The bill establishes a new framework for managing county reserves in Wyoming, specifically limiting the amount of reserves that counties can maintain. Under the new section W.S. 18-4-109, counties are prohibited from holding excess funds beyond their calculated annual spending amount, which is defined as the average total expenditures over the previous five fiscal years, excluding specific purpose tax revenues. Starting July 1, 2025, counties must calculate their annual spending amount and report any excess funds to the Department of Revenue. If a county has excess funds, it is required to notify residents and refund these amounts on a pro rata basis to property owners who have been residents for at least one year.

Additionally, the bill outlines penalties for counties that fail to refund excess funds by the specified deadlines. If a county does not comply, the state treasurer will withhold payments due to the county, equal to twice the amount of excess funds held as of July 1 of that year. These withheld funds will be held in the legislative stabilization reserve account until the county certifies that it has refunded the excess funds. The act is set to take effect immediately upon completion of the necessary legislative processes.