WEDNESDAY, July 22, 2026|
Photo – Carbon County Weed and Pest logo – Courtesy Carbon County Weed and Pest
Carbon County Weed and Pest warns that property tax cuts could limit its mosquito‑control efforts.
Recently enacted residential property tax relief programs, including a 25 percent cut for most Wyoming homeowners and a 50 percent reduction for long‑term residents, have reduced the property tax revenue local governments receive. Carbon County saw a $947,000 drop in property tax revenue in the 2025 through 2026 fiscal year, resulting in less spending on road maintenance and libraries.
A permanent 50 percent residential property tax reduction, known as the People’s Initiative to Limit Property Tax in Wyoming through a Homeowner’s Property Exemption, will be on the ballot this November. If passed, the measure will cut the taxable assessed value of residents’ primary homes by half.
By cutting residential taxes, the programs have reduced assessed valuations and, in turn, mill‑levy revenue. A mill levy is the tax rate applied to a property’s assessed value, with one mill equaling one‑thousandth of the property’s value. Because these programs reduce valuations, they have also cut funding for special districts that rely on mill levy revenue, including Carbon County Weed and Pest.
Carbon County Weed and Pest Supervisor Reese Irvine said that for the past 53 years, his organization has worked to control state‑ and county‑designated weeds and pests, including cheatgrass and mosquitoes.
With the passing of the Wyoming Weed and Pest Control Act of 1973, Carbon County Weed and Pest has been able to collect one mill levy, which in recent years has totaled roughly $724,000. Reese Irvine said that money is used to operate the district and secure additional state and federal grants.
Between its mill‑levy revenue and grant funding, Irvine said Carbon County Weed and Pest has a total budget of more than $3 million. The special district allocates between $110,000 and $135,000 each year to combat mosquitoes.
Every municipality and organized mosquito‑abatement district in the county may request funding from Carbon County Weed and Pest to support their mosquito‑control programs. Irvine said that money is entirely paid for by the district’s mill‑levy revenue.
The proposed 50 percent reduction in residential property taxes will further reduce the amount of funding the district can provide for mosquito abatement.
Irvine said effective mosquito control is essential to reducing the risk of West Nile virus transmission. While there have been no reported cases of humans contracting West Nile virus in Carbon County, horses and birds have tested positive. Irvine said uncontrolled mosquito populations raise the risk of animals and potentially humans acquiring the neurological disease.
Carbon County Weed and Pest provides mosquito‑abatement funding to nearly every municipality in the county. Irvine said towns will have difficulty controlling their mosquito numbers under the reduced mill‑levy funding the district will receive if property taxes continue to drop.
Irvine said property taxes are vital for the county’s special districts, which depend on mill‑levy dollars for fire prevention, environmental conservation, and weed and pest control.
