November 24, 2025 |
Photo – Hanna Library – Bigfoot 99 File Photo
The Carbon County Public Library Board Chairwoman testified before the state Joint Revenue Committee on how recent property tax relief bills have affected her organization.
The Wyoming Joint Revenue Committee met last week to discuss seven bills aimed at helping residents affected by property tax hikes tied to COVID‑era migration. The first measure under consideration was the long‑term homeowner tax exemption. Lawmakers moved to eliminate the 2027 sunset clause on the 50% tax break for longtime residents, making the exemption permanent.
Wyoming Department of Revenue Property Tax Division administrator Ken Gill testified that the long-term homeowner exemption reduced state-wide property tax revenue by approximately $48 million dollars. Wyoming County Commissioners Association Executive Director Jerimiah Rieman responded that taxes dropped more than four times beyond what lawmakers first predicted.
Rieman added that the measure should include an income requirement, limiting the exemptions to senior citizens who are genuinely in need of financial assistance. The debate soon moved off the bill itself and onto property tax cuts in general. House District 62 Representative Kevin Campbell said the legislature is working to help residents affected by recent property tax increases, adding that counties should rely less on state funding and more on their own savings.
Property Tax Division administrator Ken Gill responded that every county in the state is unique, with some being hit harder than others. Additional stakeholders testified both for and against continued property tax relief, including Carbon County Public Library Board Chairwoman Addie Myers.
This fiscal year, the Carbon County Library System saw a 53% cut in county funding, dropping from $350,964 in 2024 to $164,452. Speaking at the November 19th Joint Revenue Committee meeting, Myers said the reduction, driven by property tax relief, was worse than expected.
Myers explained that by drawing on savings and relying on donations, the Library System has so far avoided closing any of Carbon County’s seven branches. The Library Board Chairwoman warned that without restored property tax revenue, closures are unavoidable. Donors cannot be expected to fund the libraries, as that responsibility should rest with the government.
Myers said the Hanna, Medicine Bow, and Encampment libraries are the most at risk of closing by the end year. If the Library Board cannot sustain those branches, the communities they serve will suffer.
Myers read a statement from Carbon County Fire Protection District Warden John Rutherford, who wrote that the District is funded entirely by property taxes. Rutherford stated that by reducing taxes, the legislature is limiting the District’s ability to respond to emergencies in the county and along Interstate 80.
Myers read a statement from a local leader who asked to remain anonymous. The individual wrote that Carbon County voters approved funding for special districts, including the Fire Protection District, through property taxes. By removing the county’s ability to collect those taxes, the state has stripped control from local government, a move the writer described as akin to socialism.
Myers suggested that state lawmakers let the housing market balance itself instead of attempting to solve the issue with short-sighted regulation.
Representative Kevin Campbell said Carbon County appears to have carried over more than $1 million in revenue into the current fiscal year. With that in mind, Representative Campbell asked why the Library System is so underfunded.
Library Board Chairwoman Myers referred the question to Commissioner Sue Jones, who was present at the meeting.
Instead, Representative Campbell countered that the information he’s been given doesn’t match the dire financial picture Myers described.
Commissioner Jones reacted to this story on Monday, saying, “Rep. Campbell still doesn’t get the fact that the State does not receive residential property taxes. Those are strictly for local government. By eliminating those, he brings the local government to the State for backfill. Cut residential taxes for votes is the current trend.”
Natrona County Representative Jayme Lien also questioned why Carbon County was choosing not to fund its libraries, especially considering recent news of large-scale wind energy projects coming to the area. Representative Lien asked Myers how the library system is funded.
Myers said to her understanding, only residential property taxes are used to fund the Library System, adding that Carbon County lost approximately $900,000 in revenue from the tax relief bills.
The Library Board Chairwoman said the Board of Commissioners has been working to save local branches, with Commissioner Sue Jones securing a grant to fund the Hanna and Medicine Bow libraries.
The funding is not enough to keep them open beyond the end of the year.
Laramie County Representative Clarence Styvar asked if the Carbon County Library Foundation could help cover the lost revenue. Myers said the Library Foundation has given more than in previous years, but its bylaws forbid spending on operations to prevent the county from pulling all financial support.
Myers said the Library Board has applied for and received a $10,000 Wyoming Intertie Community Investment Program grant to cover operational costs at the Hanna and Medicine Bow branches. However, the grant is set to end after one more cycle with no plans for renewal.
Representative Styvar asked if Carbon County was assessing the maximum 12 mill levy.
Wyoming County Commissioners Association Executive Director Jerimiah Rieman stepped in to answer, saying that 21 of the state’s 23 counties, including Carbon, already receive the maximum, with only Teton County able to raise its levy with any effect.
Joint Revenue Committee Chairman Troy McKeown remarked that the discussion had strayed from the long‑term homeowner property tax exemption, and the Committee moved on to the next matter.
