Tuesday, February 17, 2026 |
Photo – Carbon County Courthouse – Bigfoot99 file photo
In Cheyenne, state lawmakers are teeing up additional changes to property taxes while county officials are voicing concerns over more lost revenue.
Both the House and the Senate are looking at bills aimed at reducing the property tax burden on state residents.
Speaking at the February 3rd Board of Carbon County Commissioners meeting, Chairman Travis Moore explained that COVID‑era migration into the state increased home values, which resulted in higher property taxes for all residents. At the same time, the state legislature passed a series of property tax increases, further compounding the situation.
As a result, the state legislature passed several property tax relief measures last year. Among them were a 25 percent reduction on the first $1 million of assessed value for all Wyoming homeowners and a long‑term exemption that cuts taxes by 50 percent for residents age 65 and older who have owned and lived in their home for at least 25 years.
Commissioner Sue Jones said two bills aimed at changing the long‑term homeowners tax exemption are making their way through the legislature. House Bill 45 will move up the deadline to file for the exemption from May 25th to March 1st and remove the July 1st, 2027, expiration date.
In addition to the deadline and sunset changes, House Bill 45 also proposes to allow qualifying residents to renew the exemption by simply contacting the county assessor’s office instead of submitting a new application every year. As of Friday, the measure passed the House of Representatives and has moved to the state Senate for potential action.
The state legislature is also considering Senate File 39, which, like House Bill 45, eliminates the July 2027 sunset, but doesn’t alter the application deadline. As of last week, the measure had advanced out of the Senate Revenue Committee and is now waiting for debate by the full Senate.
Back at the February 3rd meeting, Commissioner Jones said the long‑term homeowner tax exemption is too broad and should be limited to residents who are truly in need of tax relief.
Commissioner Jones said millionaires in Teton County appear to be benefiting the most from the property tax cuts.
As of January 20th, 626 Carbon County residents had applied for the long‑term homeowner tax exemption, resulting in an anticipated $83,765 loss in county property tax revenue.
The state legislature is considering other property tax relief measures as well. The House of Representatives is advancing House Bill 67 to expand the state’s veterans’ property tax exemption to include those who served in the Wyoming National Guard or Air National Guard for at least 18 consecutive months. After a unanimous vote of support from the House Transportation, Highways, and Military Affairs Committee on February 12th, the measure was referred to the House Appropriations Committee to review its estimated $11.4 million annual impact on the state budget.
The legislature also proposed House Joint Resolution 4, which would ask voters to amend the state constitution to prevent property taxes from rising on a residential home until it is sold. During the February 3rd meeting, Commissioner Jones said the measure was a poor solution to the property tax situation.
The House voted not to bring Joint Resolution 4 forward for discussion.
Combined, the property tax relief measures have reduced the state’s total property tax revenue by approximately $198.5 million. Commission Chairman Travis Moore said the legislature has not provided local governments with a way to recoup that lost revenue.
Altogether, Carbon County has seen a $3.7 million reduction in property tax revenue in the 2025 through 2026 fiscal year.
With a $250 million statewide budget surplus, Chairman Moore said funding cuts are not appropriate at this time.
Commissioner Sue Jones said Carbon County saw its largest property tax increase in 2023, when home values rose by 20.5 percent. By last year, the entire state saw reduced property values, with local assessed values down 22.71 percent. Commissioner Jones said the property tax relief bills have pushed revenue down even more.
Chairman Moore questioned why lawmakers are pursuing such drastic property tax cuts when Wyoming already has one of the lowest residential tax rates in the country. Commissioner Jones said in 2025, Carbon County received $116 million in total tax revenue, adding that state legislators do not appear to recognize how that money is allocated.
Property taxes fund essential services, including law enforcement and road maintenance. They also support community resources such as libraries, museums, and senior centers. Commissioner Jones encouraged residents to understand how their taxes are spent and only take the cuts if their financial situation requires it.
So far this session, several property tax relief bills have already been defeated. Those include Senate File 79, which would have lowered the residential assessment rate from 9.5 percent to 8.3 percent; Senate File 77, which sought to remove the eight‑month residency requirement for the state’s 25 percent homeowner exemption; and House Bill 73, which, like House Joint Resolution 4, aimed to tie property tax assessments to a home’s fair market value at the time of sale rather than annual inflationary increases.
A constitutional amendment will be on this November’s ballot to reduce all residential property tax assessments by 50 percent. Should the “Peoples Initiative” pass, a bill to eliminate the existing 25 percent property tax exemption will go into effect. Another proposed amendment to completely eliminate residential property taxes failed to garner enough votes to be considered by the Wyoming Senate. If Senate Joint Resolution 3 had passed, the state would have lost $644 million in property tax revenue. To make up the shortfall, the Joint Revenue Committee proposed increasing the state sales tax from four to six percent.
At the February 3rd Board of Commissioners meeting, Chairman Moore urged residents to contact their local representatives and ask them to oppose any additional property tax cuts.
