# ESA Letter in Gillette, WY: The Deposit With No Ceiling

> Wyoming caps no deposit and permits a nonrefundable portion. An ESA letter in Gillette takes the charge off under fair-housing law, not the rental act.

- Source: https://supportanimal.com/blog/wyoming-emotional-support-animal/gillette/
- Publisher: Support Animal (supportanimal.com)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- License note: informational content; not legal or medical advice.

## Key facts

- Population: 33,846
- Households renting: 26.8%
- Typical pet deposit (as a pet): Uncapped; may be nonrefundable
- Typical pet rent (as a pet): No cap; set by the building
- Breed/weight limits common: yes
- Pet fees, deposits, and breed limits with a valid ESA letter: none (FHA reasonable accommodation)

## Gillette rents in cycles, and the deposit is where you feel it

Gillette is a Campbell County energy town, with the boom-and-bust rhythm
that goes with one, and its deposits are used accordingly. **3,405** of the
**12,689** occupied homes here are rented. **26.8 percent** on the Census
Bureau's 2020–2024 American Community Survey five-year estimates, against
**28.2 percent** for Wyoming as a whole. That places Gillette 17th of the
state's twenty largest cities on renter share, in a city of 33,846.

The raw count tells a different story. Only Cheyenne, Laramie and Casper
hold more renting households, fourth in the state, on seventeenth-place
proportions. Median gross rent is **$976**, give or take **$77**, under the
**$992** Wyoming median. Rent is not where a Gillette tenancy gets
expensive. The money asked for at signing is.

## Wyoming does not cap a deposit at all

Most states put a number on it. One month, two months, a flat figure for a
furnished unit. Wyoming's Residential Rental Property Act, **W.S. 1-21-1201
through 1-21-1211**, does not. No cap in months. No cap in dollars. No
separate limit for an animal, and none anywhere else in the statutes either.

So a Gillette landlord asking for two months up front, or three, has not
crossed a line the legislature drew, because the legislature drew none.
Nobody here has to justify the size of a deposit, because no provision asks
them to. That is the background every conversation about an assistance
animal in this city happens against.

## W.S. 1-21-1207 is a disclosure rule, not a permission slip

The one sentence Wyoming devotes to the subject reads:

> "Any rental agreement shall state whether any portion of a deposit is nonrefundable and written
> notice of this fact shall also be provided to the renter at the time the deposit is taken."

It does not grant anyone the right to keep your money. It assumes a
nonrefundable portion may exist and requires that you be told twice, once in
the agreement you sign, once in writing at the moment the money changes
hands.

That second half is the one tenants miss. The notice is tied to the taking
of the deposit. If a Gillette office collects at signing, that is when the
written notice belongs; a nonrefundable slice that surfaces later as a line
on a receipt has not answered the sentence.

## The two words the rental act never uses

Here is the detail that decides the whole argument. Across those eleven
sections, the words "pet" and "animal" appear **zero times**.

Wyoming has no pet-deposit provision. Which means there is no pet-deposit
exception either. Nothing to invoke, because there is nothing to carve out
of. Where a state does write a pet-deposit rule, the assistance animal
usually turns up in the next clause as the thing the rule does not reach.
Wyoming skipped the rule, so it never needed the clause.

The consequence catches people out. Argue with a Gillette landlord about an
animal charge by pointing at the landlord-tenant statute and you are
pointing at a book that never mentions animals. The argument is a good one.
It simply lives elsewhere.

## Where the charge actually comes off

Three provisions do it, in two state titles and one federal code.

**W.S. 35-13-201(c)** is the plainest: a person "shall not be discriminated against in the leasing
or rental of residential property because the person has an assistance animal, which shall be
permitted in leased or rented residential property in accordance with the federal Fair Housing
Act."

**W.S. 40-26-107(c)(ii)** makes discrimination include "a refusal to make a reasonable
accommodation in rules, policies, practices or services if the accommodation may be necessary to
afford the individual equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling." A pet deposit is charged
under a policy. Waiving it is the accommodation. **W.S. 40-26-107(b)** reaches the rest (the
terms, conditions and privileges of a rental, where a monthly premium sits), and
**42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)** runs underneath both.

An uncapped deposit and an assistance animal, then, never meet. Not because
the deposit statute carves the animal out, but because a charge imposed for
the animal is a term imposed because of disability.

## What a Gillette landlord may still bill you for

Not everything comes off. The same sentence in W.S. 35-13-201(c) that requires the animal to be
permitted adds that the person "shall be liable for any damage done by his assistance animal to
the premises or facilities of the leased or rented residential property." Actual damage, assessed
afterwards, charged the way any tenant damage is charged. That bill can still arrive, and properly.

**W.S. 40-26-107(f)** marks the other edge: no accommodation is owed where the tenancy "would
constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals" or "would result in
substantial physical damage to the property of others." That is a finding about one animal's
conduct, not a category. A breed list does not make it.

## Asking before the money is taken

Timing is the leverage, and W.S. 1-21-1207 tells you where it sits. The notice about a
nonrefundable portion comes "at the time the deposit is taken", which is the moment your money
stops being easy to get back. Make the request before it, before the lease is signed, and before
you are asking for the return of something already paid.

Put it in writing, and keep the dated copy. Say what the animal is, say what
you are asking for (the animal deposit and any monthly premium waived), and
name the provisions: W.S. 35-13-201(c), W.S. 40-26-107(b) and (c)(ii), and
42 U.S.C. § 3604(f). If a leasing office in this city says no, that record
is most of your case.

## Where Gillette renters get help, and what to call it

No Wyoming state agency takes a housing-discrimination complaint. The Wyoming Advisory Committee to
the **U.S. Commission on Civil Rights** reported in January 2025 that the Governor "has not yet
assigned enforcement authority of the Wyoming Fair Housing Act to any state or local entity," and
that residents "are required to submit their complaint to the HUD's Denver Regional Office in the
neighboring state of Colorado." From Campbell County that is a long way to an enforcer.

Nearer at hand, **Wyoming Independent Living** operates a Gillette center,
**Legal Aid of Wyoming** runs a housing programme, and **Campbell County**
administers county services. One naming point, because the paperwork trips
people up: the Housing Choice Voucher office serving Gillette and Wright
belongs to the **Cheyenne Housing Authority**. The city has no authority of
its own, so that is what a voucher form is asking about.

The state-law route that still functions is a court one: **W.S. 40-26-139**
allows two years in district court, with nothing to exhaust first.

## What the letter has to establish

**W.S. 35-13-205(a)(iv)** defines an "assistance animal" as one that works or performs tasks for a
person with a disability "or provides emotional support that alleviates one (1) or more identified
symptoms or effects of a person's disability." No training is asked of that second branch. And
because the section opens "As used in this article", the definition governs the leasing sentence in
W.S. 35-13-201(c), which sits in that same article.

So the letter carries two conclusions, not one. First, a disability. Second,
that this animal eases symptoms or effects of it that somebody has
**identified**, named, by a person qualified to name them. Nothing sold from
a website supplies either, and **W.S. 35-13-203(b)** makes knowingly and
intentionally misrepresenting an animal a misdemeanor.

## The number a landlord may set, and the one they may not

Both numbers are on this page. The first has no ceiling: Wyoming lets a
Gillette landlord set a deposit as large as they like and hold part of it
back for good, provided the agreement says so and the written notice arrives
with the money. The second is fixed at nothing, no deposit, no fee and no
monthly premium for an assistance animal, because that charge is a term
imposed because of disability.

Getting from the first number to the second takes documentation, and
documentation takes an assessment. Phone whoever already treats you first;
nobody else begins with your history in front of them. Then plan for
friction, because there is plenty. Beyond Cheyenne, Casper and Laramie this
state holds very little specialist mental-health capacity, a Campbell County
appointment can be a long way off, and a practitioner with two visits on
file may reasonably conclude they cannot certify a disability at all.

Where that leaves the question open, a licensed evaluation settles it
deliberately: a licensed professional tests whether a disability is present,
tests whether this animal answers an identified part of it, and puts both
answers on paper, or states without hedging that the assessment supports
neither. That second ending is a real one, and it is exactly why the first
ending carries weight at a Gillette leasing desk where the deposit has no
ceiling.

## What Gillette landlords can and cannot do

**Cannot:**
- Cannot refuse a reasonable accommodation in rules, policies, practices or services where it may be necessary to afford a person with a disability equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling: W.S. 40-26-107(c)(ii).
- Cannot discriminate in the leasing or rental of residential property because the person has an assistance animal, W.S. 35-13-201(c). Wyoming defines that animal to include one that provides emotional support, at W.S. 35-13-205(a)(iv).
- Cannot treat an assistance animal as a pet for the purpose of a deposit or a monthly charge. Wyoming's landlord-tenant statute says nothing about animals at all, so the charge comes off under W.S. 40-26-107(b) and (c)(ii) and 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f) rather than under a deposit rule.
- Cannot discriminate in the terms, conditions or privileges of a rental, or in the services and facilities provided with it, because of disability: W.S. 40-26-107(b). This is the provision that reaches recurring pet rent.
- Cannot require training, certification or registration of an assistance animal. W.S. 35-13-205(a)(iv)'s emotional-support branch has no training element, and no Wyoming registry exists.
- Cannot interfere with the rights in W.S. 35-13-201(a) through (c), doing so is a misdemeanor under W.S. 35-13-203(a), with a fine of up to $750.
- Cannot keep a deposit without delivering a written itemization within thirty days of termination, or fifteen days after receiving the renter's new mailing address, whichever is later: W.S. 1-21-1208(a).
- Cannot take a nonrefundable deposit silently. W.S. 1-21-1207 requires the rental agreement to state that a portion is nonrefundable and requires written notice when it is taken.

**Can:**
- May hold the tenant liable for damage the assistance animal actually does to the premises, W.S. 35-13-201(c) says so expressly. That is a bill for real damage, not a charge in advance.
- May take a further thirty days to return a deposit if there is damage to the unit, making sixty days lawful in that case, W.S. 1-21-1208(a).
- May decline where the tenancy would be a direct threat to the health or safety of others or would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others, W.S. 40-26-107(f).
- May be outside the Wyoming Fair Housing Act's disability duty if the building holds four families or fewer and the owner lives in one of them, W.S. 40-26-110(b) exempts sections 40-26-105 through 40-26-109. W.S. 35-13-201(c) and the federal Act are not switched off by it.
- May charge a nonrefundable pet deposit to a tenant with an ordinary pet, with no cap in dollars or months, provided it is disclosed. Wyoming sets no deposit ceiling anywhere.

## How to get an ESA letter in Gillette

1. **Check that you qualify**, Answer a short screening about how your condition affects daily life in Gillette. No diagnosis paperwork needed up front. (About 5 minutes: free)
2. **Connect with a licensed professional**, You are matched with a provider licensed for Wyoming clients who reviews your situation in a telehealth evaluation. (Telehealth evaluation)
3. **Complete your evaluation**, The professional evaluates whether an emotional support animal alleviates symptoms of a condition recognized in the DSM-5. Honest evaluations, not everyone qualifies. (Most of Our Applicants Qualify)
4. **Receive your signed letter**, Your letter arrives on the professional's letterhead with their license number: the documentation Wyoming landlords may lawfully request. (Typically within days of approval)
5. **Send it to your landlord**, Submit the letter with a short reasonable-accommodation request. Pet fees, pet deposits, and breed limits no longer apply to your animal in Gillette. (Protection under FHA + state law)

## Conditions that can qualify for an ESA

No fixed government list exists. A licensed professional evaluates whether an animal alleviates symptoms of a DSM-5-recognized condition, commonly:

- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Major depressive disorder
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Panic disorder
- Social anxiety disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Bipolar disorder
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Phobias with housing impact
- Chronic stress affecting daily function

## Housing help in Gillette

- [Campbell County](https://www.campbellcountywy.gov/) (county government)
- [Wyoming Independent Living - Gillette Center](https://www.wilr.org/centers/gillette-center) (disability services)
- [Cheyenne Housing Authority - voucher offices (serves Gillette/Wright)](https://www.cheyennehousing.org/contact-us) (local housing authority)
- [Legal Aid of Wyoming - Housing](https://www.lawyoming.org/housing) (legal aid)

## Frequently asked questions

### Is there a limit on what a Gillette landlord can charge as a deposit?

No. Wyoming sets no deposit cap of any kind - not one month, not two, not a dollar figure, and not a separate figure for an animal. The Residential Rental Property Act at W.S. 1-21-1201 through 1-21-1211 simply never addresses the size of a deposit. A large deposit in Gillette is not, by itself, a violation of anything, which is why the assistance-animal argument has to be made under fair-housing law instead.

### Can part of my deposit be nonrefundable in Wyoming?

Yes, if you were told. W.S. 1-21-1207 says "[a]ny rental agreement shall state whether any portion of a deposit is nonrefundable and written notice of this fact shall also be provided to the renter at the time the deposit is taken." Two disclosures are required, not one: the term in the agreement, and separate written notice when the money is handed over. The section is a disclosure rule. It does not grant the right to keep the money and it does not limit how much may be kept.

### Why can't I use the landlord-tenant statute to fight a pet deposit here?

Because it does not mention animals. The words "pet" and "animal" appear zero times in W.S. 1-21-1201 through 1-21-1211. Wyoming never wrote a pet-deposit provision, so there is no exception carved into one for assistance animals the way some states do. The charge comes off under W.S. 40-26-107(b) and (c)(ii) of the Wyoming Fair Housing Act, under W.S. 35-13-201(c), and under 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f). Every fee argument in Gillette is a fair-housing argument.

### When should a Gillette renter make the accommodation request?

Before the deposit is taken, if you can. W.S. 1-21-1207 ties the written nonrefundable notice to "the time the deposit is taken," which is the moment the money stops being easy to recover. Asking before the lease is signed means you are requesting that a charge not be applied, rather than asking for a refund of something already paid and possibly labelled nonrefundable. Put the request in writing, name the provisions, and keep a dated copy.

### What can a Gillette landlord still charge me for?

Actual damage. The second sentence of W.S. 35-13-201(c) says the person with the assistance animal "shall be liable for any damage done by his assistance animal to the premises or facilities of the leased or rented residential property." That is assessed after the fact, like any other tenant damage, and it is not the same thing as a deposit charged in advance for having an animal at all. W.S. 40-26-107(f) is the other limit: no accommodation is owed where the tenancy would be a direct threat to health or safety, or would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others.

### Is there a housing authority in Gillette?

Not a local one. The Housing Choice Voucher office serving Gillette and Wright is operated by the Cheyenne Housing Authority, which lists voucher offices for several Wyoming communities alongside its Laramie office. The city has no authority of its own, so a voucher form asking which public housing agency administers your assistance is asking about the Cheyenne Housing Authority. For disability-specific help locally, Wyoming Independent Living runs a Gillette center.

### Where does a Gillette housing-discrimination complaint go?

Out of state, or to court. The Wyoming Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights reported in January 2025 that the Governor "has not yet assigned enforcement authority of the Wyoming Fair Housing Act to any state or local entity" and that Wyoming residents "are required to submit their complaint to the HUD's Denver Regional Office in the neighboring state of Colorado." The state-law alternative does not need an agency: W.S. 40-26-139 allows a civil action in district court within two years, with no complaint to exhaust first.

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Get evaluated by a licensed provider: https://my.supportanimal.com/qualify?sa_source=blog&sa_medium=blog&sa_campaign=esa-guides&sa_content=markdown&ref=blog&sa_term=wyoming-emotional-support-animal%2Fgillette