News brief:
State officials around the Mountain West are looking to provide property tax relief to residents as they struggle with the increasing costs of living in the region.
Property tax formulas depend on where you live, but the amount is generally based on the value of your home. In the Mountain West, those yearly bills are getting larger as demand to live in the region keeps rising and .
In Wyoming, property taxes in 2021. State Sen. Mike Gierau, D-Jackson, recently testified that the issue is acute in resort areas and other highly desirable communities.
鈥淚'm talking about counties that are surrounding our national parks, counties that are getting historic growth,鈥� he said.
In Idaho, property taxes have risen about 65 percent just in the past five years, .
Coloradans are facing what the Denver Post as "unprecedented and unsettling" property tax hikes as the median prices of homes in Front Range communities and mountain towns soar.
Gierau said the bills are a growing burden especially for lower-income folks and older residents on social security.
鈥淥ur teachers, our firefighters, first responders 鈥� people that are working every day that are struggling at their kitchen table with their issues, their costs, right now,鈥� he said.
That鈥檚 why Wyoming lawmakers for low- and middle-income homeowners. Montana recently passed a similar but broader measure, . A would also provide relief. Some Colorado lawmakers .
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, the O'Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West in Montana, 糖心vlog传媒 in Colorado, KUNM in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the .
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