Starting Oct. 1, Norton County residents will see a change in the cash register as a 1% sales tax increase to support health care goes into effect. Kevin Faughnder, Norton County Hospital’s CEO, said it’s tough for rural health nationwide to succeed financially. Faughnder says he is excited as a hospital employee, but understands the importance of the change. “From a taxpayer perspective, it’s always tough to pay more taxes, and I think that’s why it’s really important for us to be responsible with how we use this money,” Faughnder said. “So both excited and mindful of the fact that we are increasing taxes.” In May, voters in Norton County overwhelmingly passed the sales tax increase. Faughnder can see both the pros and cons. He says that, as a hospital employee, he is excited about the change, but as a taxpayer, he understands that it’s hard to pay more taxes. The sales tax runs for 10 years, 75% of which will go toward the county hospital, and the other 25% will go to EMS. “We just need to be methodical in how we go about it, but that’s what this tax money is going to do for us,” Faughnder said. “It’s going to give us an opportunity to address some things that in the past we just didn’t have the ability to do.”
Source: KSN-TV
