Wyoming Legislature update – January 23, 2023
by Albert Sommers, House District #20 Representative
January 25, 2023
Hello Sublette County and LaBarge, this is Albert Sommers reporting to you on Monday, January 23, a day the Legislature is in recess.
Friday, January 20, was the ninth day of the 2023 General Session of the 67th Legislature. As we wrapped up the second week of the Session, the House continued to hear and vote on bills in the Committee of the Whole, 2nd Reading, and on 3rd reading.
HB0026 - School facilities-appropriations passed the House on Friday on 3rd reading. This bill clarifies the Legislature’s ability to appropriate a single sum of money for the design and construction phase of a school facility project. We heard testimony that making this clarification would allow for efficiency for school-facility construction projects to continue to move forward versus getting stalled with multiple approval processes. Moving construction forward in a timely manner is especially crucial in times of inflation. I support this bill.
HB0093 - Omnibus water bill-construction is a yearly bill of water projects funded by severance tax dollars. The bill amended existing project timelines and appropriated additional funds where needed to cover the costs of ongoing water projects. Projects range from cloud seeding to encouraging snowfall in the Wind River and Sierra Madre Mountain Ranges to funding municipal water supply projects and water infrastructure rehabilitation needs. Water is a critical issue for Wyoming. We must continue to fund these important water projects, like the New Fork Lake dam, which is why I supported putting money into the account that funds building dams. I supported this bill.
I came home on Saturday, January 21, to attend the appreciation dinner for former county commissioner Joel Bousman. Joel has spent a lifetime in service to Sublette County and Wyoming. I have always appreciated his thoughtful intelligent approach to issues, even when I didn’t agree with him. Joel was always considered the Nation’s County Commissioner, as he fought for local government input into complex national policy. He has fought to preserve the custom and culture of Sublette County for a long time. Joel, my hat is off to you.
I can be reached at albert@albertsommers.com with questions or comments. Thank you.
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