CHEYENNE - With so many lucrative avenues available in Wyoming's vigorous economy, some counties have been hard-pressed to get qualified candidates to serve as top county prosecutors and their deputies.

The Legislature passed two bills in the recent general session to improve salaries as an incentive for lawyers to serve as county attorneys or assistants.

Original Senate File 107, whose prime sponsor was Sen. Phil Nicholas, R-Laramie, allocates $1.9 million to increase the state's reimbursement for full-time county and prosecuting attorneys and their full time assistants.

"This bill is important," said Natrona County District Attorney Mike Blonigen, president of the Wyoming County and Prosecuting Attorneys.

The reimbursement formula, he added, hasn't been changed since 1982 when the Legislature set up the district attorney offices for Natrona and Laramie counties, the only two funded by the state.

"What will happen hopefully is that it helps counties pay compensation to deputy and assistant county attorneys to create more of an incentive for career prosecutors in those offices," Blonigen said.

The state will pay 50 percent of the salary for full time county attorneys and will pay full time assistants $30,000, or 50 percent of their salaries, whichever is less, the new law says.

In some cases small counties have been restricted in hiring a deputy county attorney to help with caseloads and have only a part-time deputy or none at all, he added.

The second bill, Original House Bill 64, whose chief sponsor is Rep. Tom Lubnau, R-Gillette, removes the $85,000 per year cap on county attorney salaries and ties the pay to that of district attorneys.

It sets the salaries for county attorneys at a minimum of $35,000 per year up to the level that are paid district attorneys, which stands at $94,500 per year.

The law won't kick in until the next election cycle because the elected county attrorneys cannot get pay raises during their current elected terms of office.

Lubnau said the intent was to make the salary increases optional for the counties.

The purpose "is to attract the brightest and the best," Lubnau said. "Because without a good county attorney you can literally get away with murder."

The new laws are coming on line in some places. The Platte County Commission recently hired an investigator to look into complaints against Platte County Attorney Mary Eikenberry, who was elected in November to replace Eric Alden.

Eikenberry has dismissed charges against at least 17 people since she took office in January.

This past legislative session was beneficial to county attorneys, some professionals said.

"We did feel we made some real progress," said Crook County Attorney Joe Baron.

"We want people doing the people's work to be well-trained people."

Baron, who has one full-time deputy, said in some of the smaller counties the public defenders and police are paid more than the county prosecutors.

In the wealthier counties, some of the deputies make more than the county attorneys.

"Baron said the caseload is increasing in the counties as the result of mandates from the Legislature.

"If you have three highway patrolmen with dogs in your county, you're going to have a higher felony caseload than if you don't have it," Baron said.

A booming economy also means a higher criminal caseload, he added.

Two bills that passed the House but failed to get through the Senate would have permitted housing allowances for county attorneys and creation of district attorney offices in judicial districts that include more than one county.

Those bills may return. In the next legislative session, there will be a move to increase district attorney salaries to the same level as that of the district judges, Baron said.

"That's the national standard and, quite honestly, that's the way it ought to be," he said.

Capital reporter Joan Barron can be reached at (307) 632-1244 or at {M3j{M6oan.barron@casperstartribune.net