Karen Pugh verifies ballot signatures Tuesday afternoon at the Malheur County Clerk's Office. Voters rejected a 1 percent sales tax proposal for Ontario Tuesday night. (The Enterprise/Pat Caldwell)
UPDATE: This story has been updated with final unofficial returns.
ONTARIO – Surprising no one, Ontario voters have decisively defeated the proposed 1 percent sales tax.
The final unofficial count released by the Malheur County Clerk's Office as of 1 a.m. Wednesday was 1,581 no, 825 yes. That's 66 percent to 34 percent. That represents about a 44 percent turnout of Ontario's 5,449 voters.
In a twist, voters also overwhelmingly decided to change city law to require a public vote to raise a sales tax above 1 percent. That provision in the city charter will go unused for . . .
