I found myself in Cheyenne on Tuesday, the 13th, thinking it would be interesting to watch the Joint Appropriations Committee work the budget for the 2026 Budget Session.
“Interesting” isn’t how I would describe what I witnessed that afternoon.
The actions of the House Freedom Caucus and their allies in the Senate were a blood bath for Wyoming’s future.
These cuts were not driven by necessity. Wyoming’s fiscal health is strong Gov. Gordon’s budget left $330 million for savings or use by the legislature.
These cuts were punitive, designed to send a political message instead of moving Wyoming forward.
I served four years on the Joint Appropriations Committee and helped develop five budgets.
During that time, we cut nearly $850 million from Wyoming’s General Fund.
Not to prove a point, but because the state’s economy tanked twice and we had to balance the budget, as the Constitution requires.
Any rancher in Wyoming knows that you cut when times are tough, and you invest in the ranch and save when times are good.
So, why on “Bloody Tuesday” did the Freedom Caucus cut over $60 million from the University of Wyoming and around $100 million from the Wyoming Business Council?
What message does that send to Wyoming’s youth?
It says: we’re not investing in your education, we’re not recruiting the kind of employers that create high-paying jobs, and we’re not strengthening the communities you’d want to stay in.
Wyoming already has one of the highest rates of young people leaving the state, at nearly twice the national average.
These cuts will only accelerate that trend.
As Sen. Ogden Driskill warned during debate, if we keep hollowing out opportunity, the only people left will be retirees who came here to avoid taxes.
Earlier that morning, the Freedom Caucus made an egregious and unnecessary cut: $58 million in federal dollars for tribal health services.
They refused to authorize the Department of Health to distribute those dollars for care in tribal communities.
This won’t reduce demand; it just shifts costs, increases uncompensated care, and stresses Wyoming’s medical system.
At the University of Wyoming, they cut $40 million, which is more than 10% of the university’s block grant — its primary funding mechanism.
They shielded the College of Education and the College of Agriculture, but when asked why, members implied they objected to certain coursework elsewhere.
This looks less like budgeting and more like punishment and an effort to force UW to kowtow.
Their aim at the University continued, cutting $6 million from UW athletics even as UW fights to retain Division I status in a fast-changing landscape.
And they cut more than $12 million from UW’s matching fund, one of the smartest tools we have to stretch taxpayer dollars by leveraging private giving.
No clear justification was offered.
Then there’s the Wyoming Business Council.
The Freedom Caucus cut nearly the entire budget by slashing over $100 million.
Much of that funding goes directly to communities for infrastructure improvements, so they can attract businesses and be more attractive to people looking for work.
Read the WBC’s 2025 Annual Report, this money has helped every county in Wyoming.
According to the Business Council, every neighboring state has an economic development program and combined they spend over $1.1 billion to advance business.
Because every state understands if you don’t compete for opportunity, you lose it.
Let’s be honest, the Freedom Caucus is cutting agencies, not because Wyoming is in poor fiscal health but because they want to eliminate property taxes, and they’re trying to pay for it by cannibalizing Wyoming’s future.
This is not conservatism; it’s short-term politics with long term consequences.
The Freedom Caucus wants to retreat into the past.
Wyoming can honor what we treasure about our past while still stepping into the future. If we refuse to build opportunity, we will keep exporting Wyoming’s youth.
Rep. Sherwood offered the best amendment of the afternoon: require WYDOT to hang a sign on the Welcome to Wyoming signs that reads “Closed for Business.”
After what I witnessed in that committee room, it’s hard to argue with her.
