By Jonathan Gallardo
Gillette News Record
Via- Wyoming News Exchange

GILLETTE — In the 2024 general election, Wyoming voters approved a constitutional amendment to create a fourth class of property — residential — and give the Legislature the power to create a subclass for owner-occupied primary residences when property tax assessments are done.

Now that residential property is in its own class, legislators have the power to raise or lower the tax rate without also changing the rates of other types of property.

Right now, agricultural, commercial and residential properties are taxed at 9.5% of their appraised value. Industrial property is taxed at 11.5%, and minerals are taxed at 100%.

A bill that’s been moving through the legislature replicates that language in the constitutional amendment. 

Senate File 153, sponsored by Rep. Eric Barlow, R-Gillette and co-sponsored by several others, including Sen. Troy McKeown, R-Gillette and Rep. Ken Clouston, R-Gillette, was approved by the Senate on third reading, 29-1, with Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander, being the lone vote against it.

It was given to the House Revenue Committee, which this week approved the bill on an 8-0 vote, with an amendment to change the taxation rate on residential real property from 9.5% to 8.3%. 

It has since been placed in the House’s general file.

Testifying before the committee Tuesday, Barlow said the Senate made the decision to leave the residential tax rate as it is,  but he told committee members that they could change it if they wanted.

He said the lowest that the residential tax rate can go right now is to 8.3%, which is what the committee went with.

Barlow said if the bill doesn’t pass, “anything we do with residential real property may be suspect because there’s not a class in statute.” 

This includes the several property tax exemption programs that are in place for various groups of people.

The amendment also allowed lawmakers to create a subclass for owner-occupied homes, as opposed to second homes. 

Ken Gill with the state’s property tax division advised against doing this during the current legislative session, because his department is a month away from sending assessment schedules to property owners around the state.

Speaking to county commissioners Tuesday afternoon, Campbell County Assessor Troy Clements said if residential real property is taxed at 8.3%, that would represent a nearly $300 savings on a $350,000 home, compared to the current rate of 9.5%.

Senate File 69, the homeowner property tax exemption, also went through some changes this week. The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported that the House debated 21 amendments to the bill on third reading Wednesday. One of the amendments, which was approved, removed Rep. Ken Clouston’s suggestion of a county-by-county basis approach to tax relief, and returned the bill to a statewide, 50% assessment reduction for residential structures up to $1 million in value.

With the 50% property tax reduction, Clements said the county should see an approximate $12.5 million reduction. It would have been a $6 million reduction under Clouston’s amendment.

“You’re certainly going to feel it,” Clements told the commissioners.

But Campbell County won’t feel it as much as some of the smaller counties and many cities and towns that rely much more on property taxes.

It is possible, however, that some of these bills may face scrutiny in the courts system.

“Do you have an opinion on whether some of these property tax measures are going to pass constitutional muster?” Commissioner Jim Ford asked. “If implemented by the legislature do you see any of them being challenged in the courts later?”

“I won’t mention any (bills) specifically, but yes, I think that’s coming,” Clements replied.