Gov. Mark Gordon made the final mark on Wyoming’s next two-year budget Saturday morning with his signature and dozens of line-item vetoes.
“This budget addresses our challenges and positions Wyoming for a prosperous future,” Gordon said in a statement. “We are fighting federal overreach, advancing our industries, providing practical property tax relief, ensuring adequate funding for our schools, counties, and communities and providing the services Wyoming residents expect.”
Gordon thanked the Legislature for including many of the provisions his administration had requested, including funding for the 988 suicide lifeline, new school construction, a property tax refund program as well as increased savings.
On the other hand, Gordon said many of his line-item vetoes were meant to uphold the separation of powers and limit the scope of the budget bill to regular government expenses.
Gordon struck language — but not appropriations — related to employee compensation, border assistance and diversity, equity and inclusion programming at the University of Wyoming. He also axed funding for a Wheatland water tower and a Riverton recreation center but kept 24 state positions the Legislature voted to cut.
While Gordon approved the final product, he also let lawmakers know he was less than impressed with the contentious and chaotic way the budget came to be. The session began with a leadership fight in the Senate then the House temporarily walked away from budget negotiations and members of the Senate Appropriations Committee voted against their own work product. Ultimately, it ended with the upper chamber only narrowly passing the budget.
“Last year in my budget line-item veto letter of the supplemental budget, I congratulated both chambers on passing a budget in record time — all while increasing transparency. It is unfortunate this session did not follow suit,” Gordon wrote in his veto letter. “Over 300 amendments to this one bill, some of which were introduced to save legislation that failed earlier in the session, almost caused the budget bill to share the same fate.”
Lawmakers cannot override any of Gordon’s line-item vetoes since they are no longer in session. However, in the wake of Gordon’s budget announcement, Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. John Bear (R-Gillette) called for a special session in a press release.
The Legislature met for the full 20 days of the budget session, but Bear accused leadership of adjourning early since three extra days were technically available to lawmakers.
“The decision of legislative leadership to adjourn early served as an open invitation to Governor Gordon to veto measures important to the people of Wyoming with no recourse,” Bear wrote, pointing to Gordon’s action on the budget and several rejected bills including a ban on gun-free zones and new abortion restrictions.
Returning to Cheyenne won’t come cheap — a special session costs approximately $100,000 a day.
Details
Gordon did not shy away from the budget’s more controversial appropriations.
Lawmakers included $750,000 to reimburse Wyoming law enforcement that assists with “securing the United States border” in Texas. Gordon kept the funding but struck the language limiting use of the funds to law enforcement. Any state agency may now be eligible.
“I greatly appreciate the intent of this footnote and I will note the requests received by my office to assist with the border crisis are ever changing,” Gordon wrote in his letter. “To best meet these needs as they are expressed I have sought some flexibility in the way these funds are spent.”
Gordon vetoed a portion of a budget footnote to defund UW’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and related programming — a major target of Wyoming’s far right. More specifically, Gordon removed a line that would prohibit state funds from going toward “any diversity, equity and inclusion program, activity or function.”
That portion was estimated to jeopardize roughly $120 million of UW’s federal research funds per year.
“These grants are vital to research and other core purposes of the university, but with the condition that the recipients extend opportunities to participate to underrepresented and underserved populations, including veterans, people with disabilities, Native Americans, and others,” Gordon wrote.
Regardless of Gordon’s decision, UW President Ed Seidel indicated his focus was on the will of the Legislature.
“We certainly will continue to value and serve students, employees and community members of all genders, ethnicities and backgrounds, and work to make everyone feel welcome,” Seidel said in a statement Saturday morning. “But the message from lawmakers, regardless of the welcomed line-item veto from the Governor, is that our DEI efforts must change, and discussions are underway to determine the best path forward.”
The university’s trustees, who oversee Seidel, indicated support Thursday for the school’s DEI programs.
Much of the budget bill heartburn in the Legislature related to school construction, and lawmakers sparred over the process that was used to select new school sites.
Weighing in, Gordon removed language that would define “priority” in the school capital construction section as a project that was recommended by his office and not included in the budget recommendations of the school facilities commission.
“I am not vetoing the project, I am only vetoing any implication that I support the Legislature deviating from the standard prioritization process for the constriction of school facilities,” Gordon wrote.
As governor, Gordon has made employee compensation a priority of his administration. As such, he removed language that placed a limit on executive branch salary increases, adding that it’s in the purview of the executive to make such decisions.
“This provision infringes on the separation of powers and encroaches upon the inherent prerogative of the executive branch,” Gordon wrote. “This is contrary to my budget recommendation authority as it removes my discretionary power relating to the next biennial budget.”
For similar reasons, Gordon struck language that prescribed where funding for executive-branch employee compensation could be allocated and cut a provision that would require him to identify 24 executive-branch positions for elimination by October.
“As I noted in the beginning of this letter, I believe the Legislature has a practice of encroaching upon the inherent prerogatives of the executive branch,” Gordon wrote. “Requiring the executive branch to eliminate positions is just another example of this encroachment.”
When budget talks moved to a second committee of lawmakers, negotiators added $2.5 million for a community recreation center in Riverton. However, the appropriation was not an ordinary expense of state government, Gordon wrote. He also noted the fact that Sen. Tim Salazar (R-Riverton) ultimately voted against the budget.
“The principal sponsor of this provision did not support the final budget and, therefore, I must assume his enthusiasm for it had waned,” Gordon wrote.
Gordon applied a similar approach to a water tower in the district of Rep. Jeremy Haroldson (R-Wheatland), who also voted against the budget.
“Following the lead of local legislators who voted against the budget thereby indicating their regard for the inclusion of this project in the budget,” Gordon wrote.
Gordon added that the State Loan and Investment Board is aware of Wheatland’s circumstances “and is anxious to help the town using [Mineral Royalty Grant] funds as is customary for situations such as this.”
The budget goes into effect July 1.
This story may be updated with reaction from stakeholders.
Liz Cheney was one of the few R’s nationally no to swallow the idiocy “far right” cool aide and Gov. Gordon is doing likewise for Wyoming by standing up to the so-called freedom caucus. Thanks to both of them.
Thank you, Gov. Gordon, for being a voice of reason and using your veto power after a legislative session of chaos and just plain meddling in other people’s business and touting their own agendas.
I personally will be very miffed if the Legislature leaders decide to call a special session. This was a 20 day “bi-annual budget” session, not a three ring circus session that seemed to focus on so many things, other than budget items. Any politician that calls for a special session to address things that should have been properly vetted during the regular session is not, in my way of thinking, conservative. I’m tired of politicians (at all levels) not during the job their constituents elected them to do, in the time frame they are given to do it!
Stop being divisive, start being collaborative…learn to work cohesively. It’s a wonder these politicians are married…surely over time they must have learned to compromise with their partners.
AWE and Awesome, the Old Fashion Republican!
Thank you John Abas your statements are spot on.Thank you Governor Gordon for vetoing what you did.
The freedom caucus is throwing a temper tantrum because they lost. Apparently, nobody ever told them to depart the playing field with a little dignity. What an actual adult would do, instead of having a fit in public, would be to wait until next section, write a better bill, and try to get it passed. This is trolling. And all of these so-called conservatives are more than willing to spend taxpayer money for a special session to pay their salary and their per diem and travel expenses. So my opinion is, grow up, have some dignity, come back with a better bill next year.
This legislative session was an absolute embarrassment. The only reason that the legislature did not bring total humiliation on the state is because the rest of the country pays no attention to Wyoming. I disagree with Gov. Gordon on many issues, but he proved to be the adult in the room this time.
My comment should have said bear should shut up and sit down
I was watching March madness and made a typo.
Again i say: worst legislature in Wyoming history. I was born here 67 years ago. So, guess I can say worst legislature in 50 years.
Don’t they know what their job is and what the governors job is. Apparently not.
Bear needs to sit up and sit down. Not sure who fact checked his press release but they need to be fired. It may make sense to him but there are several statements that are not true.
They are so worried about money, and want to spend $100,000 a day convene a special session.
To the people of Wyoming: do not re-elect these freedom caucus republicans. Vote for an old-fashioned conservative Republican. The freedom caucus will continue to ruin our state. They need to be shut down.
Bear wasn’t worried about money when he collected his PPP “loan”. A real hypocrite.
There’s a lot of Wyoming Citizens that are disappointed in Gordon. He should check his two faced ego at the door.
There’s also a lot who don’t think he did enough, so one might say he’s doing something right if he’s not making anyone happy. Of course I would call this being a leader for the state and looking at the bigger picture vs. pandering to one group in the state.
Kudos to Governor Gordon for making the Legislators that advocated for their constituents’ needs and then had the gall to vote against the budget pay the price. Sen. Salazar and Rep. Haroldson are part of the Womb Management Caucus and as such bring terrible bills and ideas to Wyoming. I am glad the people that elected these poor thinking Legislators will have to pay a penalty for putting them in office.
The people of Wheatland should pay for their own water tank, just as the people of Riverton will have to pay for their recreation center. Elections have consequences.
Mr Hunter
” I am glad the people that elected these poor thinking Legislators will have to pay a penalty for putting them in office.” I’m sure you didn’t intend to be as “mean spirited” as that statement sounded.
“The people of Wheatland should pay for their own water tank, just as the people of Riverton will have to pay for their recreation center. Elections have consequences.”
While I can’t address what actions Riverton has taken in their endeavor. Based on information provided by Cowboy State Daily News and Wyoming Public Media on their websites, Wheatland implemented a 6th penny tax, raised water rates, & secured $1.6M from the SLIB. Basically the town had raised approximately $6M thru other sources. So they weren’t sitting on their thumbs. Fortunately Wyoming still had ARPA funds available from the Feds, since these funds were intended for infrastructure, water and sewer projects, among other uses, Wheatland got allocated $2M for the water tank.
Enough said….helping people in Wyoming help themselves should be everyones goal…especially the 93 members of our citizen legislature.
I am sorry but I have no sympathy for the people of Wheatland as they elected a person that only wants two things: manage wombs and de-regulate guns. Please go to the WYOLEG.gov website and see what terrible bills this Representative sponsored during the “Budget” session as his bills are despicable and dangerously stupid for the rest of Wyoming.
Representative Haroldson argued to get a line item placed in the budget and then had the gall to vote against that very budget. So your own Rep. voted against your town’s interest and you want to chastise me, instead of him?
Representative Haroldson also blasts the Federal Government all the time and then laps up those Federal dollars; that is called hypocrisy.
I’m not defending Representative Haroldson. I’m sure you’re right, especially since he voted against the budget and I also read his guest column in Daily news. I’m simply trying to stand up for the people of Wheatland and other Wyomingites that are caught between a rock and a hard place and need financial assistance from our state.. Yes, we get what we elect, hopefully this years legislative session will open up some voters eyes. However, I’m not betting the ranch on it. Thanks for your comments and opinions.
I think Mr Hunter’s point was that the two legislators ultimately voted against their own constituates wishes. Also, this budget session wasted an awful lot of money that could have been used for counties and cities. The legislature really did behave badly, not trying to be mean spirited, thats just a fact.