CHRIS MERRILL Star-Tribune environment reporter | Posted: Sunday, February 17, 2008 12:00 am
LANDER - Wyoming's Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust Fund currently has about $57 million in interest-bearing accounts.
When the trust was created in 2005, the Legislature, with the support of Gov. Dave Freudenthal, established a goal of eventually funding the endowment with a total of $200 million.
Before the 2008 legislative session, Freudenthal's proposed budget called on the Legislature to invest an additional $43 million in the trust fund this year, to bring the total endowment up to $100 million, or half of the long-term target.
The Joint Appropriations Committee has proposed investing about two-thirds as much, $29 million, which would increase the total fund to $86 million.
Rep. Owen Petersen, R-Mountain View, said he's a big supporter of the Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust Fund, but he and other committee members decided they had to advise less funding than Freudenthal did, for practical reasons.
The state has other pressing needs, such as maintaining and improving its highway network, which is currently deteriorating from vastly increased use, Petersen said.
"As long as I'm here, I'll be supportive of the trust," he said. "I think the $29 million is a fair sum to move into the fund this year."
Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, said he believes most of the Legislature will be on board for putting at least $25 million in the trust fund this year, and perhaps the following year as well.
"At this point we're probably more interested in providing the operating funds," Zwonitzer said. "We have a commitment to fully fund it eventually, and I don't see much opposition to funding another increment this year."
Bob Budd, executive director of the trust fund, said taking another step toward full funding would be a welcomed development.
"We'd just be able to meet more of the demand," Budd said. "Right now we're able to generate about $3 million a year for projects. Our demand in the first two years was about $30 million, so we're nowhere near being able to service the demand."
So far the trust fund board has allocated grants to about half of the applicants - allotting, on average, about 25 percent of the dollars requested, leaving a significant percentage of worthy projects either unfunded or underfunded, Budd said.