The state attorney general, on behalf of Gov. Mark Gordon, is filing a lawsuit against the state Board of Equalization. In 2024, the Wyoming Legislature passed a 4% tax cap. It prevents a single-family home from getting slapped with an annual property tax increase higher than 4%. That’s even if the value of the same real estate went up in market value.
The state Board of Equalization is responsible for the equalized valuation on all property in Wyoming’s counties. The board expressed concern that the 4% tax cap law could lead to unequal assessments and that could conflict with the Wyoming Constitution, which requires property to be valued uniformly.
In a report released by the Board of Equalization, a panel concluded that Wyoming’s "departure from full value and equal assessment…is so pervasive” that the only ways to align the cap with state constitutional law would be the “immediate suspension of the caps” and to issue individual evaluations for properties.
“This legal action, if successful, will prevent confusion and disruption to residential property owners and counties who are in the midst of winding up the property assessment determinations,” said Gordon in a press release.
Confusion and heavy workloads were a topic of discussion when the Joint Interim Revenue Committee last met. County assessors described taxpayers asking how new laws may impact their taxes, and assessors working overtime to keep up with paperwork.
This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Corporation For Public Broadcasting, supporting state government coverage in the state. Wyoming Public Media and Jackson Hole Community Radio are partnering to cover state issues both on air and online.
