County considers limiting roads to locals only

WORLAND – Washakie County Commissioners met Tuesday to review the tax levies for 2018-19, and consider a plan to restrict two county roads to local traffic only, enforced by ordinance.

As explained by Commissioners Aaron Anderson and Fred Frandson, Washakie 10 (east of Worland) and Lower Nowood Road (west and northwest of Ten Sleep) are currently suffering from over-use by out-of-area semi-trucks and tourist traffic, along with frequent non-residents that break the speed limit, endangering residents of those corridors.

Under the county’s proposal to the Road and Bridge Department, the roads would have signs at the entrances (and possibly one in Manderson) warning that the roads have been closed to local traffic only.

The inclusion of the specific ordinance, as suggested by County Attorney John Worrall, would give the sheriff’s office the jurisdiction to issue citations for non-residents using the roads.

“We’re basically under-funded to maintain the damage [being created] to those roads, so signage would help minimize any further damage,” noted Anderson.

The commission agreed that action could be taken immediately on Washakie 10, but making changes to Lower Nowood Road would require coordination with Big Horn County, Wyoming Department of Transportation and, possibly, a public hearing.

LEVIES

County Assessor Kathy Treanor presented the commission with the county tax levies for 2018-19, which were passed by the commission.

Valuation for Worland is at $42,510,207 with a mil levy of $76,150. Ten Sleep is a valuation of $2,713,616 with a mil levy of $72,512.

To calculate the property tax, the assessed value of the property is multiplied by the mill rate and then divided by 1,000. For example, a property with an assessed value of $50,000 with a mill rate of 20 mills would have a property tax bill of US $1,000 per year.

In order to determine the mill levy for each tax district, taxing entities must submit their final budget requests. The budget, less anticipated revenues from non-property tax sources, is divided by the assessed value to obtain the tax rate or mill levy. Assessed values determined by the assessor and values of state assessments (those industries valued by the Department of Revenue, such as utilities, minerals, etc.) are combined to determine the total assessed value within the taxing entities boundaries. An individual assessed value is multiplied by the total mill levy for the tax district to obtain an individual tax amount.

The level of assessment is the percentage of the market value that determines the assessed value. In Wyoming, the level of assessment for minerals is 100 percent, industrial use properties is 11.5 percent; and all other properties 9.5 percent. This percentage is determined by the legislature.

For Washakie County in 2017, total valuation was recorded as $124,314,529. For 2018, the valuation is listed as $135,303,672, an overall increase of $10,989,143.

OTHER BUSINESS

In other business before the commission, the County Health Department welcomed Wyoming Health Council Executive Director Susan Markus for a tour of the facilities and review of department programs.

Markus reported to the commission that Washakie County’s health department was a “shining star” in the state, noting the special outreach the department does to neighboring counties.

The county maintenance department reported that carpeting for the new public defender’s office will be completed next week, and then the offices can be occupied.

In June, the county met with the Office of the Public Defender to discuss converting a county-owned property into office space for two full-time and one part-time public defender and staff.

Under the proposal, the public defenders will be placed in offices formerly used by the Washakie Development Association, in the county’s Cloverleaf Complex on 15th Street.

Modification and renovation of the building began the second week of June.

Anderson noted that the commission will begin reviewing recommendations made by the county’s Wyoming Public Lands Initiative working group, on Aug. 21, with the commission’s final recommendation of follow.

The goal of the WPLI group was to reach a consensus as to the use of the Wilderness Study Areas in the county, through public input. The primary areas of concentration in Washakie County include the Honeycombs (located between Ten Sleep and Worland), Cedar Mountain (south of Winchester and shared with Hot Springs County) and Bobcat Draw (in the northwest corner of the county, shared with Big Horn County).

Once committee recommendations have been formalized and approved by the county commission, the final recommendations of the WPLI will be sent to a federal delegation for introduction in the U.S. House and Senate in 2018.