Casper staff warns property-tax changes could cut about $1.8 million from next year—s budget

Carter, a city staff member providing a legislative update to the City Council, said the Legislature—s chief property tax bill (referred to in the meeting as "69") would, if enacted as passed, reduce residential property assessments by 25 percent and create a roughly $1 million general-fund revenue impact for the city.

Carter said the 25 percent reduction followed earlier debate that at one point considered a 50 percent cut. He told councilors the bill as passed contains no statewide backfill for local governments and that the city will need to account for the loss when preparing next year—s budget. "That bill that I'm talking about is, referred to as 69. ... it resulted in a 25% residential property tax reduction," Carter said.

The staff presentation put the broader impact, combining this change with production-value declines and prior exemptions from the last legislative session, at about $1.8 million. "We were working with a property tax figure of $6,200,000. We are anticipating ... about $4,300,000 which means that our overall impact will be in the neighborhood of $1,800,000 that we'll try to reconcile through the ... budget design process," Carter said.

Carter also described a separate, smaller hit from lower assessed valuations tied to mineral and energy production. He said assessor—s office guidance indicates about $300,000 in production-related revenue loss, partially offset by a capped 4 percent growth allowance that would return roughly $170,000 under current rules.

Asked whether the cited impacts applied to special districts, Carter said the $1 million figure he initially referenced was general-fund revenue only and that special districts funded by property tax (for example, weed-and-pest) will likely see reductions as well.

Carter told the council that one other property-related proposal, identified in the meeting as the "Barlow bill," could add roughly a 12 percent additional cut layered on top of Bill 69 and that the assessor—s office has not yet quantified increased property-tax relief tied to recent changes in veterans— benefits. He said those items remained uncertain pending further legislative action and assessor analysis.

On other revenue items, Carter said a separate proposal to change sales-tax distribution for cities did not pass this session but that Senate File 145 (described by staff as a direct-investment tool) did pass and was signed by the governor. Carter characterized Senate File 145 as a long-term mechanism rather than an immediate revenue source the city could rely on for the coming budget.

When asked about interim outreach and strategy, Carter said staff have been meeting with the Wyoming Association of Municipalities and individual legislators to provide data and briefings in advance of interim sessions, noting the city will need to be active in budget discussions to influence distribution outcomes.

No formal council actions or votes on state bills were taken during this agenda item; staff said they will return with more detailed budget numbers and a broader legislative debrief later in the year.