CHEYENNE — When the legislators return next week after their crossover long weekend, they will find Senate File 69 waiting in the house.
This is the bill that gives certain homeowners a 50 percent cut on their property taxes. On February 4, It easily passed the senate — which unlike the house is not under caucus control — in a 23-8 vote. The bill as passed has no backfill to compensate the local governments on their lost revenue.
It moved to the house where it passed first and second reading. The third and final house vote will come Tuesday.
Before that final date was set the bill moved up and down on the general file — the list of bills to be debated.
It was during that time that the public protests erupted over the expected drop in services. The opponents, the firefighters and police and plain citizens, filled the galleries.
They filled the galleries, citizens as well as city and county employees.
As an example, one day the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle in Cheyenne had a full front page of stories from Cheyenne police and firefighters detailing how the tax cut described by Sen. Chris Rothfuss D-Albany, as “draconian” would cripple their operations. Opponents included the Wyoming Hospital Association.
Nobody liked this bill because it lacked a backfill to compensate the local governments.
At first the bill was at the top of the house general file reading for debate. It was ahead of a long list of house bills
After all the protests, house leaders moved SF 69 to the bottom of the general file.
Meanwhile, three days after SF 69 passed the senate, Rep. John Bear, R-Campbell, the chairman of the house appropriations committee, successfully amended the budget bill to allocate $17.5 million to the Revenue Committee to compensate local governments or the money lost to the property tax cut.
So, Senate File 69 is a radical bill but it does have a backfill in the budget bill which has not yet passed the Legislature.
It appears certain that the Legislature will pass a property tax bill of some sort. The final version is still be determined. The leaders seem intent to get a bill they can clean up so ti will not get a veto from Governor Mark Gordon.
But first it must go back to the senate for a vote on any house changes including a recent amendment that recognizes the less wealthy counties.
The national hard right-wing Frontier Caucus issued a news release prodding the senate to approve all the Wyoming caucus priority bills.
“The Wyoming Freedom Caucus successfully pushed all of their top priorities through the WY House. ‘Crossover Day’ has arrived, marking the second half of the legislative session. This means the WY Senate now has to decide if they want to join the WYFC in sending conservative reform bills to the Governor, or continue to defy the voters,” the news release said.
This is a biggie.
———————
On a lighter note, this holiday on Monday gives lawmakers a chance to spend a last weekend at home before the final flurry of frantic action in the session.
The lawmakers’ shrinking social calendar reflects the decrease in leisure time ahead.
At the beginning of the session a legislator could eat breakfast. lunch and dinner at the expense of lobbyists and their organizations.
The late U.S Sen. Craig Thomas once described those receptions in D.C. as “eating dinner on a stick.”
Many of the sponsors this year are holding catered receptions in the connector conference room in the lower level, or basement if you prefer, of the Capitol building.
These quarters are subject to the State Building Commission rule prohibiting alcohol consumption in any state building.
That may be why so many dinners are scheduled at Little America or the Metropolitan restaurant.
The caucus people are evangelicals and probably do not drink alcohol anyway.
The Legislature is slated to end March 6.
The last event listed is for March 4 at Little America from 5-30 to 8:30.sponsored by the Capitol Club, the organization for lobbyists who cover the Legislature.
The gala is in the evening at Little America.
It’s a taco party — for legislators only.
——————————————
Contact Joan Barron at 307-632-2534 or jmbarron@bresnan.net
