Conservation Vote Round-Up 2020/2021 Welcome to the Alliance’S Conservation Vote Round-Up 2020-2021

Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance Conservation Vote Round-Up 2020/2021 Welcome to the Alliance’s Conservation Vote Round-Up 2020-2021 ear Jackson Hole neighbor, In the year since our last We cannot be mere Conservation Vote Round- DUp, every American has experienced consumers of good the importance and daily-life impact of accountability in government. From the death toll of the pandemic to the energy governance. We must grid disaster in Texas, it’s clearer than ever that the decisions made by our elected be participants; we leadership truly shape what our world looks like. And it’s just as true in Jackson Hole with must be co-creators. votes on issues like sprawling development in Northern South Park, the future of our — Rohini Nilekani Town Hill, and clean water. We launched our civic engagement We have found that most people in Jackson program in 2014 to empower our members – longtime locals, newer residents, visitors, and all community members to be active and elected representatives – consider participants in our local democracy – themselves to be conservationists. and to hold our elected representatives You probably do too. But are your and decision makers accountable to conservation values effectively championed our community’s shared values. At the by your elected representatives? Alliance, we support our friends and neighbors, especially the next generation It can be a challenge to get involved and of conservationists and people who make a difference if you aren’t “in the are traditionally underrepresented in weeds” of local politics every day. Even with conservation, as they become leaders in our great local news outlets and livestreamed community and grassroots experts on the meetings, it is often hard to keep track of civic processes that shape our valley, nation, what happens in our Town Council, County and world. Bottom line: Commission Chambers, and the State of we need you to protect the wildlife, Wyoming Legislature in Cheyenne. wild places, and community character This is where the Alliance comes in. of Jackson Hole. For the past three years, we have published 1 Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance | Conservation Vote Round-Up 2020/2021 Alliance Accountability Checks in vibrant local community. We hope this support or oppose candidates for office – the News & Guide, highlighting local elected tool will help you understand your elected but we do lobby incumbents and hold them representatives’ key votes on conservation representatives’ stances and values on accountable to their promises and and community character. key issues. our values! We will continue to publish those We must also acknowledge the limitations throughout the year to keep you up to of judging representatives on a few selected Sincerely, speed. And here, for the third time, is our votes. These votes might not reflect the Conservation Vote Round-Up of the complexity of their thinking or their values. most important votes from the past year. Many important discussions and decisions never go to a formal vote, so we see this The bills and local decisions we highlight round-up as a start, not the end, of good are those that relate to our mission and conversations with your legislators. By impact conservation and community getting an overview of how our shared Tisa Djahangiri character in Jackson Hole. By tracking values are being represented, you can more (she/her/hers) our representatives’ votes, we can hold easily participate in democracy and hold Civic Engagement Manager them accountable to prioritizing wildlife, your elected representatives accountable. wild lands, and our strong, diverse, and Lastly, as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we never 2 Jackson Town Council 3 Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance | Conservation Vote Round-Up 2020/2021 Conservation Staffing Options Cuts to Affordable Housing Final Step of Saving the Block Passed 10/13/2020 | Alliance Supported Requirements Passed 6/1/2020 | Alliance Supported Passed 10/13/2020 | Alliance Opposed Our community has invested significant The historic Van Vleck Block – home to time and resources into two Town Council and County Commission historic buildings, prized community green Comprehensive Plan priorities – housing faced a difficult decision when commercial space, and beloved local businesses – was & transportation – for which we have interests threatened to completely take threatened by an upzone and huge hotel measurable goals, action plans, and staff. away housing mitigation requirements, in before a Conservation Leadership Institute Strangely, we do not have the equivalent which commercial developers offset some group rallied our community to save the for our high priority of Ecosystem of the housing demand created by the block. Seeing how much our community Stewardship. While many Town and County new jobs they add. Last year, developer/ cared, seller Max Chapman pulled the programs and services directly or indirectly landowner advocacy group JH Working upzone application and the Jackson Hole benefit our ecosystem stewardship goals lobbied state legislators and got a bill that Land Trust launched the #SavetheBlock (e.g., investments in pathways and transit, would have entirely removed local control campaign to purchase the block. stormwater infrastructure, smart land-use over these requirements. Although the Meanwhile, voters supported funding a new planning), they are not enough. The myriad bill narrowly failed in the 2020 legislative home for the Jackson Hole Historical Society threats to our wildlife, water quality, and session, our elected representatives felt and Museum on the Block during the 2019 wild lands will continue to intensify as our they had to adjust the rates or lose the tool Specific Purpose Excise Tax (SPET) election. community grows. Along with over a dozen altogether. Ultimately, after disagreement Town Council had one last step: a final plat partners, we asked the Town & County to on the exact percentage, the Town Council to divide ownership of the block among the add a dedicated ecosystem stewardship and County Commission supported 50% cuts. local businesses and other staff position. Councilor Schechter proposed We applaud the two councilors and two community-minded owners. the motion to direct staff to bring back commissioners who stood up for a smaller information on a range of conservation decrease; but we also understand why our staffing options. other representatives made deeper cuts to avoid the nuclear option from Cheyenne. Please ask your friends to stop going to Cheyenne when they don’t get what they want in our local democracy. 4 Jackson Town Council General Penny of Sales Tax on Ballot The Alliance argued that several findings to prevent litigation. We were glad to see Passed 6/1/2020 | Alliance Supported could not be made to legally approve the the Council stand up for our community - permit, including requirements to minimize even though in the end, the Forest Service The General Penny Ballot Item would have adverse visual impacts and nuisances. approved almost all of the harmful projects. raised our sales tax by 1 cent to a total of 7 The zipline also did not comply with other cents (still much lower than most peer and relevant Town standards, such as the land resort communities). In the face of major development regulations for resort areas, and budget impacts from the pandemic, the Town the zipline presented a serious safety threat. Water Protection in Comprehensive and County had to consider cutting core Unfortunately, a majority of the Council Plan Update community services like emergency services, approved the zipline because it had been Passed 11/2/2020 | Alliance Supported snow plowing, and housing that local workers proposed in the also-flawed and recently- can afford, let alone water quality protection approved Base Area Master Plan Amendment. Along with the Wyoming Outdoor Council and wildlife/wildlands conservation. and Protect Our Water JH (POWJH), we More than half of the revenue collected from advocated for adding a suite of water the General Penny would have been paid by quality protections during the Town/ tourists, providing around $16 million dollars Town Objection Letter to Forest County Comprehensive Plan update. in additional revenue for Town and County Service re: Snow King We advocated for formally including the to meet community needs. While the Town & Passed 11/16/2020 | Alliance Supported recently-started countywide Wastewater County put the measure on the ballot, Teton Management Plan in the Comprehensive County voters unfortunately rejected the In addition to their direct authority over Plan. This ensures that the Wastewater measure. We are still working on sustainable Snow King development on Town and Management Plan will be formally adopted public funding for conservation. private land at the base of Snow King (see by local government and fully considered previous vote), Town Council also got to alongside other community-wide policies. weigh in as a “cooperating agency” during the Forest Service review of development Snow King Zipline Permit and expansions proposed higher up on Passed 8/3/2020 | Alliance Opposed the mountain. The Town asked for a range of alternatives to be considered and The investors at Snow King ski area sought a expressed concerns about the new access conditional use permit to build a zipline on road and mountain biking access. The Final private land by the Rafferty Lift that would Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) connect to up to four additional ziplines wholly ignored those concerns, prompting

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