 - Local government officials throughout Wyoming are celebrating a piece of legislation that was signed into law last week codifying the distribution of state funding to cities, towns, and counties in the state.){kind=link}
(Cheyenne, WY) – Local government officials throughout Wyoming are celebrating a piece of legislation that was signed into law last week codifying the distribution of state funding to cities, towns, and counties in the state.
Previously, those direct distributions “had to be reauthorized every budget session, creating uncertainty for local governments,” the Wyoming County Commissioners Association and Wyoming Association of Municipalities explained in a press release last week.
“House Bill 107 resolves that issue (by) making direct distribution a permanent, predictable funding mechanism,” the press release says, calling the legislation “a major victory for local governments.”
8 percent
The new law sets the biennial appropriation for local governments at 8 percent of the prior fiscal year’s statewide sales and use tax revenues, resulting in an estimated $151 million distribution for the coming biennium, Wyoming Sen. Tim Salazar said when HB 107 came up on first reading in the Senate last month.
For comparison, Salazar said, the appropriation for the current biennium was set at $146 million.
During the floor debate that day, some members of the Senate questioned the idea of codifying local government distributions in state statute, expressing concern that the move would restrict the legislature’s ability to adjust the allocation in the future based on changing economic conditions.
Salazar noted that he flagged the same issue when the Senate Appropriations Committee considered HB 107.
“I know everyone is excited that they don’t have to come every year, hat in hand, and ask for (funding),” he reiterated on the Senate floor. “But I will simply say this: If we have a COVID No. 2, if we have a national economic emergency, if we get into a deep recession – be careful what you ask for.
“I know (HB 107) gives stability to our counties and cities the vast majority of the time, but does anyone doubt that in our future at some point we’re going to have a hiccup, that we’re going to have some type of an economic downturn? It’s something to think about.”
Other senators pointed out that the legislature can still modify the statute in question in HB 107 if changes to the direct distribution are deemed necessary in future years.
Regardless, an amendment to HB 107 was proposed on second reading in the Senate specifying that the legislature “may” adjust the direct distribution, as long as the amount to be distributed stays between 5 and 9 percent of the prior fiscal year’s statewide sales and use tax revenues.
After the amendment was proposed, Salazar asked about the decision to set the lower end of the parameter at 5 percent.
“Was there a reason (for) 5 percent instead of a different number?” he asked. “My point is, 5 percent seems rather low compared to what the needs would be if we did have a crisis of some type.”
Salazar and Fremont County’s other local senators all voted against the amendment, which failed to pass.
All of the local senators voted in favor of HB 107 on third reading, too, and Fremont County’s representatives in the House all voted in favor of concurrence, as did the majority of their colleagues.
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed the bill into law the next week.
“We thank Governor Gordon for his signature, (and) the Legislature for their support during this budget session,” WAM Executive Director Ashley Harpstreith said. “This marks the beginning of a bright future for Wyoming’s municipalities.”