SALINE COUNTY -- A proposed sales tax increase that would have provided more money to the Saline County Sheriff's Office overwhelmingly failed Tuesday.
Also on Tuesday, Saline County voters returned two current Saline County Board members to the board, along with four other new board members.
Voters overwhelmingly chose not to raise the sales tax. According to unofficial totals, 7,925 voted against the tax increase and 1,558 voted in favor of it.
At a special meeting on Monday, the day before the election, county board members voted to make 7.5 percent cuts across the board in county expenditures, and release half the money in the Harco Road fund, which had about $1 million in it. They were already anticipating the referendum would fail.
The county has a projected budget deficit of $900,000.
Meanwhile, of the new county board members elected Tuesday, three of them have served on the county board in previous years.
Republican Wes Sherrod, who was named to the board following the June death of member Stephen Karns, was the top vote-getter with 5,664 votes. He was followed closely by Republican Jay D. Williams, who had 5,656. Republican Allan Porter received 4,693 votes and Republican Jonathan Russell had 4,630 votes. Democrat Bob Oglesby received 3,852 votes and Democrat Bruce Tolley had 3,684 votes.
Porter, Oglesby and Tolley all have served on the county board in past terms.
Sherrod said he believes voters chose candidates who will work to improve Saline County's poor financial standing and high property taxes.
"People are ready for a change. Taxes are the problem (and) they want somebody to stop them," Sherrod said. "I think in the three months I've been there I've made some definite changes with stuff, too, to bring it under control."
Sherrod said while the county is cash-poor, it has assets that could be used to improve its financial condition if county leaders are willing to work toward that goal.
"The county has multiple properties it owns it doesn't use," he said. "I've proposed identifying those properties -- we don't even know where some of them are -- and seeing if we can entice a business to Saline County by offering some kind of incentive on one of these properties. Possibly even give them the property.
"I mean, we're not using some of these properties and if some sort of business took them over, then those properties could start generating revenue for the county again."
Regarding the failed sales tax referendum, the new money it raised would have gone specifically to the sheriff's office. In turn, the sheriff's office would have taken over all its own all expenses, including health insurance premiums, retirement funds and other benefit costs, which are currently being paid for by the county's general fund.
The referendum would have added an extra sales tax of 75 cents for every $100 spent in the county.
