As Wyoming lawmakers tackle social wedge issues, property tax relief and big changes to public education, affordable housing has fallen by the wayside.
According to a recent report, Wyoming will need between 20,000-38,000 new homes by 2030 to meet its housing demand. Housing advocates were hoping this session would make building homes less cumbersome.
Some bills introduced this session could have reduced regulations around building, launched a housing investment program and invested $60 million in development authority bonds.
But none of these bills were ever assigned to a committee.
Another bill, expanding tax increment financing, did get to committee but members ran out of time to deal with it. That bill is dead now, as Rep. Christopher Knapp (R-Gillette) told the committee he chairs.
"I offer my apologies for not making it through," he said. "That happens in session, of course: many, many bills die from not getting in the committee or dying on the floor in committee of the whole."
One affordable housing bill remains, but it's been watered down by amendments.
Senate File 40 would make it harder for nearby landowners to stop housing developments in their neighborhoods.
Under current state law, it takes 20% of the adjacent property owners to lodge a protest. As originally written, the bill would have raised that requirement to 50%, but Sen. Dan Laursen (R-Powell) brought an amendment pulling that back down to 33%.
"I think we've gone a little bit too far," he said. "I think we need to protect the minority out there from changes. It could be a developer coming in and building a … big housing development. And I think these people need a chance to protest."
Sen. Ogden Driskell (R-Devils Tower) said change can be scary, but folks need to be open to it if they want affordable housing to happen in Wyoming.
"All of us are somewhat resistant to change, but we all need to be open towards doing things and doing it the right way," he said.
In addition to lowering the requirements to lodge a petition, Laursen's amendment also lowered the bar for that petition to halt a project.
Under current state law, the protest petition must be approved by three-fourths of "all the members of the [local] governing body." The bill, as originally written, brought that requirement down to a simple majority of the governing body. Laursen's amendment brought the requirement back up to two-thirds.
Driskell took aim at this provision, too.
"Very many of our councils are five member councils," Driskill said. "So if you think up to the north and what goes on pretty often, two-thirds is a pretty high majority. It's pretty easy to do NIMBY."
"NIMBY" stands for "Not In My Backyard" and it's been used to criticize those who stand in the way of affordable housing development, or sometimes renewable energy development, specifically when they mention "property values" as a primary reason for halting a project.
But Laursen found support for his amendment from one of the chamber's only Democrats, Sen. Chris Rothfuss (D-Laramie).
"50% changing to 33%, and then changing the majority to two-thirds, seems to be threading the needle," he said. "In my view, it takes a middle position between existing statute and the proposal."
Specifically, Rothfuss said the bill in its original form would make it too difficult to secure support for halting a housing development.
"The legislation as drafted goes a bit too far," he said. "It makes it too easy, lowers the standards too much, and also creates a situation where it might be hard to find all of the landowners. Particularly in my county, the folks that I represent, you have a lot of out-of-state landowners that would be difficult to contact to put together enough of an interest to get support."
Laursen's amendment passed.
Sen. Mike Gierau (D-Jackson) introduced another amendment strengthening the bill. Gierau's successful alteration dictates that a petition will need the signatures of at least two property owners, even if one property owner holds more than 33% of the adjacent land.
The Senate passed the bill on third reading with a 29-0 vote with two excused. In the House, it's been assigned to the Appropriations Committee.
