ASSESSMENT PRESS RELEASE FOR 2024
For Your Information
The Niobrara County Assessor’s office will be mailing the 2024 property assessment schedules on April 10, 2024.
According to Niobrara County Assessor, Teri Stephens, property is assessed/taxed to the owner of record as of January 1st. You may see an “ATTN: TO” line if the property changed ownership AFTER January 1st, this is an effort on our part to get the assessment and tax bill to the most current owner while still meeting our statutory requirement. The Notice of Value is not a tax bill. This notice is an estimate of the 2024 tax bill that will be coming from the Treasurer’s Office in September, and a request to provide additional information such that a full, complete and detailed statement of all taxable property owned by or in the control of the property owner and that assessment, may be made. The calculation uses the current value with the prior year’s mill levy. The Niobrara County Commissioners set mill levies in August, so we are using the best information available to do this calculation.
Property is valued for tax purposes following Mass Appraisal standards set by the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO) and statutory and rule requirements of the Wyoming Department of Revenue and the Wyoming State Board of Equalization. Mass Appraisal values a large number of similar properties in a uniform manner. We are required to use standard cost values adjusted for our area to calculate replacement cost new (RCN) for any structures/improvements. We then take RCN, depreciate that value and then trend for sales and then add in the land value.
TAX YEAR 2024 LEGISLATIVE CHANGES
House Bill 4 expands the PROPERTY TAX REFUND PROGRAM by adding tiers to the program that will allow more taxpayers to qualify for the program. The application will be available from the Department of Revenue’s website, revenue.wyo.gov or from the Treasurer’s Office.
House Bill 45 provides a RESIDENTIAL EXEMPTION of any increase over 4% of the market value of all residential, single-family structures.
TAX YEAR 2025 LEGISLATIVE CHANGES
The REFUND PROGRAM is still funded for Tax Year 2025.
The RESIDENTIAL EXEMPTION from House Bill 45 will apply to the structure and the associated land.
House Bill 3 provides for a LONG-TERM HOMEOWNERS EXEMPTION for individuals who are 65 years and older and have paid property taxes in the State of Wyoming for 25 years. The property needs to be the primary residence and you must reside in the property for 8 months of the year. We will start the application process later in the year after all the details of the program have been worked out.
Senate File 89 will increase the VETERAN’S EXEMPTION from $3,000 to $6,000 with the current application process.
Agricultural land is valued on the land’s current use and the capability of the land to produce agricultural products under normal conditions. A range of values is determined by the Department of Revenue and each Assessor is required to select a value within those ranges for each productivity category present in his or her county. A handout copy of the 2024 Niobrara County Ag Land Valuation Study is available for your review in our office.
There are four steps that the DOR uses to determine the value ranges of agricultural land:
Determine Prices of Agricultural Products. This information is derived from the Wyoming Agricultural Statistics Service's commodity price data. This information, which consists of all hay, all wheat and grazing prices, is converted to a five (5) year weighted average.
Capitalization Rate Selection. This rate is based on the Farm Credit Services of Omaha Long Term Portfolio rates, which are also converted to a five (5) year weighted average.
Determine Net Income. To determine the net income, the unit price of each of the 3 commodities is multiplied times the production per acre. Next, the landlord share is determined, if applicable, then the expenses and production losses are deducted to establish a net income to the landlord.
Capitalize Net Income. The final step in the process is capitalizing the net income.
If you have concerns regarding the value of your property, please feel free to contact the Assessor’s Office. You can file an appeal of your value within 30 days from the DATE MAILED on the Notice of Value. The first step in this process is an informal review of your property with the Assessor or her staff. This step is required to try to resolve the issue with the value BEFORE a formal appeal is scheduled. The Assessor will confirm the characteristics of your property and explain, in as much detail as requested, how your property was valued. Please remember this is an INFORMAL review…you do not need an appraisal or an attorney…this is a discussion and an explanation for you as a taxpayer. If the informal review does not resolve the issues, you will receive the formal appeal packet. Within the 30 days, any information you feel is relevant to valuing your property MUST BE PROVIDED TO THE ASSESSOR. This information includes, but is not limited to, appraisals, income information etc. THE ASSESSOR MAY FILE A MOTION TO DISMISS THE APPEAL IF THAT INFORMATION IS NOT PROVIDED WITHIN THE 30-DAY WINDOW. We look forward to answering any questions you may have on your Notice of Value.
Ms. Stephens reminds Wyoming Veterans and widows of Veterans, the deadline for applying for their property exemption is the 4th Monday in May, which is May 27th, 2024. If discharge papers and information necessary to qualify for the exemption have previously been provided, notification may be done by calling the office.
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