Laramie City Council approves ordinance on first reading to repeal stormwater fee

Laramie City Council voted unanimously March 3 to approve Original Ordinance No. 2118 on First Reading, a measure that would repeal Laramie Municipal Code Chapter 13.80 in its entirety and eliminate the Surface Water Management Fund and the stormwater fee tied to it. The ordinance must pass two additional readings, scheduled for March 17 and April 7, to take effect.

Chapter 13.80 was adopted in December 2024 by Enrolled Ordinance No. 1876 after years of study and public discussion, and the city packet for the March 3 meeting noted that billing had been slated to begin July 1, 2026. City staff described the proposed repeal as a response to “legislative uncertainty,” recommending the city “focus resources and policy efforts on areas with greater regulatory and financial certainty.” The packet lists Todd Feezer, City Manager (tfeezer@cityoflaramie.org), Brooks Webb, Public Works Director (bwebb@cityoflaramie.org), and Jennifer Wade, Administrative Services Director (jwade@cityoflaramie.org) as responsible staff.

State-level developments and litigation helped drive the repeal push. The city packet records that Senator Gary Crum introduced draft Senate File 0116 to the Judiciary Committee on February 19, 2026 and that the bill failed on third reading in the Senate on February 24. Local reporting and city materials also reference the same bill as SF116; the legislation would have required elections before imposing stormwater taxes and was filed amid two ongoing lawsuits against Laramie and Cheyenne alleging municipalities must hold such elections.

Local officials framed the council action as difficult but necessary. City Manager Todd Feezer said, “The decision that we’re making to move forward with repeal is not an easy one. But it’s the accurate one, given the political climate and what’s been happening in our community surrounding the surface water drainage utility.” Council member Micah Richardson acknowledged implementation missteps, saying, “I will fully admit that we went through this thing too quickly,” a comment tied to business owners reporting shock at potential bills.

The repeal follows months of local maneuvering. KGAB reported that the council previously extended a suspension of the surface water fee through June 30, 2026 by an 8-0 vote with Councilor Melanie Vigil absent, and that the council had earlier paused the program for 120 days in August. KGAB also described the fee’s assessment method as based on impervious surfaces such as rooftops, driveways, and paved areas, intended to fund projects “addressing storm water runoff, minimizing flood risks, and enhancing the resilience of Laramie’s drainage infrastructure.”

Regional developments echoed Laramie’s move. Cheyenne officials have frozen or moved to repeal their fee, and Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins said, “Cheyenne’s heard from the people, and we’re underway in our repeal of our stormwater fee ordinance,” adding that he froze the fee before any revenue was collected and that “From our perspective, stormwater infrastructure is public safety infrastructure.” The Wyoming Association of Municipalities has committed to work with the Legislature in the interim on potential state-level changes ahead of the 2027 General Session.

If Ordinance No. 2118 clears the March 17 and April 7 readings, Laramie will remove the Surface Water Management Fund from its municipal code and halt the planned July 1 billing cycle, shifting the city’s stormwater planning back toward alternative priorities while awaiting legislative clarity.