Park County, Wyoming
Planning and Zoning Department
: Exempt Divisions

Contact Information:

  • OFFICE LOCATION: 1002 Sheridan Ave., Suite 109, Cody, WY 82414
  • Cody: (307) 527-8540
  • Powell: (307) 754-8540
  • Office Hours: 8:00am - 5:00pm
  • Monday - Friday
  • Appointments are strongly encouraged
  • planning@parkcounty-wy.gov

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Home » Planning and Zoning » Exempt Subdivisions

EXEMPT DIVISIONS

The Wyoming Real Estate Subdivision Act W.S. § 18-5-303 establishes several exemptions from the requirement that subdivisions undergo review and be issued a subdivision permit by the County. Unless the method of sale or other disposition is adopted for the purpose of evading the provisions of this article, this article shall not apply to the subdivisions of land identified below. However, the following subdivisions are subject to requirements which may be adopted by the Board of County Commissioners regarding documentation of the proper use and implementation of the following exemptions:

RECORD OF SURVEY REQUIREMENT FOR EXEMPT DIVISIONS
A record of survey is required to be filed with the County Clerk and Recorder for all parcels that are exempt from the subdivision permit requirement. The survey shall accompany and be referenced by all instruments recorded in the Office of the Clerk and Recorder that divide land or realign property boundaries pursuant to W.S. §18-5-303 (Exempt Divisions). The reference shall locate the survey by citing its document number, deed book and page number, or plat cabinet and page number.

FILING AND RECORDING PROCEDURE

    1. Certification required for all instruments: The owners or agents of a property owner seeking to record deeds , records of survey, contract for deeds, or other instruments shall present to the County Clerk a Certificate of Filing indicating whether the instrument creates any division or subdivision of land (Appendix 9). The certification shall further indicate that any division of land created by the instrument conforms to one or more of the subdivision exemptions of these regulations.
    2. Nullification of Exempt Division: Any exempt division may be nullified by the grantee and grantor by recording an instrument with a form approved by the County Attorney. The effect of filing such an instrument shall be to rescind the original exemption and merge the exempt parcel with the original parent parcel, thereby reverting the land to its original configuration as it existed prior to the exempt division.
    3. Requirements for Agricultural Divisions: In addition to the Certificate of Filing, owners or agents of a property owner seeking to record deeds , records of survey, contract for deeds, or other types of instruments that divide land through agricultural exemption shall present to the County Clerk a covenant to be recorded with the instrument that conforms to Appendix 10, Covenant for Agricultural Purposes Exemption.

TYPES OF EXEMPT DIVISIONS

FAMILY DIVISIONS: A division of land made outside of platted subdivisions for the purpose of a single gift or sale to a member of the landowner’s immediate family* and shall be exempt from the subdivision permit requirement, subject to the following requirements: LAW CHANGED EFFECTIVE 4/1/2021

    • Immediate Family Member: A member of the immediate family is limited to any person who is a natural or adopted child, stepchild, spouse, sibling, grandchild, grandparent or parent of the landowner. Where the landowner is a business entity and eighty percent (80%) of the ownership interest or shares are held by or in the name of the trust controlled by individuals related by blood or marriage, the sale or gift may be made, subject to the provisions of W.S. § 18-5-303, to an immediate family member of any shareholder who has owned at least five percent (5%) of the outstanding shares for at least five (5) years continuously before the date of the gift or sale;
    • Purposes: The purpose of the division is to provide for the housing, business or agriculture needs of the grantee;
    • Title: The land shall have been titled in the name of the grantor, or in the name of a trust controlled by the grantor, for a combined period prior to the division of not less than five (5) years for land titled before February 27, 2019, or ten (10) years for land titled on or after February 27, 2019. Parcels created under this paragraph shall be titled in the name of the immediate family member for whom the division is made for a period of not less than five (5) years, or for not less than one (1) year if the parcel was created before February 27, 2019, unless such the parcels are subject to involuntary transfer including, but not limited to, foreclosure, death, judicial sale, condemnation or bankruptcy;
    • Acreage for re-division: No parcel smaller than five (5) acres created under this paragraph shall be further divided unless the owner obtains a subdivision permit pursuant to W.S. § 18-5-304 and County regulations.

      * The County interprets this provision to mean that: Grantors can make one family division for each eligible member of the grantor’s immediate family; this provision may only be used once for each eligible grantee regardless of how many parcels the grantor may own; an eligible grantee may only receive one parcel by family exemption and may not receive additional parcels from additional landowning relatives. The grantee must be an immediate family member of each and every grantor except as otherwise specified.

MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS: The following types of divisions of land shall be exempt from the subdivision permit requirement:

    • A division that may be created by any court of this state pursuant to the law of eminent domain, by operation of law or by order of any court in this state;
    • A division that is created by a lien, mortgage, deed of trust or any other security instrument, easements and rights-of-way;
    • A division that concerns lands within incorporated cities or towns;
    • A division that is created by the sale or other disposition of land to the state of Wyoming or any political subdivision thereof;
    • A division that affects railroad rights-of-way;
    • A division that is a sale or other disposition of land for agricultural purposes or affects the alignment of property lines for agricultural purposes;
    • A division that is created by boundary line adjustments where the parcel subject of the sale or other disposition is adjacent to and merged with other land owned by the grantee;
    • A division that creates cemetery lots;
    • Is created by the acquisition of an interest in land in the name of the husband and wife or other persons in joint tenancy or as tenants in common, and the interest shall be deemed for purposes of this exemption as only one interest. (This provision is intended for estate planning purposes and not to create new parcels or to otherwise evade these regulations.)
    • A division of land creating a parcel five (5) acres or less for the purpose of establishing unmanned communication facilities, compressor stations, metering stations, fiber optic booster stations or similar unmanned facilities.
  • LARGE ACREAGE (35-ACRE+) SUBDIVISIONS: Large acreage subdivisions in Park County are subject to varying levels of review/documentation. All parcels created pursuant to this exemption shall conform to the requirements specified in the 2015 Development Standards and Regulations as identified below:
    1. Exempt Large Acreage Subdivisions
      • Up to 10 parcels, each being 35-40 acres in size
      • See Chapter III, Section 7a
    2. Non-Exempt Large Acreage Subdivisions
      • 11 or more parcels, each being 35-40 acres in size
      • See Chapter III, Section 7b
    3. Large Acreage Subdivisions
      • Parcels that are 41-140 acres in size
      • See Chapter III, Section 7c

Park County Planning and Zoning Department    |    1002 Sheridan Ave. Suite 109, Cody, WY 82414    |    307-527-8540    |    planning@parkcounty-wy.gov