Public officials in Natrona County are facing pressure and complaints from taxpayers about increases in property taxes, and the public needs to know where their money goes, said Rep. Roy Cohee.

Susan DeWitt, county assessor, made available in her office an "information sheet" for dissatisfied taxpayers, encouraging them to contact state legislators.

"Our 2008 legislative session had an opportunity to address the rising property tax dilemma in this state," the sheet says. "Nothing was done."

The sheet lists the names, addresses and phone numbers for all state legislators in Natrona County, including Cohee, who said he received a call at his home from a taxpayer late on a Sunday night.

Cohee said it's unfair for the assessor to say that the Legislature did nothing about property taxes, noting that the Legislature "continues to work on the issue, but finds it very difficult."

The assessor's answer - to blame lawmakers - is inadequate, he said, because it doesn't answer the taxpayers' questions.

"It's our responsibility as public servants to educate the public of what happens to their money," he said.

About 61 percent of money collected from property taxes in Natrona County goes to kindergarten through high school education, and about another 10 percent goes to Casper College.

"People just don't like to pay taxes, but when we've had dramatic increases in education alone, how are we going to sustain the high cost of that education?" Cohee said.

The remainder of the tax money is distributed to cities and the county for operational costs.

Cohee said he worries that people don't understand exactly for what their taxes pay. He often hears complaints about high property taxes, he said, but never about the expansion of the Sheriff's department or increasing costs of city government thanks to pay raises and insurance benefits.

And extra money from huge mineral revenues in the state have to be at least partially saved for the future, he said.

"It's easily said that because we have mineral revenues, we should lower property taxes," he said, "But we owe future generations some of that benefit when the mineral is long gone."

The assessors office has received 533 formal complaints so far in 2008 from people asking for reassessment of their homes, but DeWitt said at least twice as many taxpayers call her office complaining about high property taxes.

Contact reporter Megan Lee at (307) 266-0589 or megan.lee@trib.com