$507 million bond meant to fix Salt Lake County’s jail crisis is on track to fail. Now what?
Results aren’t official yet, but Salt Lake County voters have likely rejected a $507 million bond that was pitched by a bipartisan group of state and local leaders as a much-needed solution to a jail crisis that has been troubling Utah’s most populous county for years.
As of Monday, Salt Lake County election results showed the jail bond was on track to fail by more than 14,000 votes, with 51.63% of voters (or 222,227) rejecting it, compared to 48.37% (208,267) who voted to approve.
The vote margins are narrow — and some votes still haven’t been counted, with 64 out of 919 precincts not yet reporting results. But with a gap of 14,010 votes, the margin is likely not narrow enough that the race will flip when all remaining votes are counted and results are finalized after the county canvass on Nov. 19.
Pay now, or pay more later: Republicans, Democrats urge support of $507 million jail bond
Salt Lake County Councilwoman Aimee Winder Newton — a Republican who was among the bipartisan group urging Salt Lake County voters to approve the bond as the most “fiscally responsible” way to address the growing county’s public safety needs now rather than wait for the problem to get worse — is expecting the bond to fail. She told Utah News Dispatch on Monday that she’d be “completely shocked” if the race flipped.
“I’m pretty discouraged,” she said, though she added she’s “not surprised. I really feel like we did a poor job in really educating the public on this.”
Winder Newton had joined arms with both conservatives and Democrats from state, county and city levels for a news conference last month, when the bipartisan group made their pitch to voters. They framed the $507 million bond as a way to not only lower crime rates and recidivism in a growing county that hasn’t increased its jail capacity in more than 20 years, but also as a way to fill gaps aggravating the state’s homeless problems and nuisance crimes.
What did voters reject?
If voters had passed the jail bond, according to county officials, it would have funded:
- A 444-bed increase to Salt Lake County’s total jail capacity, from 2,455 to 2,899 beds.
- The closure of the existing and aging 368-bed Salt Lake County Oxbow Jail at 3148 S. 1100 West. Rather than pay for expensive repairs that facility would need to stay operational, county officials would rebuild capacity at the main Salt Lake County Metro Jail, at 3415 S. 900 West in South Salt Lake. With the closure of Oxbow but the expansion of the metro jail, the bond would fund a total of 812 newly-constructed jail beds.
- Expansion of mental health treatment beds in the jail, from 88 to 160 beds.
- Construction of a 100-bed “reentry unit” or a “step down” facility to help people leaving jail to rejoin society.
- Infrastructure improvements at the jail and Salt Lake County Sheriff’s public safety buildings.
- Construction of a Justice and Accountability center that would act as a new, lower-security facility for low-level offenders, meant to act as an alternative to jail for people committing “nuisance crimes” rather than violent crimes.
- In the Justice and Accountability Center, increased access to mental health services, substance treatment, job training, housing services and other assistance.
If the jail bond passed at the ballot box, the county would have taken on $507 million in debt over the next five years by issuing two, 20-year bonds. Over 25 years, it would cost the average Salt Lake County homeowner with a home valued at about $602,000 roughly $59 per year (or about $5 per month). For a business or a secondary residence with the same value, it would increase their property tax bill by about $107 per year (or roughly $9 per month).
If passed, the bond would have been a key part in Salt Lake County’s recently adopted five-year plan to improve its human services, homelessness and criminal justice systems.
While Salt Lake County voters voted overwhelmingly (nearly 80%) to approve the extension of the Zoo, Arts and Parks sales and use tax for another 10 years, and voters also OK’d school bonds in Salt Lake City and Murray, county voters are poised to draw a line against the jail bond.
To Winder Newton, the results are disappointing, but she blamed county leaders for failing to garner enough support for it.
“I’m so frustrated because I feel like we didn’t frame it very well,” she said. “You know, people confuse the issue. Some people wanted to keep talking about homelessness, thinking that’s going to help people vote for it. And this was not necessarily about homelessness. This was about making sure we have enough space (in the jail system) for those who are breaking the law, then the step-down facility for the lower-level offenders and having a better system. So it’s frustrating.”
What now?
Winder Newton said she understands why “nobody likes to raise taxes.” But she said doing nothing is likely not an option.
“Our No. 1 priority for a county is public safety, and we have not expanded our jail in over 20 years, yet our population has increased by 300,000 people. We’re dealing with a mental health crisis that’s bigger than ever, and we need those mental health beds,” she said.
Now, Winder Newton said she sees three options.
“No. 1, we continue to limp by and have to put money into Oxbow (jail), this old facility, just for deferred maintenance, and we end up having to use tax dollars in that way,” she said.
Currently, both Oxbow and the metro jails need at least $165 million or more for “overdue maintenance and capital improvements,” according to the county, including more than $90 million for Oxbow, which would only extend its life up to 15 years.
Or, Winder Newton said the Salt Lake County Council could consider pursuing a lease revenue bond, a different type of debt that would come with a higher interest rate, but would still require a property tax increase.
Neither option is ideal, Winder Newton said. Spending tens of millions on Salt Lake County’s current jail system for deferred maintenance and yet still operating two separate jail facilities is “super inefficient,” she said. “Pouring money into that just makes me sick to my stomach.”
On the other hand, Winder Newton isn’t fond of the lease revenue bond avenue either.
“If we turn around and do a lease revenue bond and just build these jail beds anyway … it feels like we’re flipping off the public,” she said. “And I don’t like that.”
The third option, she said, is county officials could consider waiting two years to put the question on the ballot again in 2026. But she worries the county can’t wait two more years to address its jail crisis.
“It’s not ideal,” she said. “We’re going to have to still put some money into Oxbow probably in the meantime just to limp by.”
Winder Newton also noted county leaders had already set aside $100 million federal COVID-19 aid to go towards the project. She said it’s possible the county could use that $100 million to build the Justice and Accountability center alone, rather than also consolidate Oxbow and the metro jails and increase jail capacity, like what the $507 million jail bond would have funded.
“That’s one option, to at least start on that,” she said, adding that the “most expensive” part of the jail bond proposal would be to fund expansion of high-security jail beds. “You just can’t do that with $100 million. Those high-security jail beds are just so expensive.”
It’s not yet clear what county leaders will do, though they are expected to reconvene in coming months to consider their options.
When asked at last month’s press conference what would happen if the jail bond failed at the ballot box, Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson — a Democrat whom county voters re-elected by 55% of the vote — told reporters “we’re optimistic” it would pass.
If not, though, she said at the time, “we will regroup if need be as early as the day after” the election.
In response to a request for comment on Monday, a spokesperson for Wilson said the mayor and her office was still waiting for final ballots to be processed.
“Regardless of the outcome,” however, said Liz Sollis, communications director for Wilson, “we plan to reconvene soon with the county team and community partners to discuss next steps that both align with our action plan and meet public safety needs.”
Winder Newton said “we’ll have to get together as policymakers and decide what we need to do.”
“For me, it boils down to budget. It boils down to the best use of tax dollars,” Winder Newton said, adding that she’ll be looking into all three options to weigh their impacts and their costs, and looking for feedback from her constituents before making a decision.