Research: Bold Reform to Rein in Wyoming’s Soaring Property Taxes

Originally published at Texans for Fiscal Responsibility.

Executive Summary

• Property taxes in Wyoming are unaffordable and make buying a home or starting a business more costly or outright impossible for many people. The surge in spending by local governments has resulted in increased property taxes, while the state government’s exorbitant expenditures have constrained the funds available to lower them.

 

• From 2000 to 2023, total property taxes increased by $1.7 billion (+316%), including increases of $136.6 million (+381%) by special purpose districts, $293.3 million (+321%) by counties, $1.2 billion (+309%) by school districts, and $30.3 million (+298%) by municipalities. These property taxes have grown substantially faster than increases in personal income (+206%) and far faster than the rate of population growth plus inflation (+91%) during this period. This results in unaffordable property taxes for most people.

 

• More recently, total property taxes increased much faster from 2021 to 2023, increasing by $912.3 million (+71%), 54% of the total increase since 2000. This total includes increases in school property taxes of $676.3 million (+73%), county property taxes of $161.6 million (+73%), special district taxes of $64.8 million (+60%), and municipal taxes of $9.6 million (+31%). In contrast, population growth plus inflation increased by +17%, and personal income grew by +9% during this period. Wyoming’s population growth was up 0.6%, and inflation was up 16.3% from 2021 to 2023. 

 

• From 2021 to 2023, inflation-adjusted personal income declined by 8%. Despite this loss in purchasing power, property taxes were up an average of 71%, proving to be a crushing, unsustainable burden. This burden also passes through in higher prices paid by housing and commercial property renters. The problem affects every person’s quality of life and ability to do business in Wyoming.

 

• Bold reforms are necessary to restrain government spending at the state and local levels and use surplus taxpayer money to reduce property taxes until they are zero. These are similar to what has been worked on in Texas, but Wyoming can be the leader in helping people stop paying rent to the government forever through property taxes and start owning property.