Continuing the debates

After a contentious year in the Wyoming Legislature, representatives from Sweetwater County continued some of the session's main debates back at home. 

Sweetwater County's legislators participated in a Legislative Recap Panel hosted by the Rock Springs Chamber of Commerce at Young at Heart Community Center last Thursday night. Legislators Laura Taliaferro Pearson, Bob Davis, Marlene Brady, John Kolb, Darin McCann, Scott Heiner, Cody Wylie, Stacy Jones and J.T. Larson all took part in the panel, where several of the hot button topics from the legislative session were discussed in more detail. 

One of the main topics addressed and argued in both the session and the panel was the question of property taxes, particularly following the 25% cut to property taxes that the legislature passed. 

When asked if they reached out to local elected officials about the effects property tax cuts could have, some said they did, while some emphasized conversations they had with their constituents. Rep. Marlene Brady noted that she did have a conversation with County Assessor Dave Divis and heard his opinion that tax cuts could be detrimental, but she added that she went door to door to talk to people and heard from many that said they supported a 50% cut. Brady also reiterated her belief that the tax cuts will have a minimal impact on local communities. Senator John Kolb, on the other hand, said he spoke to multiple local elected officials and that when he went door to door he only heard from two people who said they wanted lower taxes. 

When asked how much people would save from the property tax cuts, Brady said she will be saving over $1,000, while Rep. Cody Wylie said most people will save a few hundred dollars. Asked to compare this to the services that will be lost, Sen. Kolb noted that special districts will be hurt the most, while Rep. Wylie pointed out that "hardship counties" in Wyoming will be especially impacted as well. 

Sen. Laura Taliaferro Pearson argued that there was help for the special districts and hardship counties included in the supplemental budget, but it didn't pass. She expressed her frustration over feeling like several legislators didn't have a say in the budget being killed. When asked if she made a motion to call the budget back to the floor, Pearson admitted that she didn't as she is new to the legislature and doesn't "know the ins and outs of how to do those things," but she expressed her anger over it. Senator Stacey Jones argued that she believes the Senate was "responsible and conservative" for not passing the supplemental budget as it "kept getting fatter" with other issues. 

As for the impact to local services due to property tax cuts, Rep. Brady said she believes there should be no services lost. She stressed that local governments should look for the areas where they are wasteful and where they can find savings. 

"I think overall if they can show 100% efficiency I'll change my attitude toward property taxes," Brady said. 

Rep. Darrin McCann also shared his belief that everyone will have to tighten their belts, saying he wasn't there to cut anything, but that "we can do better managing our money." He later said that he sees no reason why Wyoming can't have zero property taxes, like Alaska. During the panel, McCann was directly confronted by Cathy Garrison, a constituent who has lived in Sweetwater County since 1980. She said McCann stood on her porch and told her there will be no loss to services, but now she's heard about 17 agencies losing funding, so she asked how he will make those agencies whole. 

"I respectfully disagree with you," McCann answered. "I don't think it will be as big a detriment as it's been made out to be. I really believe that. We're going to find out." 

"I think we're kidding ourselves if we think we can take that cut and not lose anything," Senator Stacey Jones said of the property tax cut. 

When asked if Wyoming will be able to successfully avoid implementing a state income tax to make up lost revenues, all the legislators shared their opposition to an income tax, with Rep. Wylie describing it as the "ultimate last resort." 

Overall, Rep. Wylie compared the property tax discussions to the film "Groundhog Day" and said that the legislative session sometimes felt like being stuck in a time loop. He explained that multiple amendments kept changing the bill and the effect of property taxes, and in the end he supported the 25% cut because of his desire to avoid moving back to a 50% cut. Overall, however, he said he believed the changes to property taxes were a "soapbox issue" that didn't bring true reform and may have come from a desire to "play politics" rather than truly help people. 

Other issues coming out of the legislative session were discussed at the panel as well. One attendee asked the legislators why time was spent on the "What is a Woman" bill rather than other more pressing issues. Sen. Pearson answered that the focus of the bill was to create clear definitions in statute, since there are over 200 statutes in Wyoming law that reference male and female. She pointed to the recent court case in Wyoming regarding a transgender individual in a female sorority, where she said judges didn't have clear definitions to work with. 

Barbara Smith questioned the legislators on the passage of a bill requiring transvaginal ultrasounds before the procurement of chemical abortions. Rep. Brady and Sen. Pearson argued that the requirement helps protect women who could be at risk of serious harm or death from chemical abortion pills if they are taken at the wrong stage of the pregnancy, explaining that a transvaginal ultrasound is required to determine how far along the woman is. 

Several legislators also explained that they voted for the bill because they are pro-life, with exceptions, but many of them said it was a difficult bill. When Sen. Kolb said he found research saying that transvaginal ultrasounds are not painful or invasive, Sen. Jones disagreed by saying that anything that has to be done transvaginally is invasive. She explained that she struggled with that element of the bill, but ultimately voted for it to protect the health of the mother. Rep. Wylie was the only legislator who shared that he voted against the bill, saying the requirement also applies to mothers receiving treatment for a miscarriage, and that the bill wasn't ready in the format it was presented in. 

Looking to the future, the legislators noted that the next session will be a budget session, so that is where much of the focus will go. Rep. J.T. Larson said he wants to focus on supporting agencies that support our industries. Sen. Jones said she wants a responsible and conservative budget, but noted that some things just need money spent on them-a fact that she said "lots of new legislators have lost sight of." Rep. Wylie stressed the need for educated decisions and expanding economic diversity. Rep. McCann said the state wastes a lot of money and needs to tighten things up. Sen. Kolb emphasized long-term planning and investing in the future. Rep. Brady said her goal is to not expand government. Rep. Bob Davis said he hopes the legislature can collaborate to be fiscally responsible. Sen. Pearson said she wants to know "where the money's going" and what it's spent on, "not all these hidden coffee cans that no one even knows where it's going," in order to "make things more transparent." Davis responded that all that information is available through the audit process and in the budget. Larson added that there's a website from the state auditor where you can look up every single check and expenditure that the state makes, which he believes is "about as transparent as you can get."

Overall throughout the panel, many legislators stressed their desire to hear from and represent the people of Sweetwater County. 

"Our job is not an easy job," Sen. Stacey Jones admitted, but she added, "It's one of the greatest honors of my life to represent Sweetwater County." 

All the legislators agreed that "communicating with constituents is a top priority," as Rep. Larson put it. Several of the legislators noted that they are often inundated with emails, especially during the session, and noted that phone calls, texts and messages are a better way of getting in touch with them. Several also said they try to prioritize those who are from Sweetwater County and that they prefer personal messages to form letters. 

"We need to hear from you on issues that you have so we can then reflect those positions," Sen. Kolb said.