Agar: "Interesting" end to Legislature

The 2017 general session of the Wyoming Legislature adjourned Friday, and Senate District 20 representative Wyatt Agar stated, “The final week of session was interesting to say the least.

“For the senate chamber it was a hurry up and wait situation, which is highly frustrating when you strive for efficiency. We did not adjourn on Friday until around 11:30 p.m. waiting on the house to take action on several bills.”

After reconsideration of four different bills on the house side, Agar reported, (which the Senate was finally able to vote on concurrences of HB 236, regarding school finance, and HB 58, regarding school facilities appropriations.

“I voted for 236 and against 58,” Agar stated. “We have a waiting list process for schools that need structural attention to work through. As HB 58 is written, an undetermined school in the Cheyenne area that is down the list moves ahead of schools such as Ten Sleep who sit at the top of the list, simply because it gets more press. The students of Ten Sleep are in a 90-year-old building — the oldest in the state by 30 years — and the community has waited their turn. I simply believe it is wrong to shuffle the list in this manner.”

The Senate also voted on fee increase bills — HB 218, 219 and 288 — which moved the Department of Transportation and Game and Fish out of the general fund into stand alone status, Agar stated. “Many of these fees have not seen increases in 20 to 40 years and the move to make these departments self sustaining is wise. However, I voted against HB 218 and 219. With the economy and the people hurting I believe it is the wrong time to increase mandatory fees.”

Agar further reported, “The Senate chambers went into this session with a platform that would not impose new taxes on the people and would seek responsible cuts to the budget. Through the process, several bills that contradicted this and had increases of both taxes and spending were sent our way. I am proud of how strong and united the senate stood against those bills.

“I feel blessed to have had the leadership of President Bebout and Majority Floor Leader Perkins for my freshman year. We caucused early on and set a conservative approach to our fiscal shortfall. Leadership held to that directive for the duration of the session. Along with that platform we had to make cuts across the board. The process was grueling at times, but in the end we came out with a supplemental budget that gets us through the biennium.”

Agar stated he campaigned on a platform of fiscal responsibility, cutting the bureaucratic red tape on small business and standing for the Constitutional Rights of the people of District 20, and he tried to deliver on those promises with every vote.