Archive for January, 2009
Friday, January 30th, 2009
1/29/09
Every legislator I’ve spoken to knows how he or she feels about banning smoking in public places, pro or con, but that doesn’t stop most of them from jumping up for a speech on the subject when a bill to enact such a ban gets to the House floor. And as emotions ratchet higher, the […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Friday, January 30th, 2009
1/30/09
It’s not clear that the long-running controversy between the federal Fish & Wildlife Service and Wyoming over wolf management is of any great import in this legislative session, but as hearings got underway before the House Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee, the issue provided plenty of podium-thumping sound bytes for politicians.
There are […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009
1/27/2009
The Joint Appropriations Committee has been “marking up” the supplemental budget bill for the last two days, and this important work goes almost unnoticed in the media – in part, because it’s almost impossible to follow much of it. What does it mean when a legislator refers to “governor’s letter number six regarding page 17 […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Monday, January 26th, 2009
1/26/2009
The Joint Appropriations Committee began to mark up its budget today, and suddenly all the dreams embodied in 400 or so bills are in jeopardy. You can see it in committee meetings, where legislators try to figure the best strategy to get their pet bills past the stern taskmasters of the money committee.
If you look […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Sunday, January 25th, 2009
1/25/09
Looking out at a Cheyenne Sunday morning with falling snow veiling the State Capitol across the street, it’s not a stretch to see this as a metaphor for the act of journalism during the legislature – it’s hard to see what’s going on. That’s because there is no formal […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Thursday, January 22nd, 2009
1/22/09
There are many different ways to look at the effort to ban smoking in public places statewide – an effort that some think may succeed this year at the state legislature (HB 31, from the Joint Labor, Health and Social Services Interim Committee). For some, it’s a business question – many bar owners feel their […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009
1/21/09
In a session where there are no big consuming issues – no Hathaway scholarship, no budget shortfall, no battle over tort reform – social issues often find traction. Various legislators have mentioned that controversial issues like banning smoking in public places or refusing […]
1 Comment » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Tuesday, January 20th, 2009
1/20/09
It seemed a pretty innocuous bill: the Wyoming Game & Fish Commission would regulate antler collecting to control Utah horn-hunters who had been coming across the border and harassing mule deer in Southwest Wyoming. Utah has set limits on the collection of shed antlers to protect migrating herds; so the Utahns pursued their hobby across […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Monday, January 19th, 2009
1/19/09
There are 14 states around the country that offer citizens a “sales tax holiday”, and Rep. Dan Zwonitzer (R-Cheyenne) thinks Wyoming ought to do it too. He would like to see school shoppers exempted from sales taxes on computers, book bags, clothing and pencils, among other things, during one long weekend in early August.
Few members […]
No Comments » - Posted in Legislature by Geoff O'Gara
Monday, January 19th, 2009
1/17/09
Interesting facts you might pick up if you’re wandering at 7 a.m. among the tiny committee rooms in the rafters of the State Capitol:
Wyoming is home to 50 % of the highest quality (Class IV and Class V) wind energy resource in the United States. From Cheyenne to Glendo is “as good as it […]