Susan Lee, candidate for Davis County commissioner, pledges spending cuts, opposes PIDs and questions shelter plan

Susan Lee, a candidate for Davis County Commissioner (CatB), said she will prioritize cutting county spending and lowering taxes if elected, and she opposes public infrastructure districts that she described as a "hidden tax." Lee made the remarks during an interview with the Davis County Conservatives.

Lee said she decided to run after commissioners proposed a large tax increase and, she contended, county spending has outpaced growth since 2017. "They wanted to raise our taxes 30% in Davis County," she said, adding that the increase was reduced to 15% and that left what she described as a $6 million shortfall. She said the commission has reduced that gap by about $2 million but still faces a recurring $4 million shortfall that officials plan to cover from reserves unless spending is cut.

Lee framed personnel costs as the primary place to look for savings. In response to a question from a delegate, she said the county has about 1,200 employees and that roughly "68% of the general fund is personnel," calling for a service-level review to identify overstaffing or misaligned positions. "If 68% of the general fund is personnel, then the budget isn’t a spreadsheet of things. It’s a roster of people," she said.

On how she would govern, Lee said elected officials must balance their principles with listening to voters. "Taxes and tax increases should be rare and fully justified," she said, and described herself as someone who will "listen, be accountable, and always put the people of Davis County first." She also told delegates she is asking for their votes directly rather than collecting primary ballot signatures, saying that approach reflects who she considers her boss: the voters.

Lee criticized how a county homeless shelter plan was handled. She said a state directive initially encouraged counties to establish shelters with funding, then changed to a planning requirement; she said local leaders moved forward without informing the public and that some officials pushed the shelter when funding was attached. "A homeless shelter does cause hardships on the surrounding immediate community where it’s at," she said, arguing residents resisted siting the facility in their neighborhoods.

She also criticized public infrastructure districts (PIDs), calling them a workaround that can sidestep elected oversight. "It’s a hidden tax…all taxes should be done through elected officials so there’s accountability attached to it," she said, arguing PIDs can impose ongoing fees on homeowners without the same level of public transparency.

Lee portrayed herself as the fiscally conservative alternative to the incumbent, saying she would work with Commissioner Croft but push for tougher fiscal discipline. She closed the interview by promising to "focus on cutting waste, reducing taxes, protecting the families, and restoring fiscal responsibility," and asked delegates for their support.

The interview included questions from multiple delegates about specifics of Lee’s plan; Lee offered personnel review, greater transparency, and coordinated lobbying of the state as tools to respond to unfunded mandates. She cited figures and county practices as the basis for her platform but did not present a detailed line-item plan or formal cost estimates during the interview.