SWEETWATER COUNTY — The Sweetwater County Board of County Commissioners will hear a petition to form an improvement district during its meeting Tuesday.
The commissioners will hear a request from petitioners seeking to create the Lincoln Star Improvement and Service District, which seeks to create an improvement district in Sweetwater and Lincoln Counties designed to provide infrastructure within the district. According to the petition, the boundaries would incorporate four parcels of land that are not connected, but are located along US Highway 189 and the Lincoln Highway. Only one of the parcels is located in Sweetwater County.
Services provided by the district would range from wastewater management and water management and sales to rail access, power infrastructure, data centers, and industrial parks.
The petition lists three people interested in being the initial board of directors for the district. Robert Chapin of Opal, Jerry Greenfield of Kemmerer, and Stephen Allen of Rock Springs. Allen is a member of Western Wyoming Community College’s Board of Trustees and works as the Lincoln County Board of County Commissioners’ chief of staff.
Both Sweetwater County Assessor David Divis and Lincoln County Assessor Debbie Larson expressed concerns about the district and say the district’s boundaries are unusual. Both assessors sought advice from the Wyoming Department of Revenue. In an email to the Lincoln County commissioners, Larson said the total assessed value of the Lincoln County parcels is $60,595, believing the parcels could become a large tax burden for members of the district if a mill levy is set. The Sweetwater County parcel has an assessed value of $1,218.
Divis included the response he received from the WDOR, which highlighted the concern about the three parcels in Lincoln County and one in Sweetwater County.
“I agree that it appears questionable on the surface; however, from the Department of Revenue’s standpoint, the petition meets the requirements to qualify as a valid taxing authority, although I’m not sure why the single parcel in Sweetwater County would want to impose a mill levy or a fee upon itself,” the response from the WDOR read.
“Ultimately it is up to your county commissioners to determine whether the creation of this new taxing authority serves the best interests of your county,” the WDOR’s response concluded.
Divis encourages the Sweetwater County commissioners to ask “very hard questions” about the district, expressing further concern about approval of the district leading to similarly odd special districts being proposed.
“To be clear, legal council will determine if the statutory guidelines have been met, but I believe you as commissioners should ask some very hard questions about this district before approval,” Divis wrote.
The Sweetwater County commissioners meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the Sweetwater County Courthouse in Green River. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed on the county’s YouTube channel. A full agenda and meeting packet can be found here.
