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Property tax homeowners exemption bill gains traction
Published
9 months agoon
Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee District 22, Senator Dave Kinskey (R) made an appearance to speak on his property tax bill, SF0121.
A key point this legislative budget session is property tax relief and Wyoming lawmakers are debating bills that will provide relief to the residents of the Cowboy State. Kinskey said the current Property Tax Relief Program provides relief only to those who qualify based on their income and assets, and requires them to file confidential information including assets and income.
Many legislators, Kinskey included, want property tax relief for everyone, and that doesn’t require a cumbersome application process. And, he says, the relief must be significant – under Kinskey’s bill, if enacted, 45% of the homes in Wyoming would owe no property tax.
Sen. D. Kinskey
According to the bill, those applying will have been a resident of Wyoming for not less than five years prior to claiming an exemption and shall have resided in the applicable primary residence for not less than nine months of the immediately preceding tax year. Applicants will submit a sworn claim to the county assessor not later than the fourth Monday in May on forms provided by the department of revenue demonstrating that the person is the owner of the property and that the property is the person’s primary residence. False claims are punishable.
Property taxes fuel local governments. It has been a balancing act to provide some type of relief to property owners without essentially pulling the rug out from under local governments. Kinskey said this bill would not hinder the coffers.
Sen. D. Kinskey
The bill is popular among the State’s Senators and is currently moving the process with positive traction.
Sen. D. Kinskey
Read the full bill by clicking here.
Charles Moore
February 26, 2024 at 5:36 pm
I would gladly pay two more cent in sales tax! As a senior living on a relatively fixed income with little flexibility is getting harder and harder to pay annual 10 to 15% increases in our real estate taxes. The other thing eating away at our budget is the ongoing 15% food prices. So even if the proposed tax reform would include tax on food, it would be far less painful than the userous rates on real estate taxes.
Dennis Fox
February 27, 2024 at 3:04 pm
Let’s not fall into the trap of thinking we can “trade” a tax cut in one area for a tax Increase in another. Just lower the property tax AND lower the sales tax. And let us Never re-impose a tax on that most essential of all things: Food!
If Wyoming ever re-imposes a tax on food or Imposes an Income tax…People will flee this state and take billions of dollars with them! Taxing food and labor are abominations to our Creator. And taxing Shelter, is right up there, too.