Legislative leader questions state aid for counties
JOAN BARRON Star-Tribune capital bureau | Posted: Thursday, October 11, 2007 12:00 am
CHEYENNE -- John Joyce of Manderson, a member of the Big Horn Regional Joint Powers Board, is concerned the State Loan and Investment Board is moving away from grants for regional water systems and rural water districts.
In a letter, Joyce asked a special legislative committee to reinstate joint-powers boards and districts as government entities eligible to receive the state grant money.
Senate President John Schiffer, R-Kaycee, vice chairman of the Select Legislative Committee on Local Government Financing, cited the letter Wednesday as one example of needs that the state grant and loan program should be meeting.
"We've taken very good care of impacted counties, but we didn't take good care of what this program was intended to do," Schiffer said.
If the Legislature chooses to do so , it can ask the State Loan and Investment Board, which includes the governor and the other four elected state officials, to go back to three basic grant and loan programs that give priority to health and safety and federally mandated projects.
Schiffer said the energy boom-impacted counties are now wealthy and may not need special assistance.
Sen. Phil Nicholas, R-Laramie, asked the Office of State Lands and Investments staff to conduct a fresh analysis of of the impacted counties.
The 2006 Legislature allocated $100 million for eight counties identified as impacted by mineral activity. They are Natrona, Fremont, Sublette, Campbell, Johnson, Sheridan and Sweetwater.
The 2007 Legislature allocated about $6 million to the impacted counties for capital construction.
The job of the committee, chaired by House Speaker Roy Cohee, R-Casper, is to design long-term financing for local governments to be ready for the 2009 legislative session.
One of the mandates is to devise a "transparent distribution system" of the state dollars.
City, town and county officials are scheduled to present their requests and financing models to the committee today.
Capital bureau reporter Joan Barron can be reached at (307) 632-1244 or at joan.barron@casperstartribune.net.