As Freedom Caucus targets Jackson Hole housing policy, Gordon backs community solutions

JACKSON — While Teton County’s approach to funding and building housing for local workers has raised the eyebrows of anti-government Republicans, Gov. Mark Gordon says “communities should be able to figure out their own destinies.”

Gordon told the Jackson Hole News&Guide as much in an interview last week in Jackson, saying that each community in the Equality State is different, from work requirements to median incomes. He said his administration has been “anxious to encourage locally-grown efforts” to address housing needs.

“We need workforce housing everywhere in the state,” Gordon said. “And almost everywhere in the state, it’s getting unreasonably expensive.”

In Teton County, housing contributes significantly to the high cost of living.

The cost of housing is 142% above the statewide average, according to the most recent Wyoming Cost of Living Index by the Economic Analysis Division.

The average monthly rental rate in Teton County for an unfurnished two-bedroom apartment in the fourth quarter of 2024 was $3,366. Meanwhile, an unfurnished two- or three-bedroom single-family home cost $4,286 per month, excluding utilities. In June, the median home price in Teton County was $2 million, Redfin reported.

The community has come together in the last 30 years to try to solve the issue. 

The town and county have developed housing regulations and affordable housing programs, and nonprofits and businesses have rolled up their sleeves to build homes. Democratic elected officials have championed the efforts, but politicians, conservatives and property owners inTeton County and the rest of the state have scrutinized the county’s methods.

A family building a home in Hoback is, for example, suing the county, alleging that the county’s affordable housing fees are unconstitutional. 

The Scharps paid $24,325 in affordable housing fees and sought the help of the Pacific Legal Foundation, a California law firm that sues over government overreach, to get their money back and invalidate the fees.

There have also been a series of jabs from far-right Wyoming Freedom Caucus members and allies in the Legislature seeking to dismantle the housing program and ban affordable housing fees. 

Although multiple attempts failed during the last session and a task force that looks at regulatory reduction was disbanded, some lawmakers are still interested in turning their attention back to Teton County’s regulations next year.

Gordon’s stance

The News&Guide asked Gordon whether the Legislature should be weighing in on what local communities pursue, or if the scuffle should happen in court.

“I can’t really speak to what the outcomes of court cases do,” he said, while visiting Jackson last week. “I think there’s always a crapshoot when you go to court, and you may end up with a decision you like. You may end up with one you don’t. You may bend up with something that’s kind of half loaf. So, I’m not sure that’s a particularly good strategy.”

But the governor said he does feel housing solutions should be in a community’s hands — to a certain point.

“And I think it’s unfortunate that the Legislature feels compelled to step in over the top,” he said.

He still left some room for the state to take action.

For example, he said if there’s no real compelling reason to put zoning in place, “then I think it’s probably appropriate for the Legislature to come in and say, ‘You’re inhibiting growth. You’re inhibiting economic development. You’re really not doing anything for your community.’”

Jackson: A target again

Rep. John Bear, a Wyoming Freedom Caucus leader who has taken a keen interest in Teton County’s regulations, said on Tuesday that it was “gratifying” for the governor to acknowledge that in some instances local governments are inhibiting development.

Bear worked with Save the Rodeo Grounds co-founder Rebecca Bextel in the last session and tacked a failed amendment onto a bill that would have barred the town and county from imposing housing fees. He more recently visited Teton County in May and sat in the Teton County Commission chambers for five hours, watching as the county board tangled over the Gill family’s plan to transform its ranch into northern South Park.

“Take Teton County — there, local leaders have gone all-in on a policy that stifles housing development by extracting cash from private developers under the guise of a ‘housing mitigation fee,’” Bear said in a statement. “These policies are not only asinine — they constitute a taking under the US Constitution’s Fifth Amendment.”

He said when the government at any level violates the constitutional rights of people, the Legislature should step in.

“That’s what I plan to do this session,” Bear said. “I’m currently drafting a bill to protect the Fifth Amendment rights of the people of Wyoming against takings of all kinds, including Teton County’s Orwellian ‘housing mitigation fee’ scam.”

Defending the fees

Sen. Mike Gierau, D-Jackson, has watched the push-and-pull over local control and housing for the last few years up close. He was co-chair of the Regulatory Reduction Task Force that recently came to an end after two years.

Hours were spent putting Teton County under the microscope. A meeting was held in Jackson and lawmakers who were hearing from developers frustrated with town and county regs got a tour of projects brought to life by the housing program. Doubts and frustrations weren’t quelled, but legislation addressing complaints never got far.

“We always tried to show people what it is that the town or county are doing and the reasons why they’re doing it,” Gierau said. “And the unique challenges we face due to limitations on developable land and some of the consequences of the cost of development.”

He hasn’t seen upcoming bill drafts from the Freedom Caucus, but he was critical of what he called “power tricks” during the last session.

Gierau said he looks forward to the discussion. He’s having his own internal talks with other people in Teton County and the state about how to address over-regulation and mitigation concerns.

“I always find it interesting when people who come from other counties, who don’t have any idea what happens in Teton County, can just come in and make categorical statements about what’s wrong and what’s right,” Gierau said. “I find that interesting. I don’t find it any more than that, since it’s usually not based in fact.”

He said the housing solutions in Teton County aren’t perfect.

“Could we do better?” he said. “Yes.”

But he said that doesn’t mean the programs should be thrown out altogether.

This story was published on August 13, 2025.