Mayor Mickelson said Rock Springs is already seeing a reduction in projected revenue after recent legislative changes, calling the current local gap “about 160,000 reduction,” and warned residents the city has operated with a structural deficit for years.

The mayor and visiting state legislators and county officials used a Saturday public workshop to explain how competing bills and ballot initiatives in Cheyenne could affect local services, and to urge residents to weigh trade-offs between tax relief and service levels. “Property taxes are mostly paid to the county's special districts and schools,” Senator Laura Pearson told the audience, and she described how bills moving through the legislature differ on whether state backfill would reimburse local governments.

Why it matters: Several legislative paths could change how much local governments collect and what state government will backfill. That matters for fire, hospital and senior districts that rely on property tax revenue to deliver services; county officials warned loss of funds could force cuts.

State bill details and local effects: Senator Laura Pearson (Senate District 14) explained two measures the meeting was tracking. HB 169, as described at the workshop, would provide a 50% exemption on the first $1,000,000 of residential property value for tax years 2025–26 and include $225 million in backfill (from the general fund and the legislative stabilization account). By contrast, SF 69 passed the Senate with no backfill and was being considered in the House; Pearson said SF 69 “passed with no backfill at this time.” She also described a sunset in 2026 tied to a separate voters’ initiative that could permanently change state law if approved.

Representative JT Larson and other House members said the bills have been amended repeatedly on the floor. Larson summarized a working compromise: instead of 50% across-the-board, the reduction was being retooled to cover only the increase in a property’s tax bill since a baseline year, or to use a multi‑year average to determine jurisdictional relief. Larson said legislators were working through a large number of amendments over the weekend to resolve equitable application and timing.

Local clarifications from the assessor: Sweetwater County Assessor Dave Divas told residents: “Not 1 penny of your property tax dollars goes to the state.” Divas reviewed recent, enacted relief: a 4% cap on improvement value (structures) for tax year 2024 and a 4% cap on land value for tax year 2025. He also described the newly expanded long-term homeowners exemption — available to homeowners 65 and older who have paid Wyoming property taxes for 25 years — and urged eligible residents to apply.

County perspective: Keaton West, chair of the Sweetwater County Board of County Commissioners, said earlier versions of the bills would have produced far larger revenue losses for the county; with amendments, the county’s share of lost revenue is now smaller. West said the county had reduced staff and absorbed past cuts, but warned that persistent reductions could force service cuts long term.

Public and next steps: City leaders encouraged residents to review the city budget, use feedback forms and contact legislators. Officials repeatedly emphasized that many bill provisions remained in flux: Laura Pearson said, “we're gonna have to see how all of these things play out.” The city said it will post explanatory materials and breakdowns of municipal revenue and facility costs online.

Ending: Officials said the final mix of legislation and any voter initiative will determine how much relief property owners receive and how much of the state’s reserves or rainy-day funds will be used to backfill local budgets. For now, Rock Springs leaders urged residents to stay informed and participate in the city’s budget workshops.