'We have a spending problem': Wyoming House passes bills to restrict state spending
CHEYENNE — The Wyoming House of Representatives passed two bills Tuesday that would reduce the state's spending, cutting tens of millions of dollars in available education funding per fiscal year.
'Folks, we don't have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem,' said Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, during the third and final reading of the bills. 'I really have a lot of faith in this body that we are going to keep our spending under control, and we'll be able to withstand this $28 million (reduction in education funding) per year.'
Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette (2025)
Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette
Bear, the Wyoming Freedom Caucus chairman emeritus and current House Appropriations Committee chairman, said it's time for the state to start 'living within its means' by reducing its spending and stashing more money into savings. However, Rep. Karlee Provenza, D-Laramie, countered Bear's optimistic claim about state revenue.
'As of Friday, our total revenues that we've cut in the bills that we've brought so far … is $372,489,500,' Provenza said, which includes proposed property tax cuts. 'We're going to have a revenue problem, a very serious revenue problem.'
Rep. Karlee Provenza, D-Laramie
Rep. Karlee Provenza, D-Laramie
House Bill 270 reduces the state's spending out of the Wyoming Permanent Mineral Trust Fund from 5% to 4.5% of a five-year rolling average market value. A similar spending policy is proposed in HB 271, but out of the Common School Account.
Rep. Ken Clouston, R-Gillette, successfully added an amendment to HB 271, so the spending policy would be reduced to 4.75% for the first year and then 4.5% for the following years.
Rep. Ken Clouston, R-Gillette (2025)
Rep. Ken Clouston, R-Gillette
'This will give us a way to evaluate what this change does,' Clouston said. 'Instead of taking $24 million in the estimate, it would be $12 million from the (School) Foundation (for the 2026 fiscal year).'
Bear expressed his support for Clouston's amendment, saying it's a 'reasonable' change to HB 271.
'I've been resistant to most of these amendments to change the trajectory of our spending,' Bear said. 'I am going to be in support of this one. I'm not sure the amendment will last through the process, but I do believe that there's nothing wrong with taking a moment to pause, and that's what this amendment does.'
The School Foundation Program funds inflationary costs for public school teacher and non-teacher salaries, classroom supplies and energy costs. The state's Permanent Mineral Trust Fund is a major source of revenue for education, as well. The combined impact of both bills on this account reduces the amount available for spending by around $30 million per fiscal year.
Rep. Steve Harshman, R-Casper (2025)
Rep. Steve Harshman, R-Casper
Rep. Steve Harshman, R-Casper, cautioned lawmakers multiple times that this legislation would 'pull the rug out' from K-12 school districts. The loss in revenue from these bills, he argued, is equal to funding one entire small school district, such as Laramie County School District 2.
'I think the good chair of Committee No. 2 said it's $28 million a year. How many of you know how big a revenue reduction this is? It's the same as spending,' Harshman said on HB 270. 'Revenue reductions are spending increases. It's not $28 million a year, it's over $50 million a year and growing.'
The Casper teacher/coach brought amendments, all of which failed, that attempted to slow down the rate of reduced spending that Bear's legislation proposed. On Tuesday, Harshman made an attempt to bring a 'three-year step down' to 4.5% spending out of the permanent mineral trust fund, instead of cutting it to 4.5% right off the bat.
'This would just slow this down over three years. And folks, this bill is effective immediately, so it's going to affect fiscal year '26, which is what we are budgeting on right now,' Harshman said. 'So this cut is going to happen right now.'
Both bills passed through the House and will now cross over to the Senate for consideration.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
E&E News
36 minutes ago
- E&E News
Central US grid could face power deficit by summer 2027
The grid spanning the central U.S. should have adequate electric generation next summer, but the longer-term outlook is clouded with uncertainty, according to an analysis by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator and state regulators. The grid operator is facing a familiar challenge: Data centers and other large new sources of demand are making it harder to guarantee ample electricity generation as power companies close aging, centralized coal plants in favor of renewable resources and natural gas. The result is tightening supplies and rising reliability risks, especially during extreme weather events. MISO, which spans a corridor of the central U.S. from the Gulf Coast into Canada, projects to have a surplus of generating capacity of 1.4 gigawatts to 6.4 GW during the summer of 2026. But the region could face a 1.4 GW deficit as soon as a year later, according to the survey of generators by the grid operator and the Organization of MISO States, a group of state regulators. Advertisement 'The survey reinforces the importance of accelerating new resource additions and carefully managing retirements as demand continues to grow,' MISO CEO John Bear said in a statement.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Some Wyoming residents voice support for voter registration changes
CHEYENNE — Beginning July 1, Wyoming voters will be required to provide proof of state residency and U.S. citizenship when registering to vote, something Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray has been advocating for years. The move comes after the Wyoming Legislature passed House Bill 156 in February, a piece of legislation Gov. Mark Gordon let go into law without his signature. The public comment period for rules related to the change began May 5 and lasts until June 20. Wednesday afternoon, Gray's office held an in-person and virtual meeting to allow people to voice their opinions about the proposed rules. All attendees who spoke during the meeting expressed support for the new law, and made some minor recommendations for the Secretary of State to consider before a final version of the law is published. Wyoming voters will be required to be a state resident for at least 30 days before casting their ballots, and must present proof of residency and citizenship when registering to vote. Last year, a similar piece of legislation was approved by the Wyoming Legislature, but vetoed by Gordon on the grounds that the regulations exceeded Gray's legal authority. The 2025 legislation grants the Secretary of State that authority. 'Providing proof of United States citizenship and proof of residency has been a key priority of our administration,' Gray said Wednesday, 'and this rulemaking marks over a year-and-a-half-long standoff with Gov. Mark Gordon and myself concerning the need for documentary proof of citizenship and residency to ensure a reasonable means to follow our constitutional obligations of ensuring only U.S. citizens and only Wyomingites are voting in Wyoming elections.' Gray said the veto last year was very troubling, and there were a lot of inaccurate statements made by the governor. 'We didn't give up. We went to the Legislature, and the people won, weighing the governor back down, and the bill became law without his signature,' he said. Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, and the former chairman of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, a hardline group of Republican lawmakers, was the primary sponsor of the bill. He spoke during Wednesday's public hearing, saying this bill will build confidence in Wyoming elections. 'Prior to introducing this bill, we conducted a poll of likely voters in the state of Wyoming. It was a very scientific poll, and this particular issue had over 74% support, and we saw that as we traveled the state,' he said. Voter Meeting From left, Elena Campbell speaks on Zoom, while C.J. Young, Election Division director; Jesse Naiman, deputy secretary of state; and Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray listen during a public comment meeting about voter identification rules in the Capitol Extension on Wednesday. Platte County Clerk Malcolm Ervin, who also serves as chairman of the Wyoming County Clerks Association, weighed in Wednesday, as well, with a few minor suggested changes. One recommendation concerned the use of Wyoming student identification cards as a document to prove residency for voter registration. He suggested the ID cards be required to display the voter's legal name, not a chosen name. He said most of his concerns regarding the 2025 legislation were quelled by the fact that there is a 'last-ditch' effort that allows people to show proof of residency or citizenship if they don't have the required documentation to vote outlined in the new law. If someone doesn't have valid identification forms or lacks a Wyoming driver's license and a Social Security number to prove residency, they can provide other documentation, such as a utility bill, bank statement or a pay stub under the proposed rules. To prove U.S. citizenship, one must produce a document already outlined in law, including a Wyoming driver's license, Wyoming ID card, a valid U.S. passport, a certificate of U.S. citizenship, a certificate of naturalization, a U.S. military draft record or a Selective Service registration acknowledgement card, a consular report of birth abroad issued by the U.S. Department of State, or an original or certified copy of a birth certificate in the U.S. bearing an official seal. 'I want to be clear that we see that adaptation as a last-ditch effort, if we've exhausted all other options. It's our last option on the table, specifically to ensure nobody is disenfranchised from voting,' Ervin said. The other concern he had that was addressed in the new legislation is that post office boxes in Wyoming will only count as proof of residency if the person lists their residential address on their voter registration application form. Another virtual attendee spoke in favor of the new law. Mark Koep, chairman of the Crook County Republican Party, echoed Rep. Bear's statements of statewide support. 'Overwhelmingly, the voters of Wyoming — and I talk to a lot of people — support these rules that you have in place,' he said. 'And so, I just want to make that heard on this chat to the media in the room: the people of Wyoming want these rules.' Since 2000, there have been four convictions of voter fraud in Wyoming, according to The Heritage Foundation, all involving U.S. citizens. When the public comment period closes on June 20, it will once again be up to Gordon to accept or reject the proposed rules. Under Gray's proposed rules, a valid Wyoming driver's license will be adequate proof of identity, residency and U.S. citizenship, so long as it lists a Wyoming address. Tribal identification cards issued by either the Eastern Shoshone or Northern Arapaho tribes, or other federally recognized tribes, will also count as proof of residency if a Wyoming address is listed. If the applicant doesn't have the forms of identification present at the time of registration, they must provide on the voter registration application form their Wyoming driver's license number and one of any of the following documents: U.S. passport; a driver's license or ID card issued by the federal government, any state or outlying possession of the United States; a photo ID card issued by the University of Wyoming, a Wyoming community college, or a Wyoming public school; an ID card issued to a dependent of a member of the United States Armed Forces; or a tribal identification card issued by the governing body of the Eastern Shoshone tribe of Wyoming, the Northern Arapaho tribe of Wyoming or other federally recognized Indian tribe. These documents would also need to list a Wyoming address to prove state residency. If a person seeking to register to vote doesn't have a valid driver's license, they must provide the last four digits of their Social Security number, along with one of the previously mentioned documents in the proposed rules. None of the documents will suffice if the applicant is not a U.S. citizen. Online comments on the proposed rules can continue to be submitted by email to the Secretary of State's chief policy officer and general counsel, Joe Rubino, at until June 20.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
'We cannot build bananas in America': House Democrat fires back at Commerce Sec. Howard Lutnick on tariffs.
Rep. Madeleine Dean and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick were banana-split on President Donald Trump's tariffs and banana prices during a House hearing Thursday. 'We cannot build bananas in America,' the Pennsylvania Democrat said to the secretary as he testified on the fiscal year 2026 budget request before the House Appropriations Committee. The two had been discussing Trump's tariffs on almost every country and the subsequent levies that would fall onto countries that produce the bananas Americans eat for that good ol' potassium. 'What's the tariff on bananas? Americans, by the way, love bananas,' Dean said to Lutnick. 'We buy billions of them a year. I love bananas.' 'The tariff on bananas would be representative of the countries that produce them,' Lutnick said. Dean: 'And what's that tariff?' Lutnick: 'Generally 10%.' Dean: 'Correct, 10%. Walmart has already increased the cost of bananas by 8%.' Lutnick: 'As countries do deals with us, that will go to zero.' Dean: 'But the cost is on the American consumer now and on the businesses with the confusion now.' Lutnick: 'There's no uncertainty: If you build in America and you produce your product in America, there will be no tariff.' Dean: 'We can't produce bananas in America. We cannot build bananas in America.' Hawaii is the only state with the climate that allows for growing bananas. Most come from overseas.
