Rep. Western speaks on budget

In November of 2021, Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon released a balanced $2.3 billion budget. 

The budget was conservative, even by Gordon’s standards, who referred to his own proposals as frugal in an effort to minimize future cuts.

The Consensus Revenue Estimating Group (CREG) released their report in October of 2021 projecting revenues through 2024 much more optimistically and thanks to the federal government, legislators found themselves flush with money going into the 2022 budget session. 

But state lawmakers followed Gordon’s path and remained conservative in their spending. 

While appearing on Sheridan Media’s Public Pulse program, House District 51 Rep. Cyrus Western (R), spoke on the priorities he set for himself as he prepared to attend the 2022 Wyoming Legislative Budget Session. 

One of the top priorities Western and other lawmakers wished to address within the budget dealt with the salary of many state employees. 

According to the governor’s office, more than 90% of Wyoming state employees are currently being paid below 2017 market rates.