Wyoming's affordable housing requires action at the state level, experts say

Sep. 21—CHEYENNE — County commissioners told members of the Legislature's Regulatory Reduction Task Force during their Thursday meeting they need more partnership from the state to best address the housing crisis in Wyoming.

Commissioners said they have been frustrated by the lack of partnership between them and state lawmakers. Wyoming communities are under Dillon's Rule, which limits local governmental power to that expressly granted by the state.

"We are creatures of the legislature, of state statute. We are your partners," said Jerimiah Rieman, executive director of the Wyoming County Commissioners Association. "But we are Dillon Rule counties in the state of Wyoming; we do not have home rule."

City and county governments, many of which have previously resisted use of their authoritative zoning powers, are now considering regulated land use. Laramie County, for example, has long resisted implementing any zoning laws.

The minimum lot size that can be purchased in Laramie County is 10 acres, and lot purchases have risen in the county post-pandemic, Rieman said. The result has led to groundwater issues in a county that is already experiencing a strain in its water supply.

"(Lot buyers) come to the conclusion that the county should be providing broadband, water, roads and all other public services," Rieman said.

A partnership through the state, with the help of additional resources from the Legislature, could allow Laramie County to lower the minimum lot size requirement and densely develop unincorporated parts of the county, according to Rieman.

Task force member Eli Bebout, a former Wyoming state senator, said he had seen a lot of "frustration" on the committee relative to overall government overreach. But his biggest question was whether WCCA has had a seat at the table.

"Counties are participating as cooperating agencies," Rieman said. "But we don't feel like we're being cooperated with."

State government's key role

A limited amount of housing has created a competitive market, with bids driving up the price of houses. Harvard Growth Lab senior research fellow Eric Protzer said this wasn't just a post-pandemic problem and stressed the importance of expanding housing supply to tackle the issue of affordable housing.

"House prices in Wyoming are persistently above what economic fundamentals would justify," Protzer said.

"The supply response of new housing construction to that demand has been relatively unresponsive (compared to) the average U.S. county."

Harvard Growth Lab officials told task force members that the state could play a "key role" in battling Wyoming's housing crisis. Part of the state's insufficient supply response was due to the market being held back from building enough housing. Harvard Growth Lab suggested that local county governments pursue regulatory reforms, complemented by incentives.

Focused discussions with leaders from Cheyenne, Casper and Laramie involved brainstorm sessions designed to develop reform packages in order to expand the housing supply. The key role of the task force's housing subcommittee would involve legally implementing some of those changes through state statutes.

"Those are really areas where it has to be the state that takes a leading role in fixing those things," Protzer said. "Local leaders have their hands tied."

Teton County's success

Teton County is one of several in Wyoming experiencing a severe housing crisis, where one unit per 35 acres is zoned for rural housing, according to April Norton, Teton County housing director.

"We're talking about a very finite resource for the amount of land available to build homes for local workers and their families," Norton said.

Representatives from Teton County told task force members that a change in focus of their affordable housing program, however, has resulted in a significant success in tackling the issue. The primary change was moving to public-private partnerships, Norton said. Instead of the local government buying land to build affordable housing, the program now uses incentives to have private developers, such as Habitat for Humanity, build the housing for them.

"This helps mitigate our risk, the public's risk, of cost overruns," Norton said. "That's a huge success story for us where we live. And we're really proud of it."

By the end of the meeting, the task force reached a general consensus to develop a working group that would perform a "deeper dive" on affordable housing issues, especially those involving Teton County.

"I have a different perspective of the world now," said co-chairman Rep. Bob Nicholas, R-Cheyenne. "Bear with us as we walk down this road together."

Hannah Shields is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's state government reporter. She can be reached at 307-633-3167 or hshields@wyomingnews.com. You can follow her on X @happyfeet004.