Voters defeated a lodging tax three times during the 1990s.

In 2006, elected officials decided they wouldn’t even ask voters to consider it again.

Now, two years later, the sales tax on valley hotel rooms could appear on the November ballot after town and county leaders consider the measure next month.

During a joint meeting Monday, the Jackson Town Council and Teton County Board of Commissioners asked staff to draft a ballot question for their review in August. Councilors and commissioners also will review a proposed structure for the board that would oversee the expenditure of funds collected through the tax.

If the tax is approved to be considered during November’s general election, voters would again be asked whether they want to tax hotel rooms to generate funds mostly for promotion but also to offset tourist impacts and provide services.

“I prefer the lodging tax option versus a general sales tax,” County Commissioner Paul Vogelheim said during the talks about the possible tax. “It depends on how this would be structured, and we would have to have that discussion in August.”

Wyoming statutes allow cities, towns and counties to levy up to 4 percent on most sleeping accommodations for guests staying fewer than 30 days. The tax requires voter approval; 60 percent must be spent on promotion, 30 percent on visitor impact services while 10 percent goes to local governments.

Leaders must send ballot language to the Teton County clerk by Aug. 23.

Commissioners resurrected the idea of a lodging tax last winter as they were looking for revenue to make up for declining sales tax, property tax and direct funding from the state.

Though they considered a sales tax hike, the measure failed because leaders said that levy would affect residents, too. One consultant estimates that 60 percent of sales tax is paid for by residents.

A lodging tax would be paid by visitors. A 1 percent tax would generate $1.4 million annually, according to an estimate made in 2008, the latest available.

County leaders have asked the Department of Revenue for an updated figure for 2010 but have not heard back yet, Vogelheim said.

Voters killed the 2 percent lodging tax in 1994 and again in 1996 and 1998. State law at the time mandated 90 percent of the money pay for tourism promotion with the balance for local government to spend on visitor impacts.

But a change in the statute in 1998 allowed local governments to limit promotional use to 60 percent with the other 40 percent for visitor impact services and local government general revenue.

Town councilors and county commissioners again mulled the concept in 2006 but decided not to move forward. This year may be different, as the town and county were forced to slash budgets by millions.

This time, the tax has the support of the Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce and the lodging community.

On Monday, chamber Executive Director Tim O’Donoghue said that there are a couple of exceptions.

“There are concerns in the lodging community about how the lodging tax would be administered if it was passed,” he said.

Hotel operators want to know how that joint powers agreement, which essentially organizes the board overseeing the money, would be structured and how the money would be spent, he said.

Commissioner Ben Ellis said he envisions that the county would no longer fund the chamber if the tax passes. Instead, a portion of that 60 percent would be used for the organization.

This fiscal year, the county will contribute $166,000 to the chamber for visitor services and special events such as Old West Days.

Deputy County Attorney Keith Gingery said that 30 percent could be used for public services such as restrooms, pathways and transit.

The lodging industry can reap benefits from the tax if it is structured appropriately, said Jim Waldrop, general manager of The Wort Hotel.

That 60 percent could be used for a “world-class national campaign” to promote Jackson Hole, he said. Without combined efforts, the lodging industry doesn’t have the power to undertake such an effort now, he said.

Hotels also could benefit from funding for the START bus and pathways.

“Those are great advantages to us as a community,” Waldrop said.

The biggest worry in the travel and tourism industry is that past problems with the tax would arise again, he said. It had been overseen by the Jackson Hole Visitor’s Council, a group formed to administer spending and marketing.

“When the visitors council was in place before, there was extra pressure put on the council to spend money in different ways,” he said.

This time, the lodging community wants agreements clarified before a vote so innkeepers can see how money could and could not be spent.

Some elected officials agreed.

Knowing how that board would operate “is every bit as important as putting it on the ballot,” said Councilor Bob Lenz. “This was the problem in the last one,” he said.

Without this information, the community can’t make an informed decision, and officials may have decided the result of a vote in advance, said Hank Phibbs, commission chairman.

“The form and function of what’s going to happen is an integral part,” he said.