Laramie holds open house on proposed county excise tax before May vote

Laramie will give residents one more chance to press officials on a 1% countywide excise tax before Albany County voters weigh in on May 5. The city’s open house will run Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in City Hall Council Chambers at 406 E. Ivinson Ave., with Zoom access available.

The meeting comes at a pivotal moment in the election calendar. Voter registration for the special election closes at 5 p.m. April 20, and sample ballots and polling locations will be published April 21. Albany County will use vote centers instead of traditional precinct polling places, with voting available at the Albany County Fairgrounds, Albany County Public Library, Laramie Ice & Events Center, Municipal Operations Center and Rock River Town Hall. The county also says there will be no absentee polling location in the election building for the special election, with ballots handled through tables and a secure drop box in the clerk’s office.

At the center of the debate is a ballot question asking voters to authorize a 1% specific purpose sales and use excise tax that would raise $95 million. The revenue would be kept in a separate capital fund and used only for capital purposes, meaning the money would be restricted to major building, road and facility work rather than day-to-day operations. Because it is a sales and use tax, the cost would be paid by people making taxable purchases in Albany County. If the proposal passes, the county says the sales and use tax rate would remain the same while the money is directed to the named projects.

The city’s share would total $45,555,750. Albany County would receive $43,769,250, the Laramie Regional Airport would get $4 million and the Town of Rock River would receive $1,675,000. Albany County would also be authorized to issue up to $13.5 million in general obligation bonds, with a maximum interest rate of 5.75% and a maturity of 14 years, to help finance part of its work.

On the city side, the tax would fund design and construction of Laramie Police Headquarters, the Laramie Animal Shelter and Laramie Fire Department Station 1, along with surface water drainage projects, sidewalk improvements, community recreation center improvements, Bill Nye Avenue work, street maintenance and construction, and paving Harrison Street. County money would go toward a new Albany County Services building, remodeling the Albany County Courthouse, and improvements to the Albany County Fairgrounds grandstands and related facilities. The airport share would cover maintenance, pavement sealing and marking, apron and taxiway work, runway rehabilitation, a snow removal equipment building and a deicing pad.

The proposal is being framed as a renewal of the local 6th Penny tax, not a brand-new local ask. City materials say the 2018 SPET will be fully collected in spring 2026, which is why county and city leaders are returning to voters now. Albany County says discussion of the projects has already taken place at several public meetings, including a Sept. 15, 2025 meeting with county, city and Rock River officials. If voters reject the measure, the county and city will lose the funding stream they are counting on for the next round of capital work.