Local municipal leaders need authority to generate revenue and more sources of dependable funding, according to Rick Kaysen, the executive director for the Wyoming Association of Municipalities.
Wyoming is one of the few states that does not give cities or counties independent taxing authority, meaning municipalities are largely reliant on appropriations from the Legislature to supplement the share of local sales and property taxes they receive.
City and county governments were most recently allocated about $100 million from the Legislature, but the state’s boom-or-bust economy depends heavily on the energy market, meaning local governments are often left asking questions about the certainty of that funding, explained Kaysen.