Housing advocates want more buy-in from the state to solve crisis in Wyoming
JACKSON — In order to have any chance of meeting the housing needs of Wyoming residents, the state needs to build upward of 38,000 new units by 2030, according to the Statewide Strategic Housing Action Plan published in January.
But only 1,681 were built in 2023, Wyoming Community Development Authority Executive Director Scott Hoversland told lawmakers on Thursday. One-thousand four-hundred of those built were single-family and 205 units were two- to four- or multi-family units.
Hoversland seeks support from the Wyoming Legislature in order to have a chance at building thousands more each year between 2025 and 2030.
He proposed 27 strategies, including creating a statewide licensing board for skilled trades to expand the population of trades workers needed for construction projects, establishing a state housing investment fund, and giving cities and towns more resources to tap into tax increment financing.
However, Republican lawmakers favor free market solutions over using public dollars to fund affordable housing.
“Anytime you say, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help,’ we’re causing more problems than we’re solving,” freshman Rep. Steven Johnson, R-Cheyenne, said. Johnson is also a new member of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus in the House.
“I’m a free market guy,” he said. “I would love to get back to the free market and not have housing that the government had to provide.”
During the committee meeting, Johnson admitted to buying his first house with Wyoming Community Development Authority funds in 1978. He took advantage of one of the many programs that the Authority runs without any support from state dollars, such as the single-family mortgage purchase program financed through the sale of tax-exempt bonds, or down payment assistance loans up to $15,000. The Authority currently services 15,000 loans in Wyoming, with a balance of $1.8 billion, according to Hoversland’s presentation.
While Johnson used the program for his first private home, he said he was frustrated that funding was also made available for multi-family housing. He said the Authority shouldn’t be helping developers.
“I’m kind of upset that if we’re going to have this program, it should be first-time homebuyers,” he said.
Hoversland said there aren’t many developers who take on the affordable housing projects they’re helping with. He said the tax credits and federal funding help “put equity into the program,” but the developers are required to restrict their rents to a certain level for decades. They aren’t making money from the developments.
In Teton County, the Authority has helped secure funds for 247 units in Jackson since 1995. The first was the Pioneer Homestead Apartments and the most recent was in 2022 for the Flat Creek Apartments across from the Teton County Fairgrounds.
The Authority also helps administer low-income housing tax credits, community development block grants and funding from the American Rescue Plan to combat homelessness.
One of the ways that Hoversland thinks the Wyoming Legislature could step in is through a state housing investment fund. He told the News&Guide that Wyoming is one of two states in the entire nation that doesn’t have this kind of funding mechanism for projects.
But he said the Wyoming Community Development Authority has the experience in processing applications and dispersing funds throughout the community based on need. He said state funding could help fill construction and infrastructure gaps for water, sewer and sidewalks that can create a barrier for development. He also said there would be a return on the investment funds.
“We have about four times more applications than the funding that we have available,” Hoversland said. “Last year, we had 13 or 14 applications and were able to fund three or four projects.”
Hoversland and his team didn’t put forward specific bill drafts they would like to see the committee take up on Thursday, but they plan to present some at the November meeting. He said he is hopeful that lawmakers will take action, and believes there are some who have the appetite.
“It’s one of the most urgent issues,” committee co-chair Sen. Bill Landen, R-Casper, said. “This is a big policy concern for Wyoming.”
Landen said if lawmakers want to keep young families in the state, they have to find a way to get them stable, affordable housing.
Rep. Mike Yin, D-Jackson, who sits on the Corporations Committee, said the revolving fund for financing housing is a good idea because it’s hard to ensure capital is available to get a project off the ground.
He said this isn’t a crisis communities can solve on their own, though.
“The state does have a role to play in helping with the housing crisis, and we’re not doing it,” he said. “We’re failing on it.
“I’m thankful for the organizations that are doing the work to try to find solutions, but you have a group of people that are looking to ignore solutions because it doesn’t fit the ideological worldview that they’re pushing.”
This story was published on August 20, 2025.