Gov. Gordon discusses details of biennial budget proposal
During a Nov. 14 press conference held at the Wyoming State Capitol Building in Cheyenne, Gov. Mark Gordon discussed details of his upcoming biennial budget request.
Titled “The Essentials,” Gordon said the proposed budget prioritizes meeting the essential needs of government and Wyoming people.
“The major thematic efforts in this budget are to make sure we have quality jobs and a strong economy across all sectors – from energy and agriculture to tourism and emerging technologies – and to make sure our workforce is well educated,” Gordon said.
He also highlighted a desire to empower Wyoming communities through increased investment in infrastructure, healthcare and education and secure continued funding for water policy, as well as wildfire mitigation and recovery.
Workforce and infrastructure
Boosting workforce in Wyoming is a primary concern of Gordon’s budget proposal, particularly in the state’s core industries of energy, agriculture and tourism in addition to emerging industries.
“Wyoming has excelled in leadership on energy on all fronts,” Gordon said during the press conference, noting the state’s ability to be a leader has been recognized globally and internationally.
His proposed budget calls for continued investment in energy development, including $5 million in matching funds to continue growing the School of Energy Resources at UW and $2 million for a coal pyrolysis demonstration project.
Gordon also expressed plans to bring Wyoming state employees up to current pay tables and help them stay competitive in the market, noting inflation has affected the ability to retain quality individuals in roles throughout the state.
He also spoke of diversifying Wyoming’s economy through new infrastructure and noted a request for $18.4 million to maintain and develop rural air services.
Additionally, Gordon outlined requests for $27.2 million to be allocated for property tax relief, roughly $470 million for major maintenance projects on state and school facilities and $100 million for capital construction including renovations on the Veteran’s Home in Buffalo.
Healthcare and education
Investment in healthcare and education is core to Gordon’s proposed budget. During the press conference, Gordon noted he is recommending $5 million be set aside to meet the state’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) obligations.
In his budget message, Gordon emphasized the importance of assisting hard-working families and increasing education around nutrition.
“My budget recommends Wyoming step up to mitigate the reduction of the federal funds to administer SNAP so hard-pressed working families can continue to receive essential healthy nutrition,” Gordon said. “I also recommend continued funding for CentSible Nutrition, which provides education, budgeting and life-skills to assist families in making healthy food choices and stretching food dollars, including SNAP payments, to meet their nutritional needs.”
“In addition, I encourage the legislature to support getting locally-grown healthy foods into our schools,” Gordon continued. “It is just the right thing to do – helping farmers and our kids, and teaching families to become more self-sufficient.”
Further, Gordon emphasized wise investment of funds from the Rural Health Transformation Program will be necessary to aid sustainable health infrastructure development in Wyoming.
Among the top priorities outlined during the press conference were improved access to maternity services and increased funding for developmentally disabled waivers.
Additionally, Gordon highlighted education as a crucial component of serving Wyoming families and increasing opportunities in the state.
“Our focus must be on ensuring our children have a first-class education to prepare them for jobs right here in Wyoming and ground them in the values that make Wyoming, Wyoming,” said Gordon.
During the press conference, Gordon emphasized a desire to continue investing in the Reimagining and Innovating the Delivery of Education (RIDE) initiative and the Wyoming Innovation Partnership (WIP) which have helped make education opportunities more relevant for communities across the state.
In addition, he noted a request of $5 million for the Wyoming Works programmatic grant funding, including $584,000 for the Wyoming Works student grant funding which allows students to participate in the program.
He also highlighted the success of Wyoming in matching funds for the University of Wyoming (UW) Foundation to ensure continued research investment in critical industries and revealed he is asking for $10 million in state matching funds to aid research at the university.
Water and wildfires
Water and wildfire were additional key issues addressed in the budget proposal.
During the press conference, Gordon emphasized the importance of being able to address concerns posed by ongoing challenges on the Colorado River Basin.
Gordon noted he is requesting roughly $5 million for water litigation and $740,000 for “two full-time positions to assist on the workload pertaining to the situation in the Colorado River” after citing legal and technical matters and a need for more workforce in the area to address issues which are becoming increasingly more severe.
“As we continue to experience drought, the prize of control of our water becomes ever more pronounced,” stressed Gordon. “This crisis in the making is no joke. Wyoming farmers and ranchers, refiners and residences – potentially our whole economy – are threatened if we do not get this one right.”
Additionally, Gordon expressed a goal of changing the way Wyoming addresses fire, increasing the state’s capacity to meet fire needs following several years of the worst fires in state history.
His proposal asks for two fire suppression modules totaling $4,573,454 which would “allow for state forestry to send an engine to address fires when volunteer forces become unable to meet commitments due to workload or exhaustion.”
Gordon’s proposal also asks to replenish funds in the emergency fire suppression account, which is usually kept around $20 million, and to potentially increase its capacity.
In total, the budget proposal asks for $11.13 billion throughout the 2027-2028 fiscal year.
Grace Skavdahl is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
