PART 2: Public Education

Wyoming is often ranked among the top third of U.S. states for the quality of its public education. Our students outperform those in almost all of our neighboring states, and we are often recognized as the “Best in the West” for the quality.

Proposition #1, on the ballot this November, could significantly impact how Wyoming’s education system is funded.

Strong public education is foundational to who we are as a state - so much so that Wyoming’s constitution guarantees public education as a fundamental right. All students, no matter who they are or where they live, are guaranteed a free K-12 education.

Wyoming’s public schools make our state a great place to live and raise a family. They educate our kids and prepare the next generation of Wyomingites. Our community colleges build on that foundation.

It is this foundation that makes our public schools and community colleges the heart of our communities. They are funded by those same communities, too. Nearly 70% of the property taxes that a homeowner pays goes toward our public schools.

While this 70% isn’t enough to cover the full cost of educating Wyoming’s youth, it does pay for a significant portion. The rest of public education funding is covered by a system overseen by the School Foundation Program. This system allows for schools to offer a good education no matter how wealthy the county is.

A loss in property tax funding would have long-term consequences on Wyoming’s public education funding. While school funding is guaranteed by the Wyoming Constitution, our lawmakers have few options to make up for a loss in revenue. As Gov. Mark Gordon noted in his recent op-ed, reducing property taxes could put funds set aside for future generations of Wyomingites at risk. 

If the only answer for the loss of locally derived revenues that fund essential services like educating our children, should Proposition One pass, is for the state to “backfill” local communities from limited funds depending on favorable markets, we must also prepare ourselves for hard times ahead and remind ourselves, dependency on state government in Cheyenne weakens our local communities opportunity to set their own destiny.

Public education doesn't stop when students graduate from high school. Wyoming's eight community colleges, funded by local property tax revenue, provide affordable pathways to higher education, career training, and new opportunities for people at every stage of life.

These colleges are important to Wyoming's economy, too. It is estimated that Wyoming's community colleges contributed $1.1 billion to the state economy each year and support 16,158 jobs, or approximately one in every 28 jobs in the state.

All eight community college boards have opposed property tax cuts because of the impact they could have on the communities and students they serve. In a recent trustee meeting for Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Trustee Ken Lorimer mentioned that

For every $1 I pay, I get $13 back (in benefits and services). We have an excellent institution here...the dollars are wisely spent. I hope the voting public realizes that.

Without sustainable funding, colleges may have to reduce course offerings, cut programs, limit workforce training, or make difficult decisions about staffing and student services. That could mean fewer opportunities for students and less capacity to train the workers Wyoming needs.