Wyoming: September 2006 Archives

Wyoming community colleges are funded primarily by county property taxes. Right now, the seven counties containing community colleges levy a special property tax for this purpose, but most other Wyoming counties don't — even though these other counties benefit from the services the community colleges provide. An interim legislative committee is exploring a statewide property tax as an alternative to this inequitable state of affairs. The committee has identified an important tax fairness problem that residents of most major cities are all too aware of: when local governments provide services that benefit a broader geographical area, how can they ensure that other localities pay their fair share of the cost for these services? A statewide property tax seems like a good place to start.