigation rates to ensure we’re not being taken advantage of by big money.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

We should ensure Hoback [forms] a water im provement district for safe drinking water. We should act quickly to follow through on recom mendations from the ongoing water quality as sessment and master plan to address the projects that will most effectively improve and protect our water quality. This may include hiring a new staff position. Voting yes on the specific purpose excise tax (SPET) water quality item that will be before you this November will lay the foundation for fast action.

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

The Travel and Tourism Board can be both. Over the past two years it played an important role dampening the impact of the highest levels of

tourism we have ever experienced. However, in the past, the Travel and Tourism Board has promoted our area in ways that likely increased tourism and made the area more attractive as a place to live.

The TTB is part of the solution when the board’s efforts stabilize tourism, boosting it when it drops off and mitigating its impacts when it is boom ing. We are a high-quality destination because of a unique mix of wild and scenic grandeur and a wide array of recreational opportunities. Preserv ing all elements of this unique mix means visitors will pay more when they visit and stay longer.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

We can support members of the Latino commu nity by ensuring they have opportunities to thrive alongside all members of the community, including opportunities to occupy deed-restricted housing, partake in all health and welfare services, utilize all public facilities and access quality education. They may need support to ensure they have equal access to these opportunities, and the county can help by funding key no-governmental organizations such as Voices JH, One22 and Immigration Hope. We can also ensure we have bilingual employees in key, public-facing positions, including public health and public safety.

What sets you apart?

I strive to be as thoughtful as possible no matter who is before the commission and what their issue is. I love listening to people across the socioeconom ic and political spectrum. I take all concerns seri ously and value the wisdom of the community. No other candidate can match my experience in county government that includes six years as a planning commissioner and almost eight as a county com missioner, giving me critical insight into land use planning and budgeting, which are the two most powerful tools for protecting the health and welfare of the community. Living here my entire life frames what I value about the community — our indepen dent character and our wild and natural resources — and why we must work to protect those values. I look for the best in everyone, and I honor every individual.

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

Do you support building the Tribal Trail Connector?

I will continue to oppose this proposed high way until an environmental impact statement demonstrates meaningful benefits, relative to the financial and environmental costs. With the analysis available to date, I remain deeply skep tical of the promised benefits, very concerned with the destruction of unique wetlands, opposed to any traffic si gnal and design that would wors en traffic on an already congested Highway 22. WYDOT and the county should fold review of the proposed highway into the nearly simultaneous environmental review soon to be initiated for re building and potentially wid ening Highway 22. Responsible planning requires at minimum that we know the future width and number of lanes of Highway 22 before spending more public funds analyzing the proposed new highway and that we combine the planning processes into a single analysis.

What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

The state’s antiquated taxation system has cre ated a property tax crisis in Teton County, especially for residents on fixed incomes. Among other short comings, the state relies too heavily on the property tax. The recent COVID-driven spike in property val ues has worsened the situation. The county is doing the best we can with limited tools. For example, the County Commission recently reduced the property tax rate by 1/2 of a mill and allocated $2 million to the state’s new county-optional property tax relief fund. However, we need more tools to create a more

equitable system of raising revenue to provide the services that make this a great community.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

Conservation challenges are complicated and don’t lend themselves to ranking. The most press ing local environmental quality challenge is water quality, while the most pressing local growth-relat ed issue is the future of the county’s approximately 4,500 acres of state trust land. At the other end of the geographic spectrum, global warming drives pervasive threats to both wildlife and humans.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

I would continue to advocate for clean water countywide and especially in Hoback. This involves several priorities, the first of which is to create a program to inspect and maintain existing septic tanks.

Yikes, it’s more complicated than this solution/ problem dichotomy. First, we have to better man age tourism so that it provides the optimal benefit to the community. The Travel and Tourism Board has made some significant steps to focus on sus tainable tourism that does benefit the community. Two examples include the ongoing Sustainable Destination Management Plan, which promises to create a framework for better managing tourism, and the board’s decision in March of this year to award $1 million to Friends of the Bridger-Teton to better manage visitors. Tourism is an important part of our economy and community. The challenge is to manage tourism so that the community ben efits. For this to happen, the Travel and Tourism Board has to be part of the solution.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

The most important step is straightforward: Ask Latino residents and then listen to their answers. What sets you apart?

(1) Experience: Four years on the County Com mission and more than 30 years helping communi ties all over western North America protect their assets and community. (2) Time and inclination to work full time as a county commissioner. (3) Commitment to protect what makes Teton County special: our wildlife and water quality as well as a diverse and strong community. (4) Willingness to swim against the tide when necessary.

Other: If your top issue(s) was not listed, please explain below.

When you vote, please remember that approv ing more market-rate housing means more second homes, more remote workers and more houses that locals simply cannot afford. In today’s real es tate economy, if we want to house our local work ers we must focus on deed-restricted workforce and affordable housing. Please carefully scrutinize claims that “unleashing the market” will solve our housing crisis.

Mark Newcomb

Luther Propst

Tom Segerstrom

Retired wildlife biologist, wildlife ecotourism businessman and administrator

Top issues:

What is your view on taxation and the county’s role in providing community services?

Teton County depends upon taxation for valuable county services. As commissioner, I will work to ensure that taxes are used responsively and resist making property taxes so oppressive that valued citizens are forced to leave the community. During my time with Teton Conservation District I oversaw the reduction of the public mill levy request by 25%. At the same time, voter approval of the voluntary Conservation Tax rose from 62% to 83%. Valuable county services are the hallmark of appropriate taxation. I will conservatively review the county’s mill levy with the county staff and work with our state legislators in developing possible property tax relief mechanisms.

What is the most important conservation issue facing Teton County?

Maintaining our top notch water resources is a quality of life issue universal to all. Water is an indicator of the overall health of our ecological community. Taking strategic action now is imperative. If we look “upstream” the cause of our water pollution is our past planning and development. Updating the county’s Natural Resource Protection Land Development Regulations is long overdue. Effective LDRs are forward looking and prevent hugely expensive problems that can be avoided. We must stop privatizing profits and socializing all of the costs. Good LDRs actually provide more flexibility as we strive to balance our ecology, quality of life and development, including the creation of more affordable housing.

What’s the first thing you would do to help improve water quality?

I would first provide all necessary support to Hoback Junction residents striving to form a water district. A water district is critical for obtaining muchneeded state and federal funds. Addressing Hoback water quality is also part and parcel to the Comprehensive Water Management Plan that is currently underway for the entire county. Water quality remediation must be planned and strategically completed. Finally, we must examine what actions and inactions have taken us to this point and stop doing them!

Is the Travel and Tourism Board part of the tourism solution or the problem? Why?

The Travel and Tourism Board is bound by legislation to promote tourism. Thus, it can only play a part in the “over-tourism” issue. I applaud TTB’s current steps to foster sustainable destination standards and promote responsible tourist behavior. That said, sheer numbers of visitors can offset those efforts. I will join other commissioners and state legislators in exploring new ideas such as sharing the ever increasing TTB

revenues with other Wyoming communities for their promotional needs that dovetail into statewide tourism. Another idea would be to explore the use of TTB funds to support a “Wyoming Worker Visa Program,” thus incentivizing other Wyoming communities to provide seasonal workforce personnel to Teton County, who would help spread tourism among other Wyoming communities in the state.

What can the county do to support the Latino community, about 20% of the population?

I am committed to listening to and working with the Latino community and all other underrepresented and underserved populations in Teton County to ensure that they are not only represented but also able to thrive. I think a crucial initial step in doing this is recognizing the diversity of skills, knowledge and experiences that our historically marginalized communities bring to Teton County.

We need to be actively exploring their knowledge, skills, and the interests they possess, whether that is as farmers, journalists, health care workers, respected professionals, etc., in their home countries that can be appropriately placed in our community and institutions to maximize opportunities that empower them and strengthen and enrich the community as a whole.

Outreach and promotion of involvement in local government by underrepresented and underserved portions of our community are also important. Translators being on hand for candidate forums is an example of a step in the right direction. Like the private sector, the county government needs to actively seek out and recruit qualified Latino and other underserved peoples for departmental jobs and stakeholder groups, thereby embedding underserved people into the workings of the county. Another idea that needs to be explored is on-demand START transportation services for day care and after-school activities, providing time for further engagement in our community.

What sets you apart?

No other candidate has the deep blend of applied ecology, small business, public administration and local land conservation knowledge and experience that I possess. I firmly believe that I am uniquely qualified and pragmatically oriented for the job.

Michael

Charlie Craighead Jackson Curlin Stephen Daniel Candra Day Jean Day Tim Day

Stefano Daza Arango Charley Dean Lauren Dickey Michael Dittmar Watt Dixon Jim Durrett LizAnn Eisen Judy Fauntleroy Tom Fauntleroy

Caroline Haines

Zach Hall Mills Halpin Leslye Hardie David Hardie John Harkness Melanie Harrice Bruce Hawtin Bruce Hayse, MD Dan Heilig Chuck Herro Sandy Hessler Lou Hochheiser, MD

Jim Little, MD Tyson Logan Mary Lohuis Stephen Lottridge Lokey Lytjen Kathryn Collins, MD Melissa Malm

Tom Mangelsen Priscilla Marden

Frances Clark Susan Clark Lori Clark-Erickson Curt Clauson Jim Clouse

Broughton Coburn Bill Collins Dick Collister

Jean Ferguson Bill Field Chuck Fleischman Don Flickinger O’Ann Fredstrom, MD Michele Gammer Carrie Geraci Mike Geraci Les Gibson Maggie Gibson Rick Gordon Michael Grasseschi Mary Gridley Paula Grosch Ella Grossman

Julie Holding Curtis Hubbard Bobby Hughes Lisa Hunt Dave Hunt Susan Imhoff Brantley Inman Dick Jaquith Patty Jaquith Ginny Kanengieter Abigail Karin Sid Karin Fred Keller Scott Kirkpatrick Megan Klaeger Bill Klyn Judy Legg

Jason Lewis Jean Lewis

Marko Henry Marquardt Susan Marsh James Mathieu Roberta Mathieu Henry Mathieu Brian McDermott Scott McGee Bernie McHugh Brett McPeak Linda Merigliano Nigel Milne Matt Montagne Judy Montagne Tom Montgomery Sue Muncaster Bob Munoz Alan Nevius Pam Niner Alli Noland

Mary Obringer

Joanna Oppen Jayne Ottman Larry Pardee

Robert Paulson Leslie Petersen John Thorn, PhD Hank Phibbs Peter Pilafian Tom Pockatt Sam Pope Aaron Pruzan Myles Rademan Mike Randall Janna Rankin Anne Read Ben Read Fredrick Reimers Raz Reinecke Lisa Ridgway, MD Marlin Risinger John Roberts Heather Rogers Jimbo Rooks Jim Roscoe Charlie Ross Phil Round

Andy Salter Chris Sandvig Jim Schulz Bob Schuster Leah Schwartz Andy Schwartz Bill Schwartz Cheryl Schwartz Marc Segal Renee Seidler Brian Siegfried

Veronica Silberberg Barbara Simms John Simms Dave Simpson Benj Sinclair Samuel Singer Ed Smail Ann Smith Jared Smith Robert B. Smith Mary Speyer Jim Speyer Bruce Spiegelman August Spier Russ Spitler Keith Sproule Abbie Stanford Jim Stanford Mike Stauth Liz Storer

Stuart Sugarman, MD Clare Symmons Wayne Teetsel Larry Thal Shirley Thomas Wes Timmerman

Jim Turley

Wayne Turner Steve Unfried Amy Unfried Margot Walk Jim Wallace Tim Walther Adrienne Ward Peter Ward Mike Wardell Carol Wauters Missy Whelan Alice Widdess Butch Williams Linda Williams Katie Wilson Will Wiltshire Kurt Wimberg Philip Winder Jim Wolf Loring Woodman Charles Woodward Greg Zeigler Dimmie Zeigler Jennifer Zung

Tom Segerstrom

JOIN HUNDREDS OF YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS WHO SUPPORT RE-ELECTING JONATHAN SCHECHTER TO JACKSON TOWN COUNCIL

Karen Connelly Kirsten Corbett

Steve Grossman

Gary Silberberg

Gary Trauner

By Jeannette Boner

The following responses from candidates were com piled — with minimal editing for readability and space — from a News&Guide questionnaire sent to each candidate. Read the full Q&A at JHNewsAnd Guide.com.

Stephan Abrams

About: Stephan Abrams is a 23-year resident of Teton County, a husband, father of two children and a small business owner.

Serving as a board member for the Wyoming State Liquor Association and Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce for over 12 years, Abrams said he has the experience to work with a diverse cross section of the community. As a member of the Rotary Lunch Club of Jackson Hole, Abrams enjoys working with all com munity members.

Raised by a single mom who was a school teacher and held down a second job, Abrams learned at an early age the importance of a well rounded education and experienced how every child is unique.

Abrams said he is a person who will listen, ask im portant questions and engage in civil conversations on the topics presented to the school board and will advocate for students, teachers and staff.

No. 1 priority:

I support an education system that teaches com passion, integrity and independent thinking while us ing the available resources of the school board to sup port the staff to implement the school board’s mission.

What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

Safety and security! The students and staff should know the school district campuses are safe and se cure every day. Our community is not immune to real world problems; we have them in our community, we just don’t discuss them enough in our community. School campuses should provide the best environ ment so each attendee may bring their best each and every day.

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

Our school community must maintain our rela tionships in Cheyenne and maintain an active voice with the local and state legislative bodies. We should support the diversification of our state’s economy and our state’s funding sources. A matter of importance is for the state Legislature to acknowledge the inflation ary period our economy is going through, and should allocate a budget adjustment to education funding. Through the work of relationship building at the state level, the school board should continue to request for regional cost adjustments which make up for the bud get allocation shortfalls.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing,” said Socrates. As a school board trustee I am committed to having conversations so I may learn what I don’t know and be better informed on what I feel I know. I am committed to engaging in mutually respectful, open minded dialogue to ensure my con stituents’ opinions are heard and supported as best as possible.

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

I am in favor of both SPET ballot measures which support education resources for students and hous ing for TCSD employees. I will continue the fight to support regional cost adjustments at the State Leg islative level which help cover the shortfall of state allocated funds.

Jon Baker

About: First-time school board candidate Jon Bak er is a local physician who has three children attend ing Teton County School District No. 1. He and his wife, Dr. Brittany Baker, founded Teton Dermatology in 2010.

“We are honored to be able to take care of patients in Jackson from both the local community and out lying areas,” Baker said. “In addition to my medical training, I have experience as a small business owner, including running a medical practice during the pan demic, and I am a military veteran. I am a leader, team player, hard worker and problem solver. I have high standards, and I am willing to listen and learn.”

Baker is hoping to bring a fresh perspective to the board.

No. 1 priority:

My number one priority is and always will be the students of TCSD. Every public-school student in Teton County, regardless of background or ability, should have the educational opportunities to reach their fullest potential.

What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

In order for every student to be able to reach their fullest potential, they deserve to feel safe at school. School safety can never be compromised. This means we need to continuously review our school safety plans, which includes close collaboration with the Jackson Police Department and Teton County Sher iff’s Office, and update as necessary. Given the broad area our school district covers, hiring a third full-time school safety officer should be a budgetary priority.

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

The state has a fiscal responsibility to fund our schools. State growth models have significantly un derestimated the growth of our student population in Teton County. The state needs to recognize this and provide supplemental funding for the Bronc Achieve ment Center in order to relieve overcrowding. The school district, in good faith, is striving to procure some of the required funding with SPET initiative #10. Another issue is the regional cost adjustment. It lags far behind current inflation and doesn’t provide the necessary cost-of-living support for our teachers and support staff in the district. Teton County hasn’t always been viewed favorably by lawmakers from other parts of the state. It is critical that we develop good working relationships with our legislators and make it clear that our values in Teton County align with the values of the state of Wyoming.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

As a trustee, my ultimate responsibility will be to make the best decisions for the students based on my knowledge, common sense, conscience, and experi ence. Decision-making will always be a collaborative process with the other trustees, using the best infor mation we have. I will always be willing to listen and consider different viewpoints and perspectives, and will make myself readily available to members of our community by personal phone and email.

area is housing. Those entrusted with the education of our children are an essential part of our workforce. They need to be prioritized when it comes to both public sector and private sector housing initiatives. I fully support SPET initiative #14 for TCSD Housing. One big advantage the school district has in this re gard is that it already owns the land on which to build the housing. The second issue is pay and benefits. We need to work closely with our state legislators and re lay to them that the current regional cost adjustment for teachers and support staff needs to be calculated in a fashion that is more in line with what the actual costs of living in Teton County are. A third issue is morale. Working in an overcrowded school and being underpaid can lead to lower morale, which could be al leviated by the TCSD SPET initiatives and legislative support. We also need to prioritize more administra tive support and continuing educational opportunities for our teachers and support staff. Encouraging more parent volunteerism and community involvement in the schools could provide a morale boost as well.

Reade Dornan

There are a few critical areas to focus on to retain outstanding educators and support staff. The first

About: Reade Dornan is a lifelong educator and first-time school board candidate. Dornan taught un dergraduate students at Michigan State University, the University of Michigan-Flint, Central Michigan, and Purdue universities. At the collegiate level she fo cused on training educators on how to teach reading and literature. She met and married David Dornan in Jackson and together they raised two daughters. Reade volunteered at the Kelly School and was a sub stitute teacher Jackson Hole High School. She kept her ties to their family-owned business in Moose for 35 years as a summer visitor until she returned to the valley to live year-round.

No. 1 priority:

I would like to assure our teachers that they would be paid enough to cover housing and to live a comfort able family life in Jackson Hole.

What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

All students deserve the opportunity to thrive and succeed in their life’s pursuits. I am a huge fan of pub lic schools because they strive to offer access to a qual ity education for students of all abilities and interests. Public schools provide a wide menu of offerings in core subjects at all ability levels, as well as life-skills in such fields as money management, the arts, nutri tional health, vocational education and lifelong sports.

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

Like most states, Wyoming derives most school revenues from property taxes. In Teton County this system is problematic because most of our tax money is redistributed to less advantaged school districts across the state. Despite dependency on wealthy districts, gaps still exist everywhere in the U.S. that property taxes are the primary source of school fund ing. Furthermore, Wyoming is reliant on federal min eral royalties and coal lease bonuses that are dimin ishing significantly. I would like to see newer sources of funding and revised funding formulas to avoid the cuts statewide in instruction and salaries, which Wyo ming is confronting right now.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

All parents, students, and taxpayers deserve a fair

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

COURTESY

PHOTO

Jon Baker

Reade Dornan

Stephan Abrams

Teton

hearing. School board meetings fortunately provide a fair amount of time for opinions, mine included, to be aired. I should hope that my decisions in all cases consider the common good, the general welfare of the school system — staff and students. Sometimes deci sions will require me to step aside on touchy issues and sometimes they will require parents or students to accede to the common good.

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

Why would anyone want to be a teacher? Pan demic-caused problems are still felt at all grade levels by teachers who had to accommodate stu dents at home with and without technical support for online and/or in-class learning. Providing effec tive instruction has been incredibly complex the last three years. Despite Herculean efforts, many students are falling behind and losing their social skills. Faculty must make up the shortfalls. School safety is also an alarming concern because of guns. Issues ginned up in social media add to school ten sions. And yet, finding affordable housing is the big gest obstacle of all. Many argue that we can never provide enough housing in Jackson Hole to attract and retain workers. That may be true, but we must help teachers and professional staff find places to live. We should provide reasonable housing as a re cruiting tool. Voting for SPET #14 is a start.

Keith Gingery, incumbent

my almost 20 years of public service to this commu nity, that I am easily accessible. Whether it is chatting with me over coffee, or on the sidelines of a Broncs football game, or just calling me at home; I have al ways listened to the people of this community and will continue to do so

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

As chairman of the school board, I instigated a Housing Strategic Plan that we finished on time and on budget. Through that housing plan, the school dis trict is ready to move forward with building rental units along South Park Road next the middle school. We are hopeful that the community will support the SPET initiative to build rental units for our teachers and staff. To retain teachers and staff you must pay competitive salaries, provide great benefits, and now with the changing housing dynamics of our commu nity, we will need to provide access to housing.

Emily Reycroft

About: Keith Gingery is the only incumbent seeking reelection in this year’s school board race. He is running for a third term on the school board. He served five terms as Wyoming representative for House District 23 before stepping down and running for school board in 2014. He also serves as a deputy county attorney.

No. 1 priority:

To prepare our children to succeed in an everchanging world.

What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

The safety of our children. Throughout my five terms as your state legislator and then for these past two terms on the school board, I have worked diligent ly to increase security at all of our schools through the building of security vestibules and other measures.

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

The key issue with the Teton County School Dis trict budget is the Regional Cost Adjustment. I helped create the RCA back in the early 2000s when I served in the Wyoming Legislature. Ensuring that the state funding model continues to recognize the unique eco nomic needs of Teton County through a regional cost adjustment is essential to continuing to recruit and retain teachers and staff.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

Most everyone in the community knows that over

About: Emily Reycroft was born and raised in the Finger Lakes Region of New York, where she said the climate, agricultural focus and hardworking commu nity reminded her of Jackson.

“My parents prioritized education as they felt it was the best gift they could give me and my siblings,” she said. “I take from my parents that education equals opportunity, and I try to provide this opportunity to others through volunteering, donations to educational programs, and other involvement.”

Reycroft’s aim as a school board member would be to “energize the student, family, teacher trinity.”

“I want to help solve the real issues we have locally with housing attainability and school overcrowding,” she said. “I wish to protect our kids against the politi cal agendas of groups across the country.”

Reycroft works in the financial industry and has two children in elementary school.

“I feel the impact of every decision made by the school board, and the experience of my kids and their peers help inform me,” she said.

No. 1 priority:

Assuring the funding of the teacher housing and high school expansion projects are givens here, so I would also answer that I would conduct a Thank You Tour of the community and listen for hopes/concerns/ thoughts from represented and underrepresented families in the district.

What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

No politics — from either side of the aisle — in schools. Not fair to students or teachers. To quote Hor ace Mann, the father of free public education in the U.S., “Education is our political safety. Outside of this ark all is deluge.”

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

With 20 years of experience in fundraising and strategic partnerships, I would go to Cheyenne to see what change can happen at the state level. I would

explore public/private partnerships on projects and improve dialogue with the amazing foundations, trusts, organizations in the community. For priori ties, two jump out: (1) relieve overcrowding at schools and plan to avoid overcrowding in coming years, and (2) increase support staff and what we can pay them (paras, translators, mental health counselors, substi tutes, etc.) With smaller classes teachers can see who needs help, who needs more challenge, who is dis tracted by a personal issue, and we need these other staff members to help with these individual needs.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

With two small children in the district, often my opinions will be for the best outcome for students. As a parent involved in school events and sports I speak frequently with a broad group of parents. I would gauge alignment of views with these folks and host coffee hours around the county to gauge alignment.

With regard to existing efforts, I would make sure the first housing units are built on time and on budget so the follow-on projects are waved through more eas ily. For other high-density projects there is opportu nity to work with other community organizations on sites and funding. These projects are a great starting point, but do not address the needs for teachers with larger families. For this I would research long-term rentals at appropriate rates in the existing housing stock in the valley, and I would look to get the school board a seat at the table when large-scale land do nations are modeling development. If public opinion is overwhelmingly supportive, I would talk to neigh borhood HOAs to discuss loosening rules on ADUs. Maybe on new builds over 4,000 square feet there could be a “donation” to a fund that could help pro vide down-payments or stipends for teachers. Some of these things might sound radical, but this situation is to a point where radical is necessary.

Thomas Smits

About: After losing his first bid for a school board seat in 2020, Thomas Smits is back on the ballot. Smits is a planning commissioner for the town of Jackson and an appointed board member on the school dis trict’s Recreation District Board.

“I’m running for the school board because I want to contribute to the longstanding tradition of delivering world-class education to all students in Teton County,” said Smits, who also served as the elected mayor of Montrose, Colorado 10 years ago. “I want to be avail able, responsive, and receptive to students, parents, staff, and the community at large, encouraging an open dialog; with chiefly one goal in mind: Student Success.”

Smits is involved with 4H and various other pro grams that support youth development. He and his wife, Katie, have five children and he currently serves as the president of a management consulting compa ny in Jackson.

No. 1 priority:

My number one priority if elected is to ensure all 2,800-plus students at all our 10 public schools are taught how to think — not what to think and that parents and the community at large are engaged in our public school system.

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

Thomas Smits

Keith Gingery

COURTESY PHOTO

Emily Reycroft

Teton County School District Board: 7 candidates, vote for 3

What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

Soliciting feedback via surveys and town halls from parents, community members, students, teachers, coaches and all other district employees. I want feedback from all folks so we can determine what the district is doing right and what we could be doing better. It’s imperative to be asking for feedback from everyone and then acting once feedback is received. I will never compromise on simply wanting to hear from people from all walks of life.

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

My budget priorities would be: 1) students 2) teachers 3) facilities/infrastructure. I would advocate for prioritizing spending that would have the most impact on students and classrooms and for cuts that would have the least impact. Many times, teachers, district employees, and students have many answers to these challenges. I would encourage the board to appoint a citizen task force to assist with budgetary items. Furthermore, I would work with our local representatives in Cheyenne to have one voice on the challenges facing school funding unique to Teton County.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

I take to heart that the U.S. is a representative democracy, which means you are a representative of those you are elected to serve. As such I will always listen to everyone’s voice and then make decisions in the best interest of the students. I firmly believe a school board member is a trustee for the community that elects him or her, and I’ll work tirelessly to that end!

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

The district’s reasons for the difficulty in finding and keeping top talent are varied. I would solicit feedback from teachers and other employees seeking employment with the district and those terminating their employment with the district. We need a clear and concise understanding of why talent is leaving in addition to what it’s going to take to recruit top talent. It’s easy

to always turn to salaries or housing, but from what I have heard these aren’t the only reasons we can’t recruit and retain staff. With all reasons on the table, we can work together as a board to be the school district where everyone wants to work and where everyone wants to stay employed. There’s always room for improvement in the quest to be a preferred employer so we can recruit top talent as well as retain top talent; both of which should be any employer’s top priority.

Tyrel Wray

About: A first-time school board candidate, Wray moved to Jackson in 2007 and serves as a chief financial officer for a local investment company. He and his wife have a daughter who is in fifth grade. In 2018 he “found his calling,” and started coaching. He is the head coach for the Jackson Hole Mountain Bike team.

“I believe we have a community filled with great people and excellent kids. I believe our schools are incredibly important and so far I have been very impressed with our current board, superintendent, and faculty,” Wray said. “I believe that we should all help in making the community a better place to live.”

No. 1 priority:

Kids in public education. I want to continue to pro-

vide quality education for children in Teton County. What is one issue you feel strongly about and would not compromise on?

Making sure teachers and administrators are paid fairly and have the tools to provide a quality education for our kids. Our staff are amazing and we need to limit turnover and take care of the great teachers we have to allow all students to be successful. Like any business it’s the employees that make the company successful. If we give them the tools they need they will provide an incredible education for our children.

How would you handle state budgetary issues related to public education?

We all have a budget to work through, whether that be personal, business, nonprofits, etc. We do the best we can with the dollars allotted and fight to get the dollars we need to provide for the children. My No. 1 priority is taking care of the teachers and administrators; according to the latest budget 85% of it is allocated to payroll. We need to make sure they are taken care of before anything else. Then we need to take care of facilities; without proper facilities staff can’t do their job.

How do you plan to balance your personal opinions and the opinions of your constituents?

I hope that my opinions will align with my constituents, otherwise they shouldn’t have voted for me. If something arises that my opinion differs from the majority of constituents then I vote with my constituents. If elected I am there representing their interest not mine.

With the district’s difficulty recruiting and retaining educators and school staff, what are your ideas to alleviate current staffing shortages?

We need to help with housing; the greatest issue to retaining our current staff is housing shortages. The district is currently working on the issue with a SPET on the ballot that I support. We also need to make sure that we are competitive in salaries and benefits.

Contact Jeannette at schools@jhnewsandguide.com.

Jackson, it's time for a fresh perspective...

Tyrel Wray

@katherineforjackson

HOUSE DISTRICT 22

WORKING FOR WYOMING

care about reforming our property taxes

care about protecting our public lands

I care about prioritizing conservation

SAMPLE BALLOTS

#1.

for the purchase of land and planning, designing, engineering, and constructing Teton County employee rental housing.

This project is sponsored by Teton County.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #2. TETON YOUTH & FAMILY SERVICES FACILITY IMPROVEMENTS $2,000,000 for designing, constructing, upgrading, remodeling, rebuilding, and improving Teton Youth & Family Services' existing facilities at Hirschfield Center, Van Vleck Group Home, and Red Top Meadows.

This project is sponsored by Teton County.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition

#3. TRANSPORTATION

ROUTES TO SCHOOL $15,000,000 for projects to improve transportation alternatives in Teton County and the Town of Jackson, including the planning, design, engineering, and constructing of pathways and sidewalks for safe routes to school, commuting, and recreation as well as the Stilson transit center and park-n-ride facility and the purchase and installation of transit prioritization traffic signals and other public transit infrastructure. Any unexpended funds, including any unused contingency funds, shall be placed into a designated account, the principal and interest of which shall be used for operations and maintenance of these projects.

This project is sponsored by Teton County.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #4. JACKSON HOLE FIRE/EMS FIRE STATION $15,000,000 for planning, designing, and constructing a new fire station in Hoback and/or Wilson and for demolishing the existing station(s) that will be replaced.

This project is sponsored by Teton County.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #5. CENTRAL WYOMING COLLEGE CAMPUS $10,000,000 for planning, designing, engineering, and constructing an approximately 21,000 square foot permanent campus for providing higher education opportunities in fields such as healthcare, early childhood education, hospitality, and language for Central Wyoming College in Teton County.

This project is sponsored by the Town of Jackson.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #6. ST. JOHN'S HEALTH HOUSING $24,000,000 for planning, designing, engineering, and constructing workforce rental housing, as well as overnight lodging for on-call hospital staff and patients/families.

This project is sponsored by the Town of Jackson.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #7. TOWN OF JACKSON SIDEWALKS AND PEDESTRIAN ACCESSIBILITY $3,000,000 to improve walkability and accessibility in the Town of Jackson, including planning, designing, constructing, replacing, and installing sidewalks, accessibility features consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act, pedestrian and bike safety features, mobility, and wayfinding signs.

This project is sponsored by the Town of Jackson.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #8 TOWN OF JACKSON EMPLOYEE HOUSING $10,000,000 for the purchase of land and planning, designing, engineering, and constructing Town of Jackson employee rental housing.

This project is sponsored by the Town of Jackson.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #9. TETON COUNTY LAND CONSERVATION OPPORTUNITIES $8,000,000 for the Teton County Scenic Preserve Trust to acquire interests in state trust or private land to conserve wildlife habitat, protect open space, protect historic agricultural uses, protect scenic values, and protect public access.

This project is sponsored by Teton County.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition

FOR

by

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #12. COMMUNITY HOUSING $20,000,000 to preserve and create permanent Affordable and Workforce homes for local workers and their families. This may be accomplished through the purchase of deed restrictions and/or interests in land on which to design, plan, develop, engineer, and construct deed restricted housing in conformance with the Jackson & Teton County Housing Supply Plan. The Jackson Town Council and the Teton County Board of County Commissioners must authorize and direct the expenditure of these funds.

This project is sponsored by Teton County.

FOR the Proposition AGAINST the Proposition #13. SENIOR CENTER

PROPOSITIONS

Compiled by Miranda de Moraes

The following responses from candidates were compiled — with minimal editing for readability and space — from a News&Guide questionnaire sent to each candidate. Read the full Q&A at JHNewsAndGuide.com.

Brent ‘Doc’ Blue

Years in Teton County: 40

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

Physician, entrepreneur — I have been a member of the physician staff for 40 years. I have run my own practice for the same amount of time. I know patient care, customer service and efficient care.

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

Stop the incredible waste that St. John’s Health has had over the past and continues. Quality care does not preclude efficiency and cost controls.

grams. For instance, it spurned occupational health, which is a cash-producing area, to buy a robot that does not improve care here.

Shannon A. Brennan

Years in Teton County: 1.5

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

Engineering management; management consulting. Leadership and management of multimilliondollar programs/projects, including stakeholder relations and community relations; finance and audit; regulatory compliance; risk management, mission assurance, long-term strategy and forecasting; workforce alignment, recruitment, retention; and negotiation/ conflict resolution.

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

let’s not stop there. SPET rentals address short-term needs of professionals and other staff, but we need to make long-term commitments to our workforce.

St. John’s should investigate offering mortgage assistance via the development of a long-term, grantbased loan forgiveness program, funded in part by local philanthropy, i.e., the Community Foundation and SJH Foundation, among others, and perhaps new ones. Despite high home costs, some hospital staff actually might want to participate in home ownership here, and we should find ways to support this to some degree. Student loan assistance would also be attractive and could be funded by the same philanthropic mechanisms.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

St. John’s should contract with a wider array of insurers and should expand urgent and primary care options in order to increase access to preventive care in hopes of reducing downstream costs. Additionally, we should evaluate what expanded Medicaid access at the state level might mean for St. John’s.

Blue

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

Transparency is critical. The hospital board has not only lacked transparency but is out of touch with hospital functions and especially out of touch with the community with an arrogant “we know best” attitude.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

Money and housing are issues, but the hospital has to change its hostile work environment. People will not work for a facility when they are not treated well and/or fairly regardless of the pay scale.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

St. John’s Health is not price competitive, and waste at the hospital sends prices up. St. John’s does not think outside the box. The hospital needs to concentrate on being an excellent community hospital and stop wasting money on spurious pro-

Capital projects and equipment procurement should continue to be evaluated for cost savings opportunities. This particularly includes the timing of contractual commitments and purchases where possible without jeopardizing the quality of medical and health care delivery. Expansion of joint purchasing with regional medical centers is another opportunity to be evaluated. Also, I would look for ways to increase the hours and accessibility of the urgent care resources in the county to reduce costly burdens on the ER.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

St. John’s Health is a public trust, and every reasonable opportunity should be afforded the public to understand the activities, issues and goals of the hospital. Stakeholder awareness and engagement is key to keeping a strong trust and support relationship with the community.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

We cannot recruit/retain sufficient numbers of workers given the current housing costs. Specific purpose excise tax-funded apartments are good, but

I firmly believe a School Board Member is a trustee for the community that elects him or her; and I’ll work tirelessly to that end!”

COMMITTED TO LISTENING TO YOU

Katharine Conover-Keller

Years in Teton County: 32

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

After serving as president of the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole for more than 14 years, I retired in 2020. Previously, I was the executive director of the Community Safety Network and a licensed clinical social worker at the Community Counseling Center. I have extensive knowledge of the community, local nonprofits and administrative experience.

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

As a small community hospital we are impacted daily by the high rates of inflation, as is every other business and individual in Teton County. Our cost of goods and services is increasing along with the

See HOSPITAL on 18E

I will ALWAYS be –

ACCESSIBLE, ACCOUNTABLE, AND ADAPTABLE

and I will ALWAYS advocate for students to be taught HOW to think – not what to think.

EDUCATION EQUALITY

My number one priority if elected is to ensure all 2,800+ students at any of our ten public schools are taught how to think –not what to think and that parents and the community at large are engaged in our public school system.

I want to engage deeply with parents, community members, students, teachers, coaches, and all other district employees. Getting regular feedback is critical to know what the district is doing right and what we could be doing better.  It’s imperative to be asking for feedback from everyone and then acting once feedback is received.

Previously Mayor of Montrose, Colorado (population 20,523).

Currently serve as a board member on the Teton County School District #1 Recreation District Board

The district has ten schools from one end of the county to the other.  I would never compromise on ensuring equity amongst these ten schools.  Every student, teacher, coach, and administrator across the board is equally important and deserving of equal treatment, fiscal appropriations, and support.  Such equity should apply also to the arts, vocational programs, and extracurricular activities.

Involved with 4H and various other programs that support youth development.

Currently a Planning Commissioner for the Town of Jackson.

My two youngest children attend district schools and my two oldest children graduated from Jackson Hole High School.

Brennan Conover-Keller

— THOMAS SMITS

Paid for by Thomas Smits for TCSD #1 School Board

Vote YES for WES GARDNER

For Teton County Commissioner

I will say "YES" to appropriately placed and restricted workforce housing. I am fully committed to serving the needs of the thousands of local workers and retirees facing housing insecurity. As an advocate for partnerships with the private sector, I pledge to use public funds and leverage in pursuit of land acquisition and affordable zoning for our distressed community. I encourage you to join me in VOTING YES for all the SPET ballot housing measures 1, 6, 8, 12, and 14. Thank you to ShelterJH for recognizing my commitment to community housing and endorsing my candidacy.

I will say "YES" to opportunities that will reduce our traffic. I support widening WY22 from Town to Stilson by two lanes and restricting travel on them to HOVs or buses. I support the construction of the Tribal Trail Connector with a 25MPH speed limit and speed mitigation measures to ensure that it is only used by local traffic. As a START Board member, I continue to advocate for more efficient routing, more frequent service, better funding options, and schedules that reflect the needs of our workforce.

I will say "YES" to preserving and protecting our natural resources and wildlife. I will continue working to reduce the carbon footprint of Teton County, with the goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2030. I am committed to making ours a model community for ecosystem stewardship, and as such an exporter of creative solutions for combating global climate change. Join me in VOTING YES for SPET initiatives 3, 4, 9, 11, and 15 to fund transit, upgrade fire stations, deploy renewable energy projects, and maintain our wildlands and clean water.

I will say "YES" to supporting our social service providers. I support the collection of one mill levy from our property taxes dedicated to early childhood care, mental health care, and assisted living care for the seniors in our valley, which can be offset by a further reduction of mills supporting the General Fund. Please join me in supporting SPET ballot measures 2, 3, 5, 10, and 13 to fund social service improvements, build safe routes to schools, expand our educational infrastructure, and provide a path forward to supporting our senior community.

Join me in voting “YES” for all SPET projects. Keep in mind that nearly 60% of SPET revenue comes from our visitors and that most SPET dollars are then leveraged to receive matching federal dollars. This means that for every dollar locals contribute to SPET, the community receives as much as $10 in return. Please check out my website at www.votewesgardner.com to learn more about my positions and to support my campaign.

Paid for by Gardner For County Commissioner

shortage of health care workers, which is driving wages higher. Even so, data show that our costs are still average compared with hospitals around the state. We are constantly looking at new technologies and advances in medical protocols for more efficient means of treating medical conditions that bring patients to the hospital. We are also looking at ways to expand our outpatient services that are more cost effective than in-patient.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care?

At St. John’s Health we honor the obligation to maintain confidentiality of the health care relationship between patient and provider while at the same time demonstrate to the public in our board meetings our thoughtful, well-researched decisionmaking. Our community needs to have confidence in our process. Through my work on the Nominating and Governance Committee, I am continuing to monitor our commitment to transparency and to look for more opportunities for robust public discussions during board meetings.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

We need to retain and recruit employees by paying highly competitive wages and addressing their critical housing needs. The new $7.5 million compensation system, which the board recently established, assures salaries are consistent with the industry and local cost of living. St. John’s employees have high levels of education, hold special licensure and certifications. In order to attract these workers, we must regard housing as a critical component of compensation. Between our two most recent projects, the SPET request for the Hitching Post and the planned housing at King Street and Karns, St. John’s Health will add another 115 units.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

Both St. John’s Health and the Foundation have multiple programs to help mitigate the high cost of health care. In 2008, for instance, the Community Foundation started a fund through the hospital foundation for prenatal care. The hospital never turns away anyone because of the cost of care, and our extensive charity care program assists individuals without means. Last year the hospital spent $2,456,000 in charity care. I look forward to working more closely with nonprofits in the valley, including One22 and Voices JH, to learn more about the needs of their clients and to share information about hospital programs. In addition, I will urge our state representatives to expand Wyoming Medicaid Coverage to more than 20,000 in the state without health care insurance.

Pam Cutler

Years in Teton County: 9 summers, 1 full time

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

I practiced clinical Emergency Medicine for 25 years. I have held multiple leadership roles in both rural and urban hospitals. I worked as a physician for nine seasons in Yellowstone National Park at Lake Hospital in Teton County. I ran the patient safety and quality programs for an eight-hospital system in New Mexico for five years. I ran the business and practice of an independent multispecialty physician group in Missoula, Montana, for seven years. I understand health care and hospitals and how they work from all points of view. In the ED, you care for everyone in the community — those who are well served by the system and especially

those whose needs are not met. I believe my diverse, on-the-ground health care perspective would be of great value to the board as we strive to serve everyone well.

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

Managing health care costs has been a major national problem for decades, which many political leaders have been afraid to take on. I champion recent policy efforts to negotiate drug costs and increase the numbers of insured citizens. However, for dollars spent, Americans are not as healthy as people in other countries who spend far less.

In Teton County, my position is that we can best influence individual health care costs by helping our population become and stay healthy. We must also maintain local control of our hospital so we can decide how to best balance what our citizens need with what we can do well.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

Adequate transparency is required for trust in any relationship. Health care has long been inadequately transparent whether in cost of services, openness about medical errors or accountability for decisions at public institutions like St. John’s Health.

I started a program to be open with patients/ families about medical errors. It was very frightening for clinical staff to share that errors were made. Yet we learned that openness breeds trust, not fear. The same is true for governance. Our community currently needs increased understanding to improve trust in our board’s decisions. We must honor the public’s need to see us weigh decisions in a thoughtful and open manner so citizens can trust what we do. We can do this together and still protect confidential information.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

Competitive and adequate compensation and benefits. Access to affordable housing. Ensuring a workplace culture that emphasizes excellent patient care, employee respect and collaboration.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

This has been a long-standing problem with no quick fixes. That said, we can improve outcomes and costs by delivering care that is efficient and effective. It has been shown that costs go down when patients have:

• Increased access to and participation in proven preventive medicine services. (Screening for illness, staying fit, etc.).

• Access to good mental health services.

• Reliable communication channels to answer patient’s questions.

• Collaboration with larger health care facilities that can provide timely access to advanced care that is not available locally.

• Care coordinators to help ensure patients receive timely follow up appointments, medications, equipment, X-rays, labs, therapy, etc.

• Care managers who can regularly assist in navigating the system for those with complex problems/diagnoses.

Lou Hochheiser

Years in Teton County: 16

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

Physician with experience in clinical practice, research, administration and education. Served as CEO at St. John’s Health, leading it from a somewhat chaotic existence to dramatically increasing quality, community involvement, wellness and expansion of services and collaboration with the University of Utah. Honored as one of the top 100 small hospital CEOs. Involvement with community nonprofit organizations has allowed me to gain further understanding of needs in Teton County, especially for senior services, home care and assisted living, involvement of hospital in community and support of individuals who need help navigating the complex system. I have learned to be a force for collaboration, quality, and supporting those with both physical and mental health needs.

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

For better or worse we live in a state with limited options to fund critical community services. Recently, as tax revenues from natural resources have plummeted to historic lows, state government has pressured local assessors to squeeze every penny of value from property owners. During the pandemic, skyrocketing values driven by global market pressures have further exacerbated the strain of property taxes on homeowners. I support continued efforts to diversify Teton County’s revenue stream. Adding a seventh penny of sales tax would allow the county to significantly reduce property taxes, shifting the onus of local funding from residents to visitors. I support all specific purpose excise tax measures and increasing the lodging tax for the same reason. Teton County requires significant investments in physical as well as social infrastructure to remain viable. Affordable workforce housing, START buses, water treatment plants, early child care facilities, mental health care providers, the school system — all represent critical services for our community. With decisive and creative leadership we can both reduce property taxes and increase funding for the services at the heart of our community vision.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

St. John’s is a community-owned hospital, and transparency is paramount to maintain community support and commitment. Assuring the community about quality so that services that can be provided as well as anywhere else are available to keep community members in the valley. Board meetings should be more robust to attract community members.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

Assure staff is aware of their value. Assure that quality issues are appropriately addressed. Timely frequent feedback. Keep salaries at levels that are appropriate to community. Provide opportunity for advancement. Continue to obtain suitable housing. Have programs with local banks to support staff to maintain living in Teton County.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

Make the best use of the dollars provided to the hospital through taxes to keep increase in costs of

See HOSPITAL on 19E

WOODROW WILSON

committee to Elect Mark Newcomb

Cutler

Hochheiser

A REMINDER OF WHY I SERVE: You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand.

service as low as possible. Educate physicians and population about cost-effective care. More is not always better. Improve access to mental health, alcohol and drug treatments prior to need for more extensive services. Have hospital work collaboratively with other not-for-profits, such as Senior Center, children, youth and family and Community Counseling Center.

Evan Jones

Years in Teton County: 3

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

I have extensive experience in board leadership of large hospital systems and health advocacy organizations. I was vice chair of the board for the Children’s National Hospital and board chair for the Children’s Research Institute. I serve on the board of the American College of Medical Genetics Foundation, the advisory board for the BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado, and board of directors for Veracyte, a leading cancer testing company. For more than 30 years I have worked in senior management and as an investor in the life sciences and healthcare industry. I founded and helped start a number of successful companies. My professional experience as a CEO and board member of not-forprofit health care institutions and public companies prepared me to serve as a trustee.

hospital. It is essential that governance and major decision-making is performed as transparently as possible. As trustee I will work to have meaningful public input on hospital decisions. Suggestions to improve transparency include having quarterly town halls where information about important topics is presented and public input is requested. The format of board meetings could be adjusted to allow more public discussion on timely topics. Engaging the community in strategic planning for St. John’s is a third area where we can help improve transparency.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

As trustee I am committed to a successful hospital employee workforce. Competitive pay, a positive work environment with clear opportunities for career advancement, and housing are priorities. Reducing the number of employees leaving the hospital while successfully competing for new employees will help address the staffing shortage.

and real estate developer. I have owned and operated companies that built hundreds of home — mostly affordable — and managed individual projects in excess of $100 million. This has prepared me to serve on this board by giving me a deep understanding and skill set for organization, understanding marshaling resources effectively, human resource management, negotiations, and contract skills. I also have a developed a skill set and intuition for ferreting out problems in advance, uncovering the root cause and implementing corrective action plans and managing it. My background of 50 years as a builder has tuned my ability to learn quickly and grasp fundamentals and absorb required knowledge.

In a time of unmatched infl ation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

Affordable employee housing is a key factor in attracting many potential employees and retaining others. Hospital data suggest 300-plus employee housing units will be required during this decade. The Hitching Post is an essential housing project — creating approximately 100 workforce housing units adjacent to the hospital campus. The King and Karns development is another priority project.

RieserJones

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

Rising health care costs are a major issue for families and St. John’s Health. Family costs are driven by health insurance premiums and out-ofpocket charges. Providing the best care possible at affordable prices should be a priority. It impacts insurance premiums and individual out-of-pocket health care costs. St. John’s can help by using new technology to improve outcomes and where possible performing clinical procedures on an outpatient basis. Improving hospital efficiency can help make up for rising personnel and materials costs.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

St. John’s Health is a publicly owned district

We need to keep as much care as possible local so that patients and families do not have to travel long distances with associated costs and inconvenience. Expanded outpatient services and supporting new technologies will help improve patient outcomes and reduce costs. It is important that the hospital be sensitive and responsive to those who do not have the financial means to pay for the high costs of patient care. St. John’s pays millions for uncompensated care each year. There is more we must do to support our families in need.

Tim Rieser

Years in Teton County: 15

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

I spent the majority of my career as a builder

There is limited action any board member can suggest for a nationally broken health care system with runaway costs. However any hospital, and this one in particular, can take action within its own organization. The misfeasance and incompetence of the current board over the last decade gives many opportunities to save wasted county funds. My position is that we can and should (a) stop hiring unsuitable CEO’s who cost the hospital millions in undo severance and hidden legal settlements, (b) stop paying $500,000 to find a single suitable CEO, (c) bring leadership stability to the hospital to avoid millions in traveling nurse costs and high turnover rates leading to huge recruitment costs, (d) help identify good future advisory board members, and (e) engage in better future planning.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

Transparency plays a huge role. Lack of it is why the hospital board is foundering. First of all, it’s the law. This hospital belongs to the county residents and the state statutes are quite clear that it must be a transparent organization. It is not. This board has eschewed transparency by design for over a decade. As one of the many results,

TOWN COUNCIL

HOUSE DISTRICT 16

YIN

MCCOLLUM

DISTRICT

SENATE DISTRICT 17

GIERAU

DUERR

PADILLA

DISTRICT

the board has spiraled into a culture punctuated by errors, bad decisions and lack of oversight. This has created a cycle of covering up those mistakes, including using the questionable legal maneuver of having last-term board members step down early in order to appoint “incumbents” to later win seats. Due to these transgressions there has been a failure in trust of leadership which has led to low morale and staffing issues.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffi ng shortage?

1. Assist the board in focusing on leadership skills that would flow down through the CEO and then to staff. Morale is terrible, and that is a well-known problem. Having four fired CEOs rapidly is killing morale.

2. Avoid giving the CEO tasks that do not belong to the CEO, such as housing. Interim CEO Robertson was recently quoted saying he has never spent any time on housing at other hospitals, but now he spends “50%” of his time. This is a disastrous failure of duty and reasoning at a very serious time in the hospital’s future when the hospital needs his full attention.

3. With my half-century of skills I would provide high-caliber board member oversight into the housing initiative. The board and the CEO have no expertise in assembling and/or running a $100 millionplus building program.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

On affordability: I’ve covered quite a few areas above in which I would assist and guide the board towards millions in savings by addressing spending and leadership issues. Whether controllable factors would intervene to preclude these savings from lowering health care costs here, that seems doubtful. But fi scal responsibility from the Csuite trickles down.

In terms of accessibility, it is my understanding that our local health care is quite accessible. The hospital has done a good job of promoting accessibility, but it needs superior management, as was evident from th e mismanaged acquisition of Emerg A Care, which was an unmitigated disaster. Good ideas aren’t enough.

Michael Tennican

Years in Teton County: 19

How has your occupation(s) prepared you to serve on the hospital board?

I began my career as a professor of finance at the Harvard Business School. Since then I have continued to consult on business strategy and finance to a variety of multinational corporations headquartered in the U.S. and Europe. As part of this I have managed large professional groups of management and economic consultants. I have served on the boards of various startup technology companies and, for over 20 years, as the chief financial officer and director of a medical R&D firm. I believe that my experience will continue to enable me to help St. John’s Health focus on the health needs of our community, provide key services of the highest quality and do so in a cost-effective and sustainable manner.

In a time of unmatched inflation, what is your position on managing health care costs?

As a nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting community needs, St. John’s Health should not try to reduce costs by focusing on only those services that can be provided at attractive profit margins. Given its focus on community needs, the hospital provides birthing, emergency and various other services on a 24/7 basis that profit-oriented facilities tend to avoid. St. John’s does nonetheless try to provide all its services in a cost-effective manner. Unfortunately, it can do little to control the costs of medical devices and drugs, the inefficiencies of the massive public and for-profit bureaucracies permeating the U.S. health care sector or the escalating price of housing in Jackson Hole. However, I think that the hospital can and should continue to pursue initiatives to help offset the costs of housing for employees.

What role does transparency play in delivering health care ?

By law, the administration and board cannot be transparent when it comes to patient and personnel information. Nonetheless, trustees operate under rather strict Wyoming open meeting requirements. And, speaking as a current trustee, I wish we had

more community participation in our regular board meetings or through other channels. Every public board meeting includes reports from the CEO and chairs of various board committees on issues under consideration. Where a committee’s research and analysis have been completed, motions are advanced for discussion by the full board, board advisors and community attendees. I hope more community members will feel free and encouraged to provide input.

What are the ways in which you would address the hospital staffing shortage?

As a trustee, I have supported recent increases in hospital staff compensation. Nonetheless, the level of reimbursement St. John’s Health receives from Medicare, Medicaid and Blue Cross/Blue Shield for services that it provides is simply inadequate to support staff salaries at levels that would enable staff to afford housing in Jackson. However, my board colleagues and I do not want to respond by cutting services, as has been happening in a number of hospitals. Moreover, given distances and weather, lower-cost housing in Alpine or Victor, Idaho is not a full solution. Thus, as the trustees and administration have announced, we are seeking support from Teton County voters and the philanthropic community in developing affordable staff housing, notably on our Hitching Post land.

How would you work to make consumer health care costs more affordable and accessible?

Unfortunately, many of the contributors to the high cost of health care are a consequence of the overall structure of the U.S. health care industry. I have written and circulated comments on the many reasons that, unlike in other major industries, competition simply does not function effectively to foster innovation and cost reductions in health care. Wyoming long ago repealed a certificate of need process to curb investments in new health care facilities that may be profitable for the promoters, but impose redundant costs on communities. That said, one simple move by the Legislature, the approval of Medicaid expansion, would both make personal health care more affordable for many Wyoming citizens and improve our state’s fiscal health.

Contact Miranda de Moraes at 732-7063 or mdm@ jhnewsandguide.com.

Tennican

The following responses from candidates were com piled — with minimal editing for readability and space — from a questionnaire sent to each candidate. Read the full Q&A at JHNewsAndGuide.com.

STEVE DUERR

Party:

Age:

Years in

Lives in:

Why do you want to represent your district?

I care about the people and wildlife of Teton County, all at a tipping point, stressed by too much commercial growth. As a former executive director of the chamber of commerce and the Mu rie Center in Grand Teton National Park, I understand commerce and conservation and the need to bal ance commerce with our extraor dinary natural blessings. I focused on this for 11 years (1999-2012). Urgently, I am called to reengage in the fight.

Top three priorities in Cheyenne:

Energy: Wyoming leads the way to restore and maintain U.S. energy independence through domes tic production, the cleanest global energy.

Education: A strong energy sector provides solid school funding.

Real estate: Property tax relief. When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

It is a woman’s right to choose. My body, my choice is the essence of liberty in America. Compare conser vative views on the COVID-19 vaccine. Government should not require invasive medical procedures an in dividual does not want. I am adopted. I feel strongly all life is precious. I support pregnancy resources like Turning Point. With compassion, investing in those re sources, I hope we can help all women choose life.

What should the Legislature do to ensure that elections are safe and secure?

Verification of identity is most important. In Wy oming, county clerks working with the secretary of state do a good job. If it is not broken, don’t fix it. What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

I intend to work with other legislators to introduce a bill that will provide property tax relief with these three components: (1) Exemptions for the elderly and infirm. (2) Credits based on income. The less income, the larger the credit. (3) Cap on annual increase, say 3%, which used to be a good inflation indicator.

How should the Legislature ensure the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

Two components to ensure stable education funding have already been discussed: (1) a robust Wyoming energy/mineral economy. (2) thought ful development proposals for maximum revenue flows from state school sections. Housing is a third critical component. School section development pro posals must include workforce housing land uses. Bonding should be a funding source vs. reliance on

the specific purpose excise tax, SPET.

What about Medicaid expansion?

Support it.

Should Wyoming have an income tax?

No. Wyoming should lead the way to restoring U.S. energy independence through domestic production and thoughtful school section development proposals.

MIKE GIERAU, incumbent

Party: Democrat Age: 63

Job: Owner, Jedediah’s Catering and Concessions

Years in district: 42

Lives in: Jackson

Why do you want to represent your district?

I have had the honor to rep resent you in the Wyoming Sen ate for the last four years. I have worked hard to learn how to be effective and deliver for you. We have reintroduced meaning ful tax relief for seniors on fixed incomes. We have funded schools, restored funding for at-risk youth and the developmentally disabled, brought funding for a community college here in Jackson, and much more.

Top three priorities in Cheyenne:

Build on the help for senior property tax relief. Then expand a program that can help the rest of us.

Better health care for all.

A look at how to address state lands here in Teton County. One that reflects Teton County values.

When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

The right of all of us to choose and make our own health care choices to me is absolute. That includes a woman’s right of reproductive choice. It’s between a doctor and a patient. Just like all medical health deci sions. Like many health care choices it should not be taken lightly, with full education on alternatives.

How should the Legislature ensure elections are safe and secure?

We should keep electing county clerks who are dedicated officials who will continue to run the fairest elections in the nation. That is the plain simple truth.

How should the Legislature ensure the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

We have funds available to do that today. The goal is within our reach. It will take vision, and a spirit of compromise to do it. Regional cost adjust ments, an external cost adjustment that pays for teachers, supplies and transportation costs must be monitored and updated. I will continue as I always have to get this done.

What about Medicaid expansion? Support it.

Should Wyoming have an income tax?

No. Not yet. As a member of the Capital Finance Committee the interest on our $25 billion mineral

trust fund can help fund our general fund for now.

AMANDA PADILLA

Party: Libertarian Age: 26

Job: Small-business owner

Years in district: 26 Lives in: Jackson

Why do you want to represent your district?

The Wyoming Legislature has consistently cre ated what are nicknamed “Anti-Teton” bills. I will work with the Legislature to create bills that work for our community as well as the state. Teton Coun ty is in desperate need of sup port. I will work with everyone I can to make sure that we make a change and move forward to gether. I want to bring new and excited energy to the Wyoming Legislature.

Top three priorities in Cheyenne:

Abortion; marijuana and med ical freedom; property tax reform

When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

The Libertarian Party and I are 100% pro-choice. Women deserve to have medical freedoms. I do not believe the government should have any say in the subject. The decision should be between the woman and her doctor. Abortions should be safe, accessible and ideally rare. The Wyoming Constitution states that adults are able to make their own health deci sions. I will support our rights to health care.

How should the Legislature ensure safe and secure elections?

Fair elections are a priority for the Libertar ian party. I will continue to fight for every citizen to have a fair vote. No matter their race, religion, sexual orientation, political affiliation, etc.

What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

Property tax reform is a necessity. Tax credits for older individuals is a must. All the while, prop erty taxes bring significant income. There should be a balance between those struggling, and sec ond-home owners. Studies have shown communi ties around Wyoming str uggling with this issue. We must find a balance between protecting those that built what we see today and those that can afford to do more.

How should the Legislature ensure the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

Teachers need to take a front seat in this con versation. We need to maximize the teacher’s earn ing potential. A huge priority for me is to protect our teachers. Making sure that they have adequate funding, tools and resources is a necessity. The way schools are funded needs to first and foremost pri oritize K-12 education.

What about Medicaid expansion?

Oppose it.

Should Wyoming have an income tax? No.

Steve Duerr

Mike Gierau

Amanda Padilla

Paid

By Reade Dornan

The following responses from candidates were compiled — with minimal editing for readability and space — from a questionnaire sent to each candidate by the News&Guide. Read the full Q&A at JHNewsAndGuide.com.

JIM McCOLLUM

Party: Republican Age: 55

Job: Builder, craftsman and author/poet Years in district: 43

Why do you want to represent your dis trict?

We need an effective voice in Cheyenne that will be a voice for the people in Jackson and across the state. Property taxes, affordable ho using/living, edu cation

Top three priorities:

Again, restructuring our property tax valuations and rates.

Education spending, teacher retention, and putting the focus back on students and teachers, not administrative salaries.

Strengthening Wyoming’s overall economy. When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

Rape, incest, and when the life of the mother is jeopardized.

What should the Wyoming Legislature do to ensure that elections are safe and secure?

We’ve made great progress with voter ID. I would like to see less drop boxes, meaningful leg islation on absentee voting.

W hat, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

Place a cap on how much the tax can increase in any given year. I would like to see a ca p of 3%.

How should the Legislature ensure that the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

We need to address the excessive spending on the administrative level. We need to put the focus back on students and teachers. We spend roughly $16,700 per student in Wyoming. Too much of that money goes to administration, multiple assistant principles and staff. There is a vast amount of wasteful spending.

Should Wyoming have an income tax? No.

MIKE YIN, incumbent

Party: Democrat Age: 36 Job: Software developer Years in district: 7

Why do you want to represent your district?

I want to work toward a Wyoming where our kids can grow up and get a great education, find opportunity to have a career or their own busi ness, and raise their own families.

Top three priorities:

Protecting reproductive rights in a post-Dobbs world.

Increasing local options for our community that we can apply toward solving housing issues.

Relief options for locals to ensure we keep peo ple in their homes as property values skyrocket.

When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

The viability line that Roe v. Wade had set for 50 years was also mirrored in Wyoming law until this last year where a completely draconian ban was enacted. The Roe v. Wade standard is what we need to codify back into Wyoming law. If we want to reduce the number of abortions in Wyo ming, we should be increasing acc ess to birth con trol so people can have more control on when they

want to be pregnant.

Wh at should the Wyoming Legislature do to ensure that elections are safe and secure?

Each legislator should have a discussion with their county clerk on what our current process in elections is. Our clerks work to ensure the safe ty and security of our elections. The Legislature needs to ensure that every citizen has full access to the ballot and a voice when choosing their rep resentatives.

What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

Property tax assessments are because of the rise in home pric es. We need to fix the home af fordability crisis across the state, and that means prioritizing the people who live and work in our communities and recognizing how each second home raises the costs for everyone trying to make a living in the community. I am for property tax relief for those that live and work here, but it must be in a way that does not give tax breaks to second homeowners which only worsens the housing crisis further.

How should the Legislature ensure that the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

Diversify its tax structure with a diversified economy. The wealth in the valley pays a far low er share of its income toward our school system than the rest of the population, and as tax reve nue from fossil fuels declines, we need to evaluate whether that arrangement makes s ense.

Should Wyoming have an income ta x?

Yes.

A tax for very high incomes is justified. This class literally makes money by claiming residen cy in Wyoming over a different state.

Jim McCollum

Mike Yin

The following responses from candidates were compiled — with minimal editing for readability and space — from a questionnaire sent to each candidate by the News&Guide. Read the full Q&A at JHNewsAndGuide.com.

ANDREW P. BYRON

Party: Republican Age: 37

Job: Small-business owner

Years in district: 6

Why do you want to re present your district?

I have always felt a calling to serv e. I have the ability to listen, cultivate relationships, and work across all party affi liations.

Top three priorities in Cheyenne: Property tax reform

Defending public lands

Building relationships with other legislators for the benefi t of House District 22

When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

Abortions should be a decision the mother has the freedom to make.

What should the Wyoming Legislature do to ensure elections are safe and secure?

Wyoming should continue to strive for excellence in secure elections. The Wyoming Legislature needs to continue to analyze the best possible technology and practice for safe secure elections.

What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

The Legislature needs to immediately pass a bill capping property tax increases at 5% yearly so property owners can forecast and budget accordingly.

How should the Legislature ensure that the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

The Wyoming Legislature needs to continually analyze funding for education. As we see astronomical increases in property taxes we don’t need to spend more, we need to allocate better. Spending less on administration and more on students.

Should Wyoming have an income tax?

No.

Should Wyoming have an independent redistricting commission?

No.

Should the Legislature repeal gun free school zones?

No.

BOB STROBEL

Party: Independent Age: 47

Job: CEO of SeeJacksonHole, LLC

Years in district: 22

Why do you want to represent your district?

We have an amazing opportunity to bring people together to figure out what we agree on and go to bat in Cheyenne. I also feel compelled to give back with my time and service. I want to give to give.

Top three pri orities in Cheyenne:

Property tax relief while keeping public schools fully funded

Energy innovation

Protecting our public lands

When should aborti ons be allowed and under what circum stances?

The Wyoming constitution says: Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions. I support that.

What should the Wyoming Legislature do to ensure that elections are safe and secure?

I believe in the integrity of elections in Wyoming n ow and applaud our county clerks who do such a good job. In the future we may be able to use blockchain technology so everyone who’s eligible can vote in the security, privacy and safety of their own homes.

What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

We don’t need to reinvent the wheel here. There’s been issues like this in other states and we should look at some of those solutions and implement them in order to provide relief to those most impacted such as our longtime residents while still funding our public education system. We should immediately expand and provide more funding for the existing exemption program which now helps some residents.

How should the Legislature ensure that the state’s schools remain funded and staffed?

Education is our future and we have done a good job with it in Wyoming. It must remain one of our top priorities and I will strongly support whatever steps we must take to achieve that.

Should Wyoming have an income tax?

No.

Should Wyoming have an independent redistricting commission?

Yes.

Should the Legislature repeal gun free school zones?

No.

Andrew Byron

Bob Strobel

Vote Liz Storer House District 23

TETON

The following responses from candidates were compiled — with minimal editing for readability and space — from a questionnaire sent to each candidate by the News&Guide. Read the full Q&A at JHNewsAndGuide.com.

LIZ STORER

Why do you want to represent your district?

to the woman, her family and her doctor, not politicians.

What should the Wyoming Legislature do to ensure elections are safe and secure?

All evidence indicates that Wyoming’s elections are free, fair, safe and secure. However, Rep. Chuck Gray, a Republican extremist, will likely be our next Secretary of State and it concerns me that he based his campaign largely on the premise that Wyoming elections lack integrity. If our future secretary of state, or anyone else, proposes changes that would diminish the integrity of our election, then the Legislature should act to ensure they remain free from such interference.

because we need bridge builders, we need peacemakers. The issues challenging our community and our state are not partisan talking points. We are crippled by high property tax increases on our homes, struggling with the highest suicide rates in the nation, and facing rollbacks in reproductive health access and freedoms.

Top three priorities in Cheyenne:

Cap the tax: Fight for property tax relief; protect access to reproductive health care services, including abortion; promote balanced stewardship — conservation and community.

What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

Liz Storer

I have spent most of my adult life working to make Wyoming a place where communities and families can thrive while conserving our amazing natural resources and wildlife. Having participated in policy initiatives for more than 30 years, I have a working knowledge of how state government functions and a deep understanding of the challenges facing Teton County. My experience means I can represent Teton County’s values in Cheyenne with honesty and effectiveness.

Top three priorities in Cheyenne:

Defending a woman’s right to safe and legal abortion; property tax relief for Teton County families; funding to ensure our kids get the education they need and deserve.

When should abortions be allowed and under what circumstances?

Since 1973, Wyoming women have had access to safe and legal abortion until a fetus could survive outside its mother’s body, generally 23 to 26 weeks of pregnancy. I support the continued legal status of these abortion rights and oppose any effort by the Wyoming Legislature to abridge those rights, including the “trigger ban” passed by the Legislature earlier this year. The decision to have an abortion is deeply personal and complex and should be left

High demand from remote workers, secondhome owners and wealthy people taking advantage of Wyoming’s low tax environment are driving up property values (and taxes). We should overhaul Wyoming’s outdated tax system rather than create additional tax breaks for rich people. A homestead exemption for primary residences, increasing the property tax refund program and creating greater flexibility for payments would help alleviate the burden our antiquated tax policy creates on lowand middle-income families.

Income tax?

Yes. Probably, but the goal should be to create a tax policy that is broad, sustainable and equitable. Our current tax system is none of those.

PAU L VOGELHEIM

Party: Republican Age: 67

Job: Former Teton County commissioner, retired businessman Years in district: 8 years; 25 in Jackson Hole

Why do you want to represent your district?

I have always felt called to serve my community. I have 25 years of civic leadership experience serving on a dozen nonprofit boards. I am running

I will not sponsor or support any legislation that restricts the reproductive rights of women in Wyoming. It is not the business of government, federal or state, to interfere in a person’s private health care decisions.

What should the Legislature do to ensure elections are safe and secure?

Paul Vogelheim

Listen to the 23 Wyoming county clerks: We have a safe and secure election process in Wyoming. What, if anything, should the state do to rein in property tax increases?

Cap the property tax at 5% as the maximum annual increase for assessed residential (including rental) property values. We need to do this immediately to provide real property tax relief now. This will be one of the fi rst bills that I will support and push. I am excited to see that the Revenue Committee has asked for draft legislation to address this critical community issue. I have asked leadership to serve on the Wyoming Revenue Committee.

Income tax? No.

Voters to decide on Conservation District

Board members and funding are both on the ballot this year.

By Billy Arnold

Voters will decide whether to continue funding for the Teton Conservation District and which three candidates will sit on the district’s board.

What is the Conservation District?

One of the lower-profi le local government agencies, the Teton Conservation District has been active in the community since the mid1940s, albeit original ly under a different name. It now works with private landowners and government agencies on conservation projects throughout the valley.

Among them: monitoring for fecal bacteria and nutrients in streams and rivers; consulting with and offering grants to homeowners to mitigate wildfi re risk on their properties; supporting local agriculture and research through annual grants; and mapping drinking water challenges and septic systems throughout Jackson Hole.

Of the Conservation District’s roughly $2.2 million 2022 budget, the bulk of its roughly $930,000 program budget — about $400,000 — was spent on water quality projects. Part of that work involved funding a study that identifi ed human wastewater as the greatest source of identifi able fecal bacteria in Fish and Flat Creeks. The District is also the primary entity that works with the U.S. Geological Survey to operate stream gauges that m onitor river fl ows and temperatures along the Snake River and its tributaries, putting $50,000 toward the program. It also distributes well test kits so residents can test their drinking water.

“We’re intended to be small government,” said Carlin Girard, the district’s executive director. “We’re designed to be small, nimble and adaptable to the nee ds of the community compared to other forms of government that tend to be more bureaucratic and slower to respond.”

The funding question

Every four years, voters are given the opportunity to vote on the primary source of the Conservation District’s funding: a property tax, or mill levy, that typically constitutes just over 1/100th of a Teton County taxpayer’s annual property tax bill. Under the current levy, that equates to roughly $57 of a roughly $5,300 property tax bill on a home valued at $1 million.

This year the Conservation District’s board opted to cut its mill levy from 0.8 to 0.6, a reduction that would save someone who owns a $1 million property roughly $20. The district has the ability to request up to 1 mill, so its current tax is about 40% lower than what it could request.

With rising property values, this year’s reduction held the district’s budget relatively fl at over previous years. Board members said they did it to lighten taxpayers’ load, however small.

“Suffi ce to say, as property taxes have increased for private landowners, the tax burden from Teton Conservation District has not,” Steve McDonald, the district’s board chair, said in a press release announcing the reduction.

Voters have approved the district’s mill levy every four years

Morgan Graham, a GIS and wildlife specialist with the Teton Conservation District, performs a transect in 2020 at a cheatgrass study plot on the south slope of Saddle Butte. Funding for the Conservation District, as well and election for three of its board seats, is on the November ballot.

since 1998. In 2018 it was approved with roughly 80% of the vote, though the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance and Greater Yellowstone Coalition formed a political action committee that, in part, advocated for the measure. In previous cycles, it has passed with just north of 50% of the vote.

Girard said the district would not be starting a PAC to advocate for its funding — or asking anyone to. Rather, it’s relying on educating people about the work it’s done over the past year. Peo ple can read more about the district in its annual report at TinyURL.com/TCD22report.

This year the funding proposition was inadvertently left off the main ballot. The Teton County Clerk’s Offi ce is remedying the mistake by attaching a third page to the ballot.

The four candidates

Voters have the option to choose three of four candidates to represent rural areas for four-year terms on the Teton Conservation District board. Incumbents Dave Adams, Steve McDonald and Bob Lucas are running. Cate Watsabaugh also is seeking a seat.

At a Teton County Library forum, Adams and McDonald argued that voting for them would be a vote for continuity on the board.

Adams serves on the Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts’ board and said that Teton County has become a model for the state.

“A lot of counties are starting to have Teton syndrome,” Adams sa id, pointing to rapid development elsewhere in Wyoming. “We’re becoming an asset for the rest of the state.”

McDonald, a one-term board member fr om Alta, said he’s a representative of the agricultural community: “I really am proud of the fact that we have an excellent staff,” he said. “We’ve done what I think is a very good job spending your money wisely.”

Bob Luca s didn’t attend, but Adams delivered a closing statement in his stead: “Our job is to spend the taxpayers’ money wisely,” Adams said, reading a statement for Lucas. “I’m really glad that we dropped the mill to 0.6, and I would’ve dropped it some more.”

Watsabaugh, of Wilson, said a vote for her would be a vote for giving new voices a chance, not unseating incumbents: “The Conservation Board, the supervisors, and the staff is doing really incredible work and being such a well functioning entity that I don’t really want to unseat anybody,” she said. “I’m essentiall y asking for a chance to give back to the community in a way that I think gives back to the people as much as it gets back to the place.”

Contact Billy Arnold at 732-7063 or barnold@jhnewsandguide.com.

BRADLY J. BONER/NEWS&GUIDE FILE

Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction

By Jeannette Boner

Two candidates for Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction, Republican Megan Degenfelder and Democrat Sergio Maldonado, will vie for the top state education seat on Nov. 8.

Degenfelder is six generations deep in Wyoming and graduated from Natrona County High School in Casper, Wyoming. She earned degrees in business economics and political science from the University of Wyoming. She served as the Chief Policy Officer at the Wyoming Department of Education under Superintendent Jillian Balow.

Degenfelder has focused her campaign empowering parents and vows to “fight back against anti-American curriculum and policies,” per her campaign page.

Maldonado was born on Wyoming’s Wind River Reservation and is a graduate of Brigham Young University. He holds a master’s degree from Arizona State University. He is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Wyoming. In 2015, Maldonado served the State of Wyoming’s Office of the Governor as the Tribal Liaison for the Northern Arapaho Tribe for two years.

Maldonado has focused on early childhood education support and local control over curriculum and policy.

The Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction is the head of the Department of Education. They are a nonvoting member of Wyoming Community College Commission, the University of Wyoming and the school facilities commission. The state super also serves on the State Building Commission, State Loan Board, State Board of Education and Investment Board.

Contact Jeannette at schools@jhnewsandguide.com.

Wyoming Governor

By Sophia Boyd-Fliegel

Incumbent Republican Governor Mark Gordon is running against Democrat Theresa Livingston and Libertarian Jared Baldes.

Gordon, 65, is concluding his first four-year term as governor. He served as the state treasurer from 2012 through 2018, after being appointed to that position in 2012 by Gov. Matt Mead following the death of former state treasurer, Joe Meyer.

Gordon served on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City from 2008 to 2012.

Gordon touts his accomplishments over the last three and a half years as cutting state spending, keeping schools open during the pandemic, and fighting a ban from President Joe Biden ban on oil and gas leasing.

The Associated Press reported that Gordon’s right-wing credentials were bolstered by his urging the National Rifle Association to move its headquarters from Virginia to Wyoming and signing a ban on most abortions that briefly took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

The ban is now on hold pending a lawsuit filed in Teton County.

Theresa Livingston, 72, is a Worland Democrat. Before retiring she spent nine years in the Air Force and 15 years at the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management, and then as a special education teacher.

Livingston lists her top priorities online as women’s rights, Medicare expansion, mental health care and bolstering Wyoming’s economy.

Contact Sophia Boyd-Fliegel at county@ jhnewsandguide or 307-732-7063.

Wyoming’s seat in the U.S. House of Representatives

By Billy Arnold

Two candidates are vying to replace outgoing Republican Rep. Liz Cheney in the U.S. House of Representatives: Republican Harriet Hageman and Democrat Lynnette Grey Bull.

Hageman, a natural resources attorney from Fort Laramie, beat Cheney in the August Republican primary, ousting the three-term congresswoman after Cheney voted to impeach Trump for “incitement of insurrection” after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Cheney also serves on the Jan. 6 committee. Wyoming Republicans widely repudiated Cheney for both actions, and Hageman rode that wave to a roughly 40-point victory in the primary.

After calling the 2020 election “rigged,” Hageman has since engaged in a tit-for-tat with Wyoming attorneys who have called on her to stop spreading election misinformation. Hageman has called that a “threat” and an attack on her first amendment rights.

Grey Bull, meanwhile, aims to be the first Wyoming Democrat elected to Congress in 44 years. She’s not fazed by the odds, pledging to campaign in all of Wyoming’s 23 counties. Recently, she publicly sought Cheney’s endorsement against Hageman.

Grey Bull, a member of the Northern Arapaho and Standing Rock Sioux tribes, said she ran for Congress in 2020 against Cheney to amplify the mission of Not Our Native Daughters, a nonprofit she runs and organizes that aims to educate people about missing and murdered Indigenous women.

Grey Bull

This time, she has said she’s running to win.

Contact Billy Arnold at 732-7063 or barnold@ jhnewsandguide.com.

Maldonado

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Two constitutional amendments are on November’s ballot

Let local governments invest in stocks? Raise judges’ retirement age? Voters to decide.

By Jonathan Gallardo Gillette News Record Via Wyoming News Exchange

GILLETTE — Voters will get the chance to decide on two amendments to the Wyoming Constitution in the general election.

Amendment A allows cities, counties, towns, school districts and other political subdivisions to invest money in stocks and equities.

And Amendment B would increase the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 75.

The state has invested money in its permanent funds in equities since the 1990s. In 2016, voters approved an amendment that allowed Wyoming to invest its state agency pool, which includes hundreds of non-permanent funds, into stocks and equiti es.

If Amendment A passes it would allow local governments to do the same thing, giving them an opportunity to increase revenue without increasing taxes.

For a constitutional amendment to get onto the ballot in Wyoming it needs to get a two-thirds superma-

jority from both the House and Senate.

Amendment A was introduced as House Joint Resolution 9 in the 2021 legislative session. The House approved it on a 43-16 vote, and the Senate passed it with a vote of 25-5.

Right now, judges are required to retire when they turn 70 years old. If Amendment B passes, it would raise that age to 75.

A local judge had to retire due to this rule. In 2020, District Judge Michael N. “Nick” Deegan retired because he turned 70.

Thirty-one states have mandatory retirement ages for judges. Vermont has the highest, at 90 years old.

Montana, Idaho, Nebraska and North Dakota don’t have mandatory retirement.

In Utah the age is 75 years old. Colorado’s is 72, and South Dakota’s is 70.

This was introduced as House Joint Resolution 1 in the 2022 legislative session.

The House passed it on a 54-5 vote, while the Senate approved it on a 20-10 vote.

For an amendment to pass it needs a majority of all voters in the election to support it. This means that if a voter leaves this part of the ballot blank, that is essentially the same as a vote against the amendment.

EXPERIENCE - KNOWLEDGE - INNOVATION

Successful physician and administrator in health care

Board Advisor for St. John's Health from 2009-2012, and CEO from 2012-2016

active & engaged community member serving on Senior Center and Curran Seeley boards

for your support!

FIGHTING FOR THOSE WHO KEEP US SAFE.

Luther has been an incredible advocate for firefighters. Everything from air quality in the station to our recent push in the county for fair and equitable wages — he was our number one supporter in all of those.”

Austin Sessions, president of Local 5067

I am proud to advocate for firefighters and other county employees. Some of my priorities include:

• Putting a measure on the 2022 SPET ballot to replace the outdated fire houses in Hoback and Wilson.

• Acquiring four wildland firefighting trucks to better protect the community from wildfire.

• Securing fair pay for firefighters, including a 6% raise and $1,200 bonus this year.

LutherforTetonCounty.com

Endorsed by Jackson Hole Professional Firefighters (IAFF L5067) Luther, center, with John Tobey and Tyler Hartz, officers with Jackson Hole Professional Firefighters.

Specific purpose excise tax: Vote yes or no on each one

Each item on the ballot is separate and independent from the others. A vote for or against one item will not affect the outcome of any of the other items.

No. 1: Teton County Employee Housing ($10 million)

Teton County has already spent $3.8 million to purchase 252 and 254 E. Simpson Ave., where it’s hoping to use $10 million in SPET dollars to build about 35 rental units for county government employees.

On average the county is strug gling to staff 12% of 350 positions, which is about twice the national rate of job openings according to the latest reports from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Building plans aren’t defined yet, said Alyssa Watkins, administra tor for the Teton County commis sioners, but taxpayers can expect a three-story building with offices on the ground floor and one- and twobedroom units above, similar to the county’s Parks and Rec building on Snow King Avenue.

Two years ago that $22 million Parks and Rec project came under scrutiny after an 8% cost overrun.

Asked to address those concerns, Watkins said the current projected costs are not actual budget figures but rather estimates based on recent construction costs, and adjusted for inflation.

Similar to other housing SPET requests, the county’s request repre sents only a fraction of the total esti mated project costs. The county will be responsible for the other nearly $20 million regardless.

Demolition is slated to begin on the sites this year and construction is scheduled to end in 2025.

If the SPET measure doesn’t pass, though, that timeline would be tossed.

Commissioners would decide if and how to budget the project with county funds while crafting the 2024 budget.

The county’s $10 million ask and ballot language “for the purchase of land and planning, designing, engi neering, and constructing” housing is identical to the ask from the Town of Jackson. Both entities own the properties where they can fit higherdensity employee housing but say they’ve written intentionally broad language to “purchase” land, should they need to change course.

Exit interviews show that in creasing numbers of county staff are leaving employment due to housing constraints, the application said. Job offers also are being declined due to housing-related challenges. When staff are not available, work is often outsourced at a much higher cost to taxpayers.

The county lists its services in the SPET application as including but not limited to fire prevention; EMS services; public and environmental health services; emergency manage ment; waste management; the pro vision of housing; code compliance, elec trical and building inspections; and infrastructure maintenance.

— Sophia Boyd-Fliegel

No. 2: Teton Youth and Family Services facilities improvements ($2 million)

Teton Youth and Family Services is requesting $2 million in SPET funding to upgrade its buildings.

The nonprofit has been helping Wyo ming kids in crisis and their families since 1977.

Its services include a crisis shelter, group home and a residential treat ment center responding to mental health, substance and child abuse, as well as domestic violence.

SPET funding to remodel and im prove their facilities, dubbed “Building Brighter Futures,” has not been pro posed before. The onetime funds would support the remodel of their existing fa cilities: the Hirschfield Center for Chil dren, the Van Vleck House and Red Top Meadows.

The Hirschfield Center for Children, originally constructed in 2002, includes facilities for forensic interviews, family advocacy and therapy, and the Court Diversion Program. The planned re model will add a welcome and waiting area, staff offices, a board room and stu dent study area.

The Van Vleck House is a residential facility for young adults. Currently, the structure, built in 1967 and last remod eled in the mid-1980s, “is far below the industry standards for safe and thera peutic spaces of this type,” according to Executive Director Sarah Cavallaro.

Red Top Meadows is a 14-bed resi

dential treatment and therapeutic wil derness program established in 1980 to serve adolescent males. The facility is located on 20 acres bordering the Bridg er-Teton National Forest.

The renovation will include state-ofthe-art safety features, including a safe space for youth at risk of self-harm, a community room, seven double-occu pancy bedrooms, improved kitchen fa cility, staff offices and respite space and a communal multiuse room.

According to Cavallaro, the $2 mil lion SPET request will be matched by an additional $3 million in public fund ing and $10 million in privately raised funds to complete the entire Building Brighter Futures scope of work.

“To date we have $6 million in pri vate funds committed and have an ap plication for [the American Rescue Plan Act] Health and Human Service Infra structure funds submitted and being reviewed by the State Lands and In vestment Board,” Cavallaro said. “The intent of the SPET is to continue with the public-private partnership to en sure vulnerable populations of our com munity are safe.”

The remodel of the Van Vleck house began in June, with the help of private funds.

Cavallaro said the timeline for the remodels is July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2025.

Some debate has been raised that the private nonprofit is not “directly re lated to the responsibility of the town or

See SPET

RYAN DORGAN / NEWS&GUIDE FILE

The setting sun illuminates changing leaves in 2020 on Munger Mountain, where advocates for the Teton Conservation Fund hope to use public dollars to protect a state trust land parcel from further development.

SPET

county,” according to the Jackson Hole Tea Party, which also opined in the Hole in One newsletter that this is not a “critical need.”

Cavallaro countered, saying that community safety is a direct public function of the town or county. Contracting private organizations to protect community safety is permitted within state statute.

“We provide the support to save children’s lives,” Cavallaro said. “We have facilities and programs that work with actively suicidal kids to keep them safe, work with child protective services to keep kids in situations of abuse and/ or neglect safe, and work with families who are experiencing crisis to ensure the child and family are safe. Without these services the lives of children and families are at much higher risk of jails, institutions or death.”

Tea Party critics have also said that “with a $3.1 million annual operating budget, the requested $2 million ... could be accommodated by judicious saving and fundraising within the ‘tax exempt independent private nonprofit

Eighty-five percent of its $3.4 million annual operating budget goes toward staff salaries, Cavallaro said.

“We fundraise 40% of our annual budget,” Cavallaro said. “We receive 19% in local government support and 31% in state government support, with the remaining 10% covered in federal

Investing in kids and families pays off down the line, Cavallaro said.

“In an avoided cost study submitted in the town and county SPET application process, it was identified that there is a $4.3 million in savings from providing services at TYFS,” Cavallaro said. “I would argue it is worth a $2 million investment to reap a $4.3 million in sav-

A YouTube video created by Teton Youth and Family Services describing e with the online version of this article at JHNewsand-

— Kate Ready

No. 3: Transportation Alternatives / Safe Routes to School ($15 million)

Teton County and Jackson elected officials want more people on buses and bikes, and fewer clogging the streets in single-occupancy cars. The county’s proposed $15 million SPET aims to make faster buses and safer bikers to incentivize people to drive

If approved, the bulk of the money would be spent on pathway and sidewalk projects for “safer routes to school.”

At the top of the list is a pathway on the south side of High School Road, improving the intersection with Highway 89. The community has also called for improvements along Maple Way and Scott Lane. In Wilson an underpass will connect Wilson Elementary School to a pathway running on the south side of Highway 22 from

Wilson to Stilson, complete with another bridge over Fish Creek.

The remaining third of funds would go to transit projects that are part of the town and county’s vision for the federal BUILD grant, aiming to reduce traffic and connect the region’s bedroom communities with “safe, convenient and efficient transportation alternatives.”

SPET money would help install 12 bus prioritization signals around the county, what Teton County Public Works Director Heather Overholser calls “green lights for buses.”

The money would also go to revamping the Stilson lot into a “transportation hub” for more than just skiers with 400 more parking spots, a new “transit center” slated to be built by 2025, covered bike parking and larger bus bays.

The transportation SPET is “critical,” Overholser said, to completing the cross-county BUILD grant projects in the goal four years. If the SPET isn’t funded, she said, Public Works would look to town and county funds and outside grants to fill the $4.7 million gap of public money to BUILD transit projects.

As for the safer routes to school, ebikes are likely top of mind. E-bikes are a new problem not addressed in this SPET.

“But we’re actively working with Friends of Pathways and the school district to remedy that situation,” Overholser said.

In 2019, voters funded a $8.5 million SPET for street, stormwater and sewer infrastructure, and a Safe Route to School, mostly on Gregory Lane. This year the town of Jackson also has a $3 million SPET item that’s focused filling in the gaps of sidewalks in the town.

Compared with those funds the transportation alternatives SPET is spread more broadly around the county.

These projects listed would involve multiple agencies and nonprofits that Overholser said her department is poised to work with.

“If these funds are approved by the voters, we will leverage those relationships and teamwork already in place,” she said.

Transportation projects are ultimately aimed at easing the spillover effects of the housing crisis, Overholser said, as the county’s workforce continues to face long commutes. Taking cars off the road will also help reduce carbon emissions, noise and air pollution and wildlife-vehicle collisions.

The county estimates the project will bring 172 jobs in the region and save local families $25 million on transportation over 20 years.

— Sophia Boyd-Fliegel No. 4: Jackson Hole Fire/EMS Hoback, Wilson stations ($15 million)

Jackson Hole Fire/EMS is requesting $15 million in specific purpose excise tax funds to plan, design and build a new Fire Station 3 in Hoback.

COURTESY RENDERING

A rendering of the completed Hirschfield Center and Van Vleck House at Teton Youth and Family Services.

The funds would also design a new Fire Station 2 for Wilson, and, depending on what’s left over after Hoback is built, those funds would then be allocated to building a new Wilson fire station.

Both new stations would be built in the locations of the stations they will replace.

Hoback is the “priority,” according to Jack Krill, a representative for the Hoback Firefighters Association.

The firehouse sits on a Wyoming Department of Transportation right of way at 10995 S Highway 89. It houses five emergency response vehicles. The building has a meeting room, kitchen, storage and floor for vehicles. Built in 1981, the station encompasses 2,300 square feet and protects Hoback Junction and surrounding rural areas.

“[$15 million] might not be enough to construct both,” Krill said. “We might have to look at other funding sources to complete the Wilson station.”

The stations are combined on this year’s SPET request so that the organization doesn’t have to wait another three to four years for a SPET election to approve building a new Wilson station, Krill said.

“Both are desperately needed for their condition and safety issues,” Krill said.

Krill cited a 2012 study of the fire stations that found the volunteermanned Station 3 extremely vulnerable to earthquakes.

“[Hoback] has been identified as needing to be replaced for over 25 years,” Krill said during public comment at a June 6 joint town and county meeting. “Now that Station 1 is complete, Station 3 is the next-highest priority based on the 2012 review and our recent review, due to many reasons, including safety and sustaining the volunteer system.”

The “most critical issue,” Krill said, is building employee housing, which

would sustain the volunteer system. Right now the station fails to respond to one-third of the 120 calls it gets each year.

“The volunteer situation at Station 3 is at a critical level. In the past 18 months 1 out of every 3 calls dispatched for Station 3 results in no one responding to that station,” Krill said. “Another 20% of those calls results in only one person responding. When there is a response, the average number of responders per call is 2.6.”

Krill said four responders per call used to be an acceptable minimum average, but now the national standard

for a rural area is six responders on scene within 14 minutes, 80% of the time.

“We are nowhere near meeting either of those,” Krill said in the joint meeting. “That number is not improving and will show an immediate decline with Capt. Mike Trumbower retiring, since he responded to most of the calls.”

The station also is at risk of losing its official designation as a fire station from the Insurance Services Office.

“Our call response does not show that it’s a reliable fire station,” Krill said. “It’s hard for ISO to recognize Station 3 as a ‘listed fire station.’”

Krill also cited “cramped” current conditions. When there’s a call, responders have to play a game of Tetris to get vehicles out the door. A larger meeting room would better suit the station as a “community center,” along with employee housing that would help the station house volunteer staff.

Another health hazard identified is the position of the gear lockers next to the exhaust pipes of the fire trucks, which releases cancer-causing diesel particulates.

Construction would start “as soon as possible.” The estimated time between

See SPET on 32E

KATHRYN ZIESIG / NEWS&GUIDE

Jackson Hole Fire/EMS is requesting SPET funds to design a new Fire Station 2 for Wilson.

SPET

breaking ground and final move-in is two years.

According to Krill, this is the first time the two stations have been on the SPET ballot, although they’ve been in the Capital Improvement Plan “since the ’90s.”

The recently completed Fire Station 1 on Pearl Avenue was the first fire sta tion completed with SPET funds. The final price tag was $11.5 million; $8 mil lion of that was SPET, with the county and town kicking in the rest.

— Kate Ready No. 5: Central Wyoming College campus ($10 million)

Central Wyoming College is request ing $10 million in specific purpose excise tax money to finish funding a 21,000-square-foot building on its own Jackson campus.

The campus price tag is about $20 million.

State Sen. Mike Gierau and Rep. Andy Schwartz secured $10.3 million from the state Strategic Investments and Projects account earlier this year. CWC now leases space from the Cen ter for the Arts in Jackson and has been working toward building a permanent Jackson campus for almost a decade.

CWC won a SPET election in 2017 that provided $3.82 million in tax mon ey to buy a building site on Veronica Lane in West Jackson that ultimately was deemed too small with too little parking for a community college cam pus. They sold that site after finding a more suitable location in South Park.

The campus along High School Road just west of Jackson Hole High School was sketched by Denver designers An derson Mason Dale Architects.

CWC has applied for $12 million through the American Rescue Plan, also known as the COVID-19 stimulus package.

If CWC secures the $12.4 million federal grant, SPET funding would still be needed to complete the Jackson campus, college President Brad Tyndall said, due to state requirements for local funding.

Community colleges in Wyoming differ from universities in their fund ing models, Tyndall said. Bound by the rules of the Community College Com mission and state construction commis sion, CWC can secure half its funding through the state. The other half must

come through local funding.

This past summer Teton County commissioners approved placing the CWC project on the SPET ballot.

SPET is an optional, voter-approved 1% sales tax paid by visitors and resi dents on most goods and services. In the county’s words, “the funds allow local government and public entities to con struct community facilities, infrastruc ture or amenities that would otherwise require other sources of revenue such as bonds or increased property tax.”

The space will provide space for nursing and culinary programs. Tyn dall said that having their own water and gas sources will also allow for more sophisticated science labs.

Tyndall said the plans for the build ing were awarded to the Denver archi tecture firm after extensive committee meetings with state officials.

CWC hopes to build on 2 acres just off High School Road. The purchase of the ground from Leeks Canyon Ranch LLC, through which Elizabeth and Kelly Lockhart run the Lockhart Cattle Company ranch, needs a zone change from suburban zoning to public-semipublic through Teton County.

— Jeannette Boner

No. 6: St. John’s Health housing ($24 million)

St. John’s Health is looking to con vert the current Hitching Post units on its 1.65-acre parcel across the street from the primary Jackson campus to house additional patients, families and staff.

By creating about 100 apartment units of varying sizes and uses, St. John’s said in its request, the project would “ensure the critical delivery of health care and emergency services,” amidst hiring difficulties.

Currently, the Hitching Post oper ates as a series of cabins reserved for long-term and traveling employees, on-call staff who need a short-term stay closer to campus, and patients. All told, there are 34 units divided between those uses. The new development would triple existing capacity and look more like a hotel. A rezone to public-semipri vate is in progress.

The Jackson hospital intends to pay a third of the $75 million project, while philanthropic donations through the St. John’s Health Foundation and SPET would each supply the other thirds.

In an interview with the News&Guide, hospital CEO David Robertson acknowledged the strengths

of other housing SPET requests but said St. John’s proposal gives taxpayers the most bang for their buck.

Because the hospital already owns the land and plans to match SPET dol lars 2:1, with the help of its foundation, Robertson said “the value is just ex traordinarily compelling.”

“There’s no way St. John’s Health could ever tackle this project on its own,” the CEO added. “It would deplete every resource we have.”

— Evan Robinson-Johnson No. 7: Town of Jackson sidewalks and pedestrian accessibility ($3 million)

The town of Jackson is requesting $3 million in specific purpose excise tax funds to “improve walkability and accessibility” around town.

“What we’re trying to do with this SPET application is kind of an overall ask for improvements for sidewalks in the town of Jackson,” Assistant Public Works Director Johnny Ziem said.

The proposal’s language would al low Jackson to put in sidewalks on streets that don’t have one, include sidewalks in any “Complete Street” projects and also make improvements based on the Americans with Disabili ties Act where sidewalks already ex ist.

The issue is one of safety as well as environmental health, Ziem said.

“Walkability is very important to our Comprehensive Plan and very important to climate action,” he said. “We want people to get out of their cars as much as possible. The more we can do that, carbon-free, it’s really a win on multiple fronts.”

A “Complete Street” project is one in which the Public Works Department has the right of way and is install ing new water, sewer and stormwater lines to replace old ones, repaving or making other road improvements and may or may not be adding sidewalks, depending on the street.

A current Complete Street project is the one on Rancher Street between Broadway and Hansen avenues. The street was “ripped up” as of late Sep tember, Ziem said, and the project includes installing sidewalks on both sides of Rancher between Pearl and Hansen avenues as well as adding a sidewalk to the west side of Rancher between Broadway and Pearl.

Another town project that just con cluded is the Pearl Street Sidewalk

Project, which included installation of sidewalks on both sides of the street.

The “Walkable Community” SPET would simply give the town the nec essary funds to do more such proj ects, Ziem said. The city has “a pretty lengthy list” where improvements are needed, he said.

This SPET money also could be used to help maintain Jackson’s his toric boardwalks near Town Square, Ziem said. And just to be clear, those are not up for replacement with con crete sidewalks, he said. They are part of Jackson’s heritage but take time and money to maintain; on hot sum mer days they sometimes come loose.

“Obviously, we’re growing as a com munity, and we’ve also added density to the downtown,” Ziem said.

The goal of Public Works is to “en hance safety and the welfare of the community,” he said. Adding cross walks and street lights at intersec tions so children and older folks can walk safely and people can safely walk to work, are also aims of this SPET application, Ziem said.

Some are not always happy when the town comes in and starts a new project on property they think is theirs, he said. But residents don’t always realize where the town has a right of way. In some older parts of town, where someone has put a fence in a right of way and it has to be re moved for a project, well, “people get used to what they consider their prop erty,” Ziem said.

But many are happy when a new sidewalk is complete, he said.

“People really enjoy them, and they get used to them,” he said. “What we find generally is that more people are in favor of having a sidewalk.”

— Mark Baker

No. 8: Town workforce housing ($10 million)

The town of Jackson wants to house more of its workers on land it already owns.

While ballot language broadly states the money can be used for land acquisition, it is intended to go to proj ects on three sites the town already owns to plan and build about 32 units.

How many of those units will be homes versus apartments will be de termined by employee need, said in terim Town Manager Tyler Sinclair. What’s for certain is that the town’s

ANDERSON MASON DALE ARCHITECTS

A rendering of Central Wyoming College’s proposed Jackson Outreach Center planned for High School Road.

two biggest departments that need housing are police and public works.

Having police live near emergencies has obvious, life-saving benefits, Sinclair said. But public works staff who help maintain the towns’s water, sewer and streets are also “unsung heroes.”

“Most people don’t think about public works so long as your toilet is flushing and your water is running,” Sinclair said. “But those systems do fail.”

The closer on-call emergency responders are to the water, sewer and roads, the faster their response can be in a crisis, especially during a storm. The planning and building department as well as administration also need employee housing, Sinclair said.

Some of the approximately threedozen units could be swapped with other employers, like Teton County, St. John’s Health, the Teton County School District, and other human service nonprofits so employees don’t have to all live directly next to their coworkers.

The town currently employs 123 people and has 15 vacancies. The town currently owns 45 units, all of which are rentals.

“Retaining has really been a challenge,” Sinclair said.

If approved, the first housing project that could use the SPET funds is an already designed plan for 55 Karns Meadow Drive.

The three-story building will have 36 bedrooms with space for 67 people in 24 rental apartments. The unit breakdown is 12 two-bedrooms, six one-bedrooms, and five studios.

The SPET money also could help push along two other housing projects in conceptual phases — one at 485 Flat Creek Drive and another at 675 and 685 E. Hansen Ave.

That would add about another 12 units to the town’s stock, Sinclair said, though the ratio of ownership to rent-

als will be determined by the “strategic housing plan” that’s supposed to be done by next spring.

The strategic housing plan will show what housing types — homes, apartments, condos — and prices are most needed, Sinclair said, including the desired ratio of employees who want to own versus rent.

That goal of housing more employees in town is not just to get employees to work sooner in emergencies but also to reduce traffic and help create a “sense of place”and “community identity,” the town’s application states.

No. 9: County land conservation opportunities ($8 million)

An effort to protect state trust land with critical elk habitat from development is seeking an infusion of taxpayer dollars to make that happen.

“Having this $8 million fund available gives us a seat at the table with the state of Wyoming,” said Mark Sullivan, an attorney who lives near the 640-acre parcel of school trust land near Munger Mountain.

Sullivan is championing an $8 million specific purpose excise tax initiative to raise public dollars and seed a

larger philanthropic drive to make conserving the 640 acres more palatable to state officials than developing the land.

The state, under orders from the Wyoming Legislature to maximize revenue for Cowboy State schools from state trust lands in Teton County, recently solicited proposals to develop the Munger parcel. It came up with some ideas — like glamping — that the community didn’t like and ran afoul of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

“This parcel provides crucial winter habitat for both elk and moose, and is

SPET on

KATHRYN ZIESIG / NEWS&GUIDE FILE

If approved, the bulk of a $15 million SPET proposal would go toward pathway and sidewalk improvement projects.

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Continued from 33E

adjacent to an elk calving area,” Game and Fish Habitat Protection Supervisor Amanda Losch wrote in 2020. “Commercial development that is incompatible with existing uses may negatively impact wildlife and wildlife-oriented recreation within this parcel.”

Since soliciting those proposals, the state has focused more on maximizing the value of a 20-acre piece of a larger 640-acre parcel near Teton Village. In June, state officials approved controversial glamping and storage operations — as well as other, less controversial stockpiling proposals — on that parcel. Altogether, that’s slated to bring the state $600,000 a year, up from roughly $46,000 annually before the change.

The Munger parcel currently nets the state about $1,900 a year through a grazing lease.

The state has not yet moved on the Munger parcel, and officials have told the News&Guide that they’re waiting to have meetings with Teton County planners and commissioners and a separate town hall with neighbors who live near the Teton Village parcel before taking other action on state trust land elsewhere in the county. That includes the 640-acre parcel near Munger Mountain.

The meeting has not happened yet, and Sullivan argued that the timing of the SPET measure, which wouldn’t start seeing revenues collected until 2024, could be “pretty good.”

But what the state would want from that parcel — and what other companies and groups could offer in a competitive bidding process — is uncertain.

“I don’t know what the state is going to demand,” Sullivan said. “And I don’t know what term they’re going to permit in terms of the number of years for a conservation lease.”

While the Munger parcel is roughly 32 times larger than the 20 or so acres that recently yielded the state a new $600,000 a year deal, Sullivan said that the Munger will likely be less lucrative for the state. It’s 10 miles down Fall Creek Road, away from other development and infrastructure, making it more costly for a developer to work with up front.

Still, Sullivan said he didn’t know how far $8 million would go. But he thinks that about half of it, if the SPET passes, could be used to encourage private philanthropists to come to the table. The idea: to propose a 20-year conservation lease to the state that would maintain the parcel as is.

The remaining money, Sullivan said, could be left over for conservation projects elsewhere, like preserving public access to trails on private land.

The Teton County Board of County Commissioners, which also serves as the Teton County Scenic Preserve Trust, a government body that manages the county’s conservation easements, would be responsible for doling out the money. The Scenic Preserve Trust has, however, recently been put under a microscope for lacking staff and national accreditation.

Max Ludington, executive director of the Jackson Hole Land Trust, wouldn’t support or oppose the SPET proposal. But he did say that, if the money were

to be used for conservation projects elsewhere in the valley, it could help lock down larger sums of state and federal money from sources like the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust, and the National Resource Conservation Service. Both entities allow local governments to apply for funding to help secure conservation easements, though the national program is more focused on agricultural preservation than the state program.

Ludington said that some type of funding, from local government or philanthropy, “is almost always required to tap into larger conservation funds from federal, state grant programs.”

If using the funds to preserve Munger falls through, the $8 million would create a county-administered slush fund for spending on conservation projects.

Those projects have yet to be identified. But Sullivan argued that establishing a fund for conservation is in line with the 2012 Jackson/Teton County Comprehensive plan’s call for “establishing a funding source for open space.”

— Billy Arnold No. 10: Bronc Achievement Center ($16.5 million)

Teton County School District No. 1 is requesting $16.5 million in specific purpose excise tax funds to design, construct and equip a new school facility that will include indoor recreational space for community youth sports programs, academic classrooms and laboratories.

The district rolled out the plans for the new Bronc Achievement Center with an overall price tag of $36.5 million and has been actively lobbying the State of Wyoming to shoulder the remaining $20 million. The Center is a facility the district is hopeful will create more space at the high school, which leadership says is nearing capacity.

The district is seeking $32.5 million in specific purpose excise tax funds split over two projects, with $16.5 million for the Bronc Achievement Center and the other $16 million to go toward building employee housing on district-owned property.

School superintendent Gillian Chapman along with school board members have cited the need to get ahead of growing enrollment in the district, coupled with expected housing growth. In September, Chapman told state legislators that there are 825 units of one-, two- and three-bedroom single family homes, apartments or studios currently under construction in Teton County.

“We have already taken measures to deal with capacity in our schools,” Chapman said to state legislators in September. “We have closed enrollment to out-of-county students, investigated addresses and knocked on doors to verify enrollment, changed elementary attendance boundaries and refused to enroll students who were not truthful about their residences. None of these are easy decisions, but necessary. We are at a point where these measures are no longer enough. We must act now, especially since construction costs are escalating and we are at the critical juncture where time is of the essence.”

While the school district seeks other funding sources like SPET, the state

SPET on

COURTESY GRAPHIC

Teton County School District seeks $16.5 million in specific purpose excise tax money to partly fund the Bronc Achievement Center. Part of the district’s master plan, it would create activity room and dining space to free more classroom space in the main Jackson Hole High School building.

holds the purse strings where additional funding is concerned. The state select committee is considering its supplemental budget recommendations and will meet one more time Oct. 20 before making its recommendations to the state Appropriations Committee.

The school district reported this October that Jackson Hole High School saw an almost 4% increase in student enrollment this year, with 824 students enrolled. That’s the highest number of students enrolled at the high school since 2003, up from 794 in 2021 and 729 in 2020.

While the state uses building metrics that put the high school’s capacity at closer to 1,000 students, local officials pushed back, saying that the school is nearing capacity at 900 students.

Wyoming uses a measuring tool to determine supplemental funding for the 48 school districts in the state based on size, age of school structures and predicted growth models created in 2016. District leadership points to the Bronc Achievement Center as being a more cost effective option for the district rather than constructing a new high school, which could carry an $80 million price tag.

“If a county collects more property tax than the state has allocated for a district’s annual funding, the additional funds are sent to the state; this is referred to as ‘recapture,’” Chapman wrote in a News&Guide guest shot on Sept. 28. “Recapture funds are used to equalize education funding in all 48 school districts in Wyoming.”

She explained that in 2022, of the more than $72 million in local property tax collected for schools, Teton County School District was required to return a little more than $22 million to the State of Wyoming.

“It is anticipated for 2022-23 school year the local property tax collection will be $100,507,121 and the Teton

County School District will return $52,785,941 to the State of Wyoming,” she wrote. “Again, the district has no access to those funds to provide educational services, capital construction projects or any other district need.”

According to the district, the building will also have health classes, a weight room, training room and recreational spaces such as an indoor track and courts that will provide students and the community space for academic and extracurricular activities. A team of high school staff will be invited and encouraged to work with other district staff and the architects to create classrooms and a building that is designed to meet student needs.

— Jeannette Boner No. 11: Energy Conservation Works projects ($5 million)

South of Jackson near the sewage treatment plant, mostly hidden from the view of passing motorists, there’s a solar panel farm that gathers clean and free energy from the sun to power local government and nonprofits.

The wastewater treatment plant photovoltaic project can generate up to 100,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a year, power that’s less polluting and less costly in the long run than what’s available for local use from any other source.

If the people at Energy Conservation Works have their way, the nonprofit will soon play a role in funding and building more of the same, and also have money for other energy-generating and conservation projects.

The specific purpose excise tax election set for Nov. 8 asks for $5 million for solar electric projects and also to support alternative fuel programs, energy audits and other work aimed at creating ways to produce and conserve energy.

Energy Conservation Works is a project of the town of Jackson, Teton County and Lower Valley Electric, now

See SPET on 36E

Energy Conservation Works Projects

for funding

Sponsored by the Town of Jackson

in its second decade. It won voter approval in 2010 for a $3.8 million SPET boost for energy projects.

Jim O’Brien, treasurer of the Friends of Energy Conservation Works, says the money the organization seeks this year should be seen as an investment, one that he predicts will yield a $9 million benefit over 20 years.

Because land is so expensive, ECW’s next solar electricity project is likely to be built outside the county, O’Brien said. And while ECW electricity has been used only for government and nonprofit uses in the past, it can be used for the kind of worker housing projects being encouraged by the town and county.

“Whether you are a participant in the project or not,” O’Brien said, “we all still save money on our electric bill because our solar-generated electricity should be cheaper than the electricity that LVE would have to purchase.”

Another project that ECW hopes to expand is support for recharging stations for the electric cars it hopes to see more of. That’s because its estimates hat cars are a major source of pollution in Jackson Hole, probably two-thirds of all air pollution in the

Traffic, ECW says, contributes 410,000 tons of CO2 a year emitted from burning an estimated $35 million gallons of fuel. Of that, about 40% is local traffic, and another 22% is traffic to and from the county.

s past projects are working on START electric bus purchases; providing 0% loans for home energy efficiency upgrades; work to make the Children’s Learning Center and Vertical Harvest more energy efficient; and work to cut energy use at Snow King Sports and Events Center and in the night skiing infrastructure at Snow King.

A big part of ECW’s work is education, said Phil Cameron, the group’s executive director, just letting people know about alternatives that lets them save some money and encouraging them to join efforts they might not have known about. A lot of the work isn’t big projects but step-at-a-time cooperation, often fixes in their own homes.

“Very few people choose to be willfully wasteful,” Cameron said in a previous interview. “We help them improve the comfort and value of their home while saving on their utility bill. We provide ideas for reasonable things they can undertake.”

As Cameron put it: “The cheapest thing is changing our behavior.”

— Mark Huffman

No. 12: Community affordable and workforce homes ($20 million)

Out of five specific purpose excise tax requests on this year’s ballot related to housing, only one aims to create workforce housing that’s not tied to a specific employer.

While occupants would still need to be members of the local workforce and meet income requirements in “affordable” units, cutting the tether of employment-based housing props up the community, according to Teton County Housing Department Director April Norton.

People can move up in their careers, serve the community in different ways, and make the “best choice for their family,” she said.

Based on the last seven years of data, the Jackson/Teton County Affordable Housing Department estimates that $20 million would build about 100 new units.

Norton acknowledged that finding local housing has always been hard, but newspaper advertisements regularly show rooms priced at $2,000 a month.

Commuting is no longer affordable to most, since rents and ownership prices in neighboring communities have grown over 100% a year and gas costs thousands more dollars a year.

“For folks who haven’t had to rent in a long time,” Norton said, “they

have no idea.”

The language of the $20 million request is similar to the SPET request that the Housing Department made in 2019 for a general housing fund to tackle projects as opportunities arise. Voters approved $5.5 million for housing in 2019 with 57% of the vote.

Three years later, the ask is an order of magnitude greater, and while likely still “not enough,” Norton said, its “money we can work with.”

With this being the largest ask the department has ever put on the ballot, Norton likes to remind people that over half of SPET is paid for by the tourists and visitors.

In 2022 the Teton Region Housing Needs Assessment projected the county would need 2,000 units by 2027 that are priced below market to maintain 60% of the workforce housed locally.

Since 2016, the Housing Department has built or is in the process of constructing 253 units. It has invested, on average, $157,000 per unit while leveraging over $100 million in non-governmental funding.

Deed-restricted units now represent about 14% of total housing units in Teton County and the share of workers who live in the county has stayed flat since 2015 at about 61%.

Deed-restricted units need to pick up dramatically to meet the goals of the housing needs assessment. At the current rate of 80 deed-restricted units created per year, the county would meet just 13% of the projected growth needs.

“There’s this huge retirement cliff that we’re facing and, I think, experiencing right now,” Norton said.

The Housing Department waitlist is about 3,000 people long.

SPET funds can be used for projects in the pipeline, which are outlined in the Housing Department’s multiyear capital projects portfolio and updated annually. They also can be used to purchase deed restrictions from outside developments.

The 2022 capital projects portfolio covers seven projects at different phases of development creating 407 bedrooms in 213 homes with an almost even split of ownership and rental units.

The department says it will continue to partner with private nonprofit developers like Habitat for Humanity and the Jackson Hole Community Housing Trust, private developers and employers for every project.

Over the last five years, the housing department has not seen any “substantial changes in cost, change orders, or cost overruns that required additional public funds,” their application states.

— Sophia Boyd-Fliegel

No. 13: Planning for senior assisted living ($1.9 million)

Voters are being asked to use $1.93 million in specific purpose excise tax funds to “hire professional services to perform and provide a needs assessment, feasibility study, and propose options for establishing senior assisted living facilities in Teton County.”

The goal of the request, proponents say, is to give older people an option for continuing to live in Jackson Hole when they can’t stay at home.

Seniors who don’t yet need the intensive skilled services of the Sage Living nursing home but for some reason can’t remain in their home haven’t had the option of a local assisted living facility since last year’s closure of Legacy Lodge in Rafter J.

“There’s a big gap in options for aging in our community,” said Anne Schuler, a board member of the Senior Center of Jackson Hole and chair of a new political action committee called the Campaign to Support Senior Assisted Living.

“If you can live independently and you don’t need help with day-to-day things, you can stay at home or you can live at Pioneer Homestead,” she said, referring to the affordable senior apartments in East Jackson.

“Once you need assistance with day-to-day things like cooking, some

"Giving

Jackson a permanent home represents the importance that education plays in our community " Hailey Morton Levinson

THE

by Bronc Achievement PAC

medical assistance, you can age at home with help from family or private in-home care.

“If that’s not available you have to leave the valley.”

Kevin Cochary, who with Schuler co-chairs the Senior Center Assisted Living Committee, said a local place would enable older people to maintain connections to friends and family in the valley and celebrate occasions like birthdays, graduations and weddings. Younger people would benefit from having their parents or grandparents nearby in a safe place where they could visit.

“It’s not just for seniors,” Cochary said. “It’s for the whole family.”

Residents who were booted out of Legacy Lodge when it closed moved to assisted living facilities in Dubois; Lander; Rexburg and Idaho Falls, Idaho; and farther.

“That connection was broken,” Cochary said.

The SPET money would be used explore the feasibility of and options for “establishing senior assisted living facilities in Teton County.” Where the assisted living facility would be, how big it would be and whether it would be new construction or a remodel remains to be seen.

A needs assessment, funded by the Senior Center of Jackson Hole, is about to start to address questions such as the number of units the facility should have. Proponents believe the pitfalls that led to Legacy Lodge’s closure can be avoided.

For example, Legacy was a for-profit business that had 54 beds but was never filled to capacity and had staffing problems, Cochary said.

Ideally, supporters say, the new assisted living center would operate as a nonprofit, public-private partnership potentially involving, among others, Teton County, the town of Jackson and the Senior Center of Jackson Hole.

It would be supported by client revenue and philanthropic donations and wouldn’t be under pressure to turn a profit.

“As a nonprofit we believe we could make it and succeed,” Cochary said.

In addition to private apartments with accessible bathrooms, the envisioned facility would be energy-efficient; have 24/7 staffing and multilevel client care; offer restaurant-type dining; have a library, theater and other amenities; and offer on-site entertainment and offsite excursions.

Schuler and Cochary say more than 20% of Teton County residents are over age 60. Often these people are “icons in this community,” Cochary said.

“Some served in the military, some have run businesses or were first responders,” he said. “It’s time to celebrate those seniors and provide an appropriate place where they can feel enriched.”

Elders offer “a diverse perspective, donate untold volunteer hours, preserve our collective stories, propagate our values, share their wisdom and mentor our young,” Schuler said.

“Every resident benefits from having seniors age in our community,” she said.

No. 14: Teton County School District housing ($16 million)

Teton County School District is requesting $16 million in specific purpose excise tax funds to plan, design, engineer, and construct multifamily housing for district employees.

The district hopes to build three 24unit housing units along South Park Loop Road located next to Jackson Hole Middle School. This SPET request is to construct the first 24-unit building with 1-bedroom and 2-bedroom apartments that would specifically address the needs of district employees and their families.

Together, Teton County School District is seeking $32.5 million in specific purpose excise tax funds — split over two projects, with $16.5 million for the Bronc Achievement Center and the

other $16 million to go toward building employee housing on district-owned property.

The district faces unique housing challenges, said Charlotte Reynolds, the executive director of communications. TCSD No. 1 employees’ salaries can prohibit some from qualifying for affordable housing and other times a school employee doesn’t qualify for housing because they have to spend at least a year in Jackson to qualify for affordable housing. Reynolds said educators need housing immediately after they are hired.

At the end of the spring semester the public school district faced 66 staff resignations, with only six citing retirement. District leadership has continually pointed to the need for more stable housing saying that employee housing could serve as a recruiting tool and could save funds in the long run. District leadership spends up to $50,000 on the hiring process including onboarding, mentoring and training once hired.

The district divided the housing project into three phases. The housing would sit on district-owned property that leaders have identified as “not currently usable for educational purposes.” Reynolds said that the hope is to fund the other two housing project phases through developer engagement.

“With the initial concept, the three buildings with 24 units each will fit on that property,” said Reynolds. “We were trying to bite off a small piece to start,” she said of asking for the SPET funding for the first phase. “The plan is to finish phase one in order to get us started.”

SPET is an optional, voter-approved 1% sales tax paid by visitors and residents on most goods and services. In the county’s words, “the funds allow local government and public entities to construct community facilities, infrastructure or amenities that would otherwise require other sources of revenue such as bonds or increased property tax.”

The school district is also uniquely challenged as the State of Wyoming

does not have a means by which districts fund employee housing and a public school district may not borrow money or utilize other loan programs for housing.

— Jeannette Boner

No. 15: Teton County water quality projects ($10 million)

Water quality advocates and government officials are championing a specific purpose excise tax measure that, if approved, would see $10 million dedicated towards water projects.

Two nearer-term projects have been identified for the funding, though it’s not clear how, exactly, the full $10 million in sales tax revenue would be spent.

That’s in part because Teton County, the Teton Conservation District and Protect Our Water Jackson Hole, a clean water advocacy group, are in the beginning stages of creating a water quality master plan for Teton County. The plan is aimed at improving water quality where it’s substandard and protecting water where it remains clean and safe.

“We cannot get to the end of the water quality master plan and start thinking about funding,” said Protect Our Water Executive Director Meghan Quinn.

The current planning effort is intended to create a roadmap for water quality projects. Projects could include developing plans for protecting drinking water across the Snake River aquifer, a centralized RV dump station for visitors and residents, and programs to replace aging septic systems. Efforts may also include forming water districts capable of receiving infrastructure funds for places like Hoback Junction, where some areas are plagued by nitrates in drinking water.

Once the plan is completed, local officials intend to ask state and federal officials for money to complete the work, which typically requires putting up

SPET on 39E

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money from the community to unlock funding.

Using money from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, the Wyoming Legislature has allocated $50 million for water and sewer projects in the state. The application for grants using those funds has, however, closed and it’s not clear whether another application period will open. That’s because the amount of requests the Office of State Lands and Investments received exceeded the $50 million allocated to the program, state officials said. Another application may open if state officials allocate less that $50 million in the first go, but it’s not certain whether that will happen.

Teton County did not apply for funding through the ARPA program, according to Chris Colligan, the Teton County project manager overseeing the planning. Water districts needed to be set up to receive funds for some of the projects, like improving drinking water in Hoback, and weren’t.

Other ideas, like setting up an aging septic system replacement fund, would have allocated money to efforts that went past the deadline for spending ARPA funds: Dec. 31, 2026.

But, Colligan said, there are other sources of state, and federal funds that the county can apply for in the future. In general, local funding is required.

“SPET is going to carry our local match for those projects,” Colligan said.

As water projects progress, the Conservation District and town of Jackson would have a say, and the Teton County Board of County Commissioners would have the final authority over how the funds are spent.

SPET funds likely won’t start being collected until 2024, when the SPET measures approved in 2019 are slated to be fully funded.

Officials said they could likely start

at least two projects before the water quality master plan is completed — and possibly before SPET dollars start hitting the county’s books.

One of those early projects would be connecting roughly 29 homes in Wilson to the Jackson Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The Wilson Sewer District has been working on connecting homes to the treatment plant and getting them off aging septic systems for years, having already connected roughly 400 homes to town sewer and eliminated 320 aging septic systems. Estimated at $2 million, Wilson officials would like to see the project funded by SPET dollars. If there is a shortfall, they said, they could apply to make up the difference with state funds.

“If funding is made available, the District will be able to move forward with easement negotiation, final design, permitting, bidding and construction,” Wilson Sewer District Vice Chairman John Wasson wrote the County Commission in March.

The second project would involve installing two stormwater treatment systems to pick up and clean runoff from a stretch of U.S. Highway 89 that runs from Mad River Boat Trips, on the southern edge of town, to Staples, near downtown.

That water currently dumps, unfiltered, into Flat Creek, which is impaired, according to state and federal regulations. The two planned stormwater units are capable of removing sediment, straining out trash and filtering hydrocarbons, said Johnny Ziem, assistant public works director for the town of Jackson.

Ziem said that the project could cost up to $900,000 and that the town could possibly use money from its capital fund to proceed with the stormwater project before 2024 — if it has money guaranteed from the SPET measure to pay it back later.

— Billy Arnold

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