The sales tax from the telecommunications companies largely pays for things like public works, roads and animal services.

Salt Lake County will end up taking a $3.2 million hit. Hatch said it has enough money in municipal services fund reserves, but said "it's going to be a real challenge to absorb this."

It will either take a reduction of service levels or a tax increase to get through the problem in the future, he said.

"In order to continue the policing and roads and all the municipal services, we would probably need a property tax increase to make up for this loss in sales tax in the near future," Hatch said.

Utah County leaders are trying to make up for a more than $987,000 loss by pinching pennies everywhere, Thompson said. He'd like to avoid tapping into reserve funds, and a tax increase would only be used as a last resort.

In Davis County, things are so tight that leaders will likely have to more than double the property tax rate in the unincorporated area, Rawlings said. The county already gave up $700,000, and Rawlings said the tax commission could take up to another $300,000 in the next round of adjustments.

"It leaves us in a real hole," Rawlings said. "That's going to be devastating for us."

For now, Davis County will likely tap into general reserve funds and reimburse it after a tax increase, Rawlings said.

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com