On July 8 and 9, the Joint Revenue Committee

met in Cheyenne. Other committee

meetings were scheduled in Cheyenne at this

time as well, in order to facilitate attendance

at the dedication of the newly restored capitol

building, which took place on July 10. This

was the fun part! The reopening of the Capitol

Building was inspiring. I didn’t get my old

desk back; they put the only Independent in

the corner – at least I am not in the hall!

On Monday, July 8, the revenue discussion

focused on wind energy and wind tax. A very

good report was given to us by experts in the

field in which they explain the competitive

nature of financing and taxing wind energy.

New Mexico is leading the way by having

a creative, community-based funding model

that allows them time to develop projects

and the ability to charge less for their product.

South of Rawlins, a wind project is being

developed with solid infrastructure with sensitivity

to wildlife. The Revenue Committee

is looking into a way to competitively market

and generate revenue for our quality wind.

Because of rapidly-changing carbon-based

markets, upon which 75 percent of Wyoming’s

revenue has been earned, the committee

has been looking at funding models

from other states, which are similar to Wyoming

– rural in nature, sparsely population,

agriculturally based – such as South Dakota.

The committee would like to investigate how

these states bring in revenue in order to develop

ideas that would work in Wyoming as

well.

On Tuesday, July 9, we got an extensive

report from the Wyoming Department of

Transportation that an increase of 3 cents a

gallon fuel tax would only provide enough

funds to maintain our current highways without

any new construction. The majority of

this tax income would be paid by out-of-state

drivers (52 percent) and the average Wyoming

driver would contribute less than $40

a year. For every dollar NOT spent on timely

maintenance of our highways, it will cost the

state four- to eight-times the cost in complete

reconstruction later. The importance to our

economy of reasonably maintained highways

made it surprising to me that this 3-cent tax

barely passed committee.

Jerry Obermueller, Representative from

Casper and a successful and experienced

CPA, presented information on what was formally

HB 220, which failed in the Senate last

session. This bill is a corporate tax for large

corporations. Wyoming customers already

pay because companies have built this cost

into their nationwide prices in other states.

This tax is already coming out of Wyoming

customers’ wallets, but instead of being

returned to Wyoming, it is simply being returned

to the corporation – the vast majority

of which exist outside of our state. This bill

was revised since last session, and it was decided

to continue on with this version until

the next revenue meeting. This bill has the

promise of adding substantial revenue to our

budget and to support future needs, including

education.

The harsh reality of Wyoming’s economy

was exemplified by two coal mines declaring

bankruptcy the day before we met. This decline

is coming faster than predicted and is

based entirely upon world and national capital

markets. Quite simply, the world is turning

away from coal and embracing other energy

sources and Wyoming must face this reality

and develop diversified revenue streams for

our future income needs. This isn’t just about

turning away from coal; it is about developing

businesses to take coal’s place for the men

and women who have depended upon coal for

their livelihood.

The next Joint Revenue meeting is scheduled

for Sept. 18-19 in Pinedale, and Labor,

Health and Social Services meets the following

week in Evanston.