CODY — Park County commissioners formalized in writing Tuesday a vote they made earlier this month regarding a property tax appeal filed by a South Fork Valley resident who is a candidate for county commissioner.

In a formal finding of fact and conclusion of law required as part of their statutory role as the Park County Board of Equalization, commissioners denied an appeal by Fred Reynolds and charged him a $50 administrative fee.

Reynolds had written an appeal stating that his property value had been determined in an “arbitrary and capricious” manner. His Bartlett Lane residence, a mobile home with conventional wood-framed improvements located on 4 acres and valued at $182,341, was not assessed properly compared with the value given to a similar property in the area, Reynolds claimed.

Reynolds, 50, who has retired from a career in law enforcement and the U.S. Coast Guard, has made it an issue in his campaign for county commissioner to advocate for changes in how property taxes are assessed in Wyoming.

The Legislature drafts the laws that set statewide standards for how property taxes are assessed, and an elected assessor in each county determines individual property values. Commissioners may control only how many mill levies are collected countywide, and rule on individual property tax appeals.

Commissioners also fined Reynolds $50 for failing to attend the meeting, which he was notified of by a hand-delivered letter the day before.

Reynolds said he failed to read the notice, and was not given 48 hours to respond, as required by law.