Voters reject all Douglas County tax questions

All three Douglas County tax measures were defeated, with a proposed half-cent sales tax to support law enforcement in the county going down by the narrowest margin - 10,384 against to 8,533 in favor.

"Obviously, I am disappointed it didn't go through," Pierini said. "There will be a lot of challenges ahead of us. It's going to be difficult to provide the same level of law enforcement we've had in the past with the shortage of manpower."

Pierini was philosophical about the loss.

"It was the voice of the people," he said. "They didn't want to have taxes, and that's fine. We may revisit it, maybe in two or four years."

Pierini said that as time goes on, the sheriff's office will have to prioritize its response.

"It's what the people want and that's what they're going to get more or less. I think we're going to be fine, but we're going to have to look at cutting certain services as years go by. We may not have the ability to keep up with smaller details and may have to prioritize calls."

Question 2, which would go to support the senior center was defeated 10,794 to 8,129 and Question 3 which would support the Douglas County Historical Society lost 14,618 to 4,229.

Voters turned down Question 2, a measure that would have dedicated a .25 percent sales and use tax to build a new senior center, in addition to operation and maintenance costs.

A hefty 57 percent of Douglas County voters opposed the measure, which would also help fund libraries, parks and recreation programs, as well as preservation of agriculture in Carson Valley.

Senior Advisory Board member Paul Lockwood said tying anything to a tax increase in Douglas County is tough, and in this election there were three.

"We were competing with the .5 percent sales tax increase for the sheriff's office," Lockwood said. "We hurt him too."

During the campaign, voters told Lockwood the question was too complex.

"Instead of just voting for a senior center, it included the library, parks and recreation and agriculture protection," Lockwood said. "When people don't understand a question, they won't vote for it."

He said the county's plans to build a three-story garage in Minden was another factor.

"People were asking, 'How can the county build a parking garage, but they can't afford a senior center?'" he said.