Senate OKs eatery-tax bill without a county accord

Deal, or no deal?

Salt Lake County leaders thought they had a deal this week with local cities that would soften the blow of a bill that would divert $15 million in restaurant-tax revenue from county coffers.

After two weeks of negotiations, county leaders thought the bill's sponsor, Sen. Michael Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, would amend SB64 on Thursday to an extremely watered-down form: Instead of diverting all the restaurant-tax money away and giving it to the suburbs, the bill would force the county to create an advisory committee that would dole out the funds.

But Waddoups never made the amendment, and the Senate passed an unaltered SB64 on second reading by an 18-8 vote. During floor debate Thursday, Waddoups said the county decided to back out of negotiations.

He said the only way to "show the county this really is a serious thing," and force county leaders to play nice, was to pass the bill on to a third and final reading.

"This is a bill that is sort of a heavy hand, and I wish we didn't have it before us," Waddoups said. "I could press forward with the bill as it is and say this is the way it's got to be, but I truly intend to have a substitute bill that the county and cities come together on."

He said he will hold the bill at least through the weekend to allow negotiations to continue.

County leaders had thought the negotiations were already finished.

"I thought we had everything worked out," Salt Lake County Councilman Joe Hatch said. "I don't have a clue. Who can fathom what goes on up there? I've given up."

City and county leaders had huddled Wednesday and ironed out the specifics of the advisory panel that would be in charge of distributing restaurant-tax revenue. The nine-member board would be appointed by mayors and would include representatives from unincorporated Salt Lake County, county Councilman Jeff Allen said.

However, the County Council would have the final say in how the funds are distributed.

Numerous local mayors within the county have been pushing the idea of allowing cities to collect their own restaurant tax, rather than letting the county collect it and dole it out. Most of those county tax dollars go to Salt Lake City, leaving other cities with little restaurant-tax revenue for their own cultural and recreational projects.

Local mayors, however, were hopeful Thursday that the bill would pass with the amendments discussed this week.