THE BOOM / BUST CYCLE
Wyoming people have learned from long experience that unpredictability is bad for businesses and families. Booms can be as difficult as busts, and there is always a bust. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Wyomingites can choose greater stability and a more resilient economy.
FIFTY YEARS AGO…
Popular support for robust taxes on the minerals industry began to provide Wyoming residents and visitors with state services that other rural and low-population states couldn’t afford. Taxes on other industries and on private citizens were kept extremely low – among the lowest in the nation. OUR TAXES >
ONLY YESTERDAY
Taxes on Wyoming’s coal, oil, gas, and trona industries contributed 70% of the state’s annual tax revenue. Today that figure is 40 to 50%. Boom-time surpluses of the past allowed the State of Wyoming to create interest-generating trust and reserve accounts to help cushion the blow of busts, cover some temporary shortfalls, and help fund education. Our BUDGET >
TODAY
Marketplaces and energy demands are changing, we are relying more on our reserves, and costs keep rising. In 2016, Wyoming began cutting its budget as mineral contributions dropped, and are projected to keep declining. Windfalls like bumps in oil and gas prices and bullish stock markets help slow the decline, but are temporary and unreliable solutions. OUR DEFICIT >
WHAT’S NEXT?
Reduced state programs mean reduced infrastructure maintenance, and reduced services to counties, cities, businesses, and individuals. This means families and employees are less likely to stay rooted in our communities. Wyoming can begin to replace lost revenue and prevent damage to its economy by allowing more of us to pitch in. SOLUTIONS >
