GILLETTE, Wyo. — The Campbell County Lodging Tax Joint Powers Board opted in a 5–1 vote today to continue a contract with Zartico regarding tracking personal geographical and financial data during the upcoming National High School Finals Rodeo.
Campbell County Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive Director Jessica Seders said the board had the option either to remain with the contract they had with the company or to cancel it.
Zartico, a Utah-based company, provides customers geolocation, spend and event data for visitors and destinations in real-time. The company said it anonymizes the data.
Board member Erika Peckham said that while she understands people’s concerns with privacy, the board can’t control whether data is collected.
“The same data is going to be collected regardless of what this board decides to do,” she said.
She said she also hasn’t heard any viable alternatives to data collection. As a volunteer board member, she doesn’t have time to go to every local business and ask for sales receipts during the events, to compare weeks with events versus weeks without events, she said.
“And I think that’s kind of violating as well,” she said.
Paula Stroschein, who called into the meeting, was the sole board member to vote against continuing the contract.
