2009 Legislative Session in Cheyenne

Cheyenne, Wyoming: thoughts of it conjure up images of Elysian fields, yes?

Until earlier this week, I had spent very little time there... mostly just getting gas en route to somewhere else. Everyone I had talked to, however, lead me to believe that our state capital was suspect, at best.

Imagine my surprise when I traveled there this week with TBOR Executive Officer Barb Garrett, TBOR President-Elect Bill Helm, WAR Southwestern DVP Ron Adams, TBOR Political Affairs Committee Chair Ray Elser, and TBOR Legislative Committee Chair Janine Bay Teske. I gotta admit: it wasn’t that bad.

Maybe it was because the weather was nice (or at least nicer than Jackson Hole). Maybe it was because the wind wasn’t howling like I’m told it can in Cheyenne. Or maybe it was because I’ve never been to a Carl’s Jr. for a $6 burger before. Whatever the case, the TBOR contingent’s trip to Cheyenne for the 2009 Legislative Session was not without its charms.

For those of you unaware of the state political process (I was one…), the 60th Wyoming Legislative Session began on January 13th and runs for 6 weeks. Our 48-hour trip coincided with the Wyoming Association of Realtors' Meetings and Reception with our state lawmakers. I know it all sounds very exciting. Please contain your envy.

The high point of the trip for me was when Governor Dave stopped by and spoke to our little group of dirt pimps at a meeting in Little America. God bless the great state of Wyoming. In what other state would the Governor take the time to visit with a group of 50 random salespeople?

Things of material importance to TBOR members, however, probably boil down to three or four items:

- Senate File 110: Designated Agency. I’m hopeful anyone reading this blog would be familiar with this topic;
- House Bill 279: Statement of Consideration. Frankly, this scares the hell out of me. While WAR completely opposed an earlier version of this bill that was shot down which would have moved us away from being a non-disclosure state, this new rewrite creates the opportunity for individual tax payers contesting his or her property tax bill to view the statements of consideration (which includes sale price, mortgage amount and terms) of similar properties in the interest of creating a dialogue with County Assessor. In other words, if my neighbor contests his property tax, he can find out what I paid for my home;
- House Bill 149: Tightens what a Notary can and cannot do. It apparently also increases the required bond to $5000 and prevents a Notary from witnessing a signature for someone within the same company. I haven’t read this nor have spoken to State Rep. Keith Gingery who is sponsoring this bill, but this certainly also raises some immediate concern on my end.

There was also a Cluster Subdivision Bill (House Bill 9) that allows open space in clustered subdivisions to be taxed as agricultural vs. residential provided other conditions are met. Given this didn’t seem to apply in either Teton or Lincoln County, I tuned out whenever the conversation shifted to H.B. 9.

We also were part of a cocktail reception at Little America where all four of our regional legislators (Senator Grant Larson, Rep. Keith Gingery, Rep. Pete Jorgensen, and Rep. Jim Roscoe) attended. Again, another moment of gratitude for the state of Wyoming. While the food was free and the drink tickets were distributed liberally, I was very impressed by the number of legislators who showed up to slum with us after spending 10-12 hours working on the floor of the Capitol.

For me, the visit to the Capitol itself was another high point of my time in Cheyenne... almost like a grade school field trip. Downtown Cheyenne has some very cool old buildings – the least of which is the Capitol – and sitting in the gallery of both the Senate and the House of Representatives was genuinely interesting. Boring and painfully slow, but still interesting nonetheless.

You can also send a handwritten note to any of the legislators on the floor via a runner. I’ve had the pleasure to know Jim Roscoe for the past few years and was tempted to scribble some off-color notes to him. But given Jim is still a freshman rep., the last thing I wanted to do was put him in an awkward position or to get ejected from the class trip for misbehaving.

At the moment, it would seem like all of the above bills have a good chance of getting passed. While this was my first pass at the state legislative process and still am woefully ignorant of some of the finer points of politicking in the state of Wyoming, please feel free to contact me with any questions.

Also, if you’re ever in Cheyenne and need a place to stay, I highly recommend Little America. The rooms are clean and spacious, and they have a great breakfast buffet.