Governor Mead Praises Productive Legislature [AUDIO]

One week ago the 61st Wyoming Legislature completed their budget session after a very productive few weeks. That productivity did not go unnoticed by Governor Matt Mead who complimented the good sense of the Legislature to continue to strengthen and grow the state of Wyoming, even during a national recession, and lowered natural gas prices.

Governor Mead credited much of the success in building Wyoming's future as coming from investments made in the state's infrastructure- investments that were not fraudulent or irresponsible, but conservative and well-advised.

Looking ahead Governor Mead said he will be working with legislators to find a permanent source of funding for Wyoming highways, for improvements to the state’s tax structure and ways to improve health care and reduce costs. With health care, Governor Mead pointed out that this budget includes $560 million dollars in state dollars for Medicaid, which is up from $80 million ten years ago. This shows the level to which Wyoming is already involved in health care and changes are needed.

Money certainly was a contentious issue during the budget session, and while Governor Mead recognized the need for the federal government, he did not neglect the fact that reduced spending in Washington would equate to reduced money for Wyoming.

In the statements made prior to the closing of the session, Governor Mead reiterated that Wyoming has an opportunity to diversify its economy to include a stronger technological sector. He said the funding available now allows Wyoming to provide incentives to data centers and other technology companies while ensuring that any company that comes here can stand on its own.

For more information from Governor Matt Mead, or the status of bills that were passed during the Legislative Session, you can go to the Governor's website.