COMMITTEE MEETING INFORMATION

July 23-24, 2008

July 23^rd – Camp Guernsey, Wyoming

July 24^th - State Fair Complex, Douglas, Wyoming

 

COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT

Senator Michael Von Flatern, Co-Chairman

Representative Dave Edwards, Co-Chairman

Senator Gerry Geis

Senator John Hastert

Senator Bill Landen

Representative Stan Blake

Representative Timothy Hallinan

Representative Mike Madden

Representative Jim Slater

Representative Kevin White

Representative Dan Zwonitzer

 

COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT

Senator Wayne Johnson

Representative Stan Blake (July 23^rd only)

Representative Floyd Esquibel

Representative Debbie Hammons

 

LEGISLATIVE SERVICE OFFICE STAFF

Ian D. Shaw, Staff Attorney

 

OTHERS PRESENT AT MEETING

Please refer to Appendix 1 to review the Committee Sign-In Sheet

 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Committee met for two days in Douglas, Wyoming.  The first day of the meeting focused on military affairs issues and the Committee met in Douglas and then flew to Camp Guernsey.  The second day of the meeting was held at the State Fair Grounds in Douglas and focused on Wyoming Department of Transportation issues.  During the second day, the Committee considered several pieces of draft legislation and voted to sponsor legislation concerning the funding of the multi-lane account.

 

The Committee will meet again in October 2008.

 

CALL TO ORDER (July 23, 2008)

Co-Chair Edwards called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m.  Roll call was taken and a quorum was present.

 

The Committee immediately took a tour of the Wyoming State Fair Grounds and toured the new equine facility.   Upon completing the tour, at approximately 9:30 a.m., the Wyoming Air National Guard flew the Committee members by helicopter from the Wyoming State Fair Grounds to Camp Guernsey.  En route to Camp Guernsey, the Committee flew over various points of interest.  [See Appendix 2, Map of in-bound and out-bound flights].

 

The following sections summarize the Committee proceedings by topic.  Please refer to Appendix 3 to review the Committee meeting agenda.

 

WYOMING VETERANS' COMMISSION BRIEF

Upon arriving at Camp Guernsey, the Committee received an update from Lee Alley, Chairman, and Larry Barttelbort, Executive Director, of the Wyoming Veterans' Commission.  Mr. Barttelbort provided a brief introduction and then Mr. Alley presented an award to Co-Chair Edwards for his service in the Wyoming Legislature and his commitment to Wyoming's veterans.  Mr. Alley also thanked the Committee for the Legislature's support for Wyoming veterans.

 

Mr. Barttelbort gave the Committee an update on current issues and the activities of the Wyoming Veterans' Commission.  The update included details about:  1) the Service Officer Program Expansion, 2) the Veterans' Advocacy Program, 3) the Oregon Trail State Veterans' Cemetery, 4) the Wyoming Veterans' Memorial Museum, 5) the Wyoming National Guard Museum, 6) the Wyoming Veterans' Home Loan Program, 7) the Purple Heart License Plate Initiative, 8) the Wyoming Veterans' Tax Exemption Law and 9) long range planning.  All the issues discussed were outlined in a binder presented to Committee members, included as Appendix 4.  Chairmen Alley provided the update concerning the Wyoming Veterans' Home Loan Program.

 

After this briefing, the Committee was shuttled to lunch.  The Committee ate lunch with the Wyoming Youth Challenge Program participants.  A pamphlet describing the Program was distributed to the Committee after lunch and is included as Appendix 5.

 

At 1:05 p.m., the Committee returned for additional briefing.  Chairman Alley and Mr. Barttelbort spent the first 15 minutes reviewing the Commission's proposed new veterans' license plate.  Among the other issues outlined in Appendix 4, Mr. Barttelbort assured the Committee that the program has been proposed after closely working with the Wyoming Department of Transportation and with the same approach as was accepted by the Legislature when it approved the University of Wyoming license plates. 

 

Mr. Barttelbort then updated the Committee on a proposal to streamline the veterans' tax exemption process, as outlined in Appendix 4.  Draft language for legislation is being prepared on this issue and the County Assessors' Association has spoken to individual legislators about sponsoring a bill.

 

MILLITARY DEPARTMENT BRIEF

Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis R. Russell then briefed the Committee on the status of the Army National Guard.  The content of his comments are contained in Tab 1 to the binder that was provided to the Committee and which outlines all the issues discussed by the Military Department.  The binder is included as Appendix 6.  CSM Russell discussed current deployments, notable news events and the combat experience of Wyoming's veterans.  CSM Russell stated that approximately 1100 troops from Wyoming will be deployed next year.  This is a significant increase from prior years and represents approximately 1/3 of Wyoming's force.

 

State Command Chief Master Sergeant Doug Hensala then addressed the Committee concerning the Air National Guard.  His comments are outlined in Tab 1 to Appendix 6.  CMSgt Hensala outlined what the Air Guard has been doing over the past year, discussed several operational readiness inspections and summarized deployments over the past year.  The Air Guard will deploy approximately 250 soldiers next year.

 

Colonel Tammy Maas then briefed the Committee on the Guernsey Master Plan.  Her comments are contained in Tab 2 to Appendix 6.  Her comments centered around the construction and facilities at Camp Guernsey and focused on improvements and changes from the prior master plan.  She also reviewed a new housing study and entertained questions from the Committee regarding related impacts on the town of Guernsey.  Major General Ed Wright was in attendance and discussed Camp Guernsey's relationship with the town and the efforts made to promote a good working relationship.

 

General Wright stated that the dinning facility is one of the largest issues that needs to be addressed at Camp Guernsey.  He explained how the dining facility has prevented Camp Guernsey from hosting large training exercises which would bring millions of dollars to the camp.

 

General Wright then provided an update on the Military Assistance Trust Fund. The details of his comments are contained in Tab 3 to Appendix 6.  79% of the Fund's disbursements are currently going to the Army National Guard.  With the extreme increase in deployments next year, he explained how the Fund will need additional funding and he will be asking the Governor for an additional $1 million.  General Wright does not believe that he will need continuing funding at that level.  General Wright also will be narrowing the field of qualified Fund recipients by increasing the qualification criteria.

 

General Wright discussed the Youth Challenge Program, as contained in Tab 4 to Appendix 6.  The Committee was also provided a pamphlet on the program, Appendix 5.  General Wright stated that federal funding has been reduced for the program and will be in jeopardy if more students are not enrolled and graduated.  General Wright believes it is a very good program.  Currently, Wyoming law establishes that the state's funding will be 40% of the federal funding amount.  Because of the reduction in federal funding, all state funds that were appropriated are not being used.  General Wright would like a change in the law to allow him to use all state funds, even if they equate to larger than 40% of the federal funding.  The Committee asked LSO to prepare draft legislation for the October meeting.

  

General Wright then discussed the need to attract medical professionals to the Guard, an issue outlined in Tab 5 of Appendix 6.  He suggests passing legislation which would help pay medical malpractice insurance premiums for National Guard medical professionals.  He suggested a limit of $15,000 per year and stated that such a benefit would help retain and recruit medical professionals and significantly help the National Guard.  Representative Hallinan moved and the Committee voted to approve a motion that this issue be addressed as a committee bill and that LSO have a draft of the bill ready for the October meeting. 

 

General Wright then reviewed the information contained in Tabs 6 through 9 of Appendix 6.  The review included the Educational Assistance Program, the Construction and Facilities Management Office, the National Guard's use of grazing fees and the potential need for legislation allowing the property on which the Casper Armory is located to be transferred from the State Lands & Investments Board to the Wyoming Military Department.  With regard to the transfer of lands, General Wright believes the transfer can be accomplished administratively but will come to the legislature if it cannot be.  Draft legislation is included in Tab 9.  With regard to grazing fee money, the Committee will consider sponsoring a grazing fee bill at its October meeting.

 

Co-Chair Von Flatern then asked the Military Department to specifically consider and outline issues included in Management Council's charge to the Committee including revenue bearing sources for Camp Guernsey and the identity of funding streams. The Committee will discuss these issues during its October meeting.  Co-Chair Von Flatern also asked the Military Department to outline the economic impacts of the expansion of Camp Guernsey to the town of Guernsey.

 

The Committee then took a short break, followed by a tour of Camp Guernsey.  After the tour, the Committee flew back to Douglas aboard Blackhawk helicopters and the meeting was adjourned.

 

CALL TO ORDER (July 24, 2008)

Co-Chair Von Flatern called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m.  The following sections summarize the Committee’s proceedings by topic.  Refer to Appendix 2 to review the Committee meeting agenda.  The topics discussed by Wyo.DOT were follow-up issues from the Committee's May meeting.

 

Wyo.DOT provided a package of information which is a supplement to the binder provided to the Committee during its May meeting.  The packet is included as Appendix 7.  The original binder was divided into tabs and the supplemental packet is arranged to include supplements to the original tabs as well as two new tabs.

 

 

Rental Vehicles

Lacy Bruckner from the compliance section of Wyo.DOT first summarized suggested changes to Wyoming's laws on rental vehicles.  The proposed changes are included in the supplemental information to Tab 5, Appendix 7.  Ms. Bruckner recapped the rental vehicle discussion from the Committee's May meeting and then explained that the proposed changes will require rental companies to file an additional surcharge report and will introduce penalties for defined unlawful acts.  Rental companies will be required to have an established place of business in the state.  The proposed changes contemplate a considerable reorganization of the current statutes to group like issues together.  New industry representatives were added to the Wyo.DOT committee and industry is supportive of the proposed changes.  Co-Chair Von Flatern suggested that Wyo.DOT give all rental companies notice of the proposed changes.

 

The Committee directed LSO to make a draft bill from the Wyo.DOT committee's outline and to place the draft legislation on the October agenda.

 

WyoLINK

Tim Hibbard, Wyo.DOT Assistant Chief Engineer, gave the Committee an update on WYOLINK.  WYOLINK has obtained many of its frequency licenses from the FCC and is now starting to activate the system.  Mr. Hibbard discussed the map contained in Appendix 7, supplement to Tab 3.  Colonel Powell of the Wyoming Highway Patrol explained that they hope to have the entire system operational along the length of I-80 for the upcoming winter driving season.  The system will then be activated along I-25 and to outlying areas.  Mr. Hibbard updated the Committee on the sharing of towers and explained that Wyo.DOT does charge industry for sharing its towers but does not charge for governmental or non-profit use.

 

 Multi-Lane Account

Consistent with the Committee's discussion of the issue during its May meeting, the Committee considered draft legislation on funding the multi-lane account with above-the-cap funds from severance taxes.  The draft bill is included in Appendix 8.  The Committee worked the bill and had no changes.  Senator Geis moved that the Committee accept the bill as drafted and sponsor it during the 2009 legislative session.  The motion was seconded by Co-Chair Edwards.  A roll-call vote was taken and the bill passed.  Representative Madden voted "no," all other Committee members voted "aye."  Senator Johnson and Representatives Esquibel and Hammons were absent.  The Committee decided to wait to decide in which the house the bill should be introduced.

 

Delbert McOmie, Wyo.DOT Chief Engineer, discussed the impact additional funding will have on the various multi-lane projects in Wyoming. See Appendix 7, supplement to Tab 10.

 

The Committee then took a 15 minute break.

 

Upon reconvening, Bob Stauffacher, Wyo.DOT compliance and investigation, summarized the changes that a Wyo.DOT committee is suggesting to Wyoming's title and registration statutes. These changes are contained in a Tab 7 supplement within Appendix 7.  Mr. Stauffacher discussed issues including:  factory price, the definitions of "pickup" and "resident", the value added by equipping a vehicle with special equipment, the administration of law provisions, titling all vehicles (including trailers and recreational vehicles), salvage vehicles, registration exemptions, registration by non-owners, temporary registrations, electronic filings, new penalty provisions and fees.  The County Treasurers Association may still suggest some additional changes.

 

Upon questioning by Representative Zwonitzer, the Committee asked that any legislation on this issue include a grandfather clause applying the new titling requirements only to trailers purchased after the effective date.  The Committee asked that LSO use the Wyo.DOT committee's outline to draft legislation for the Committee to consider at its October meeting.

 

Industrial Road Program Cap Limitations

The Committee considered draft legislation raising the matching cap for the industrial road program from $1 million to $2 million.  The draft is included here as Appendix 9.   Mr. McOmie noted that raising the cap will not require additional funding and will allow a needed redistribution of money that is already available.  Joe Evans, Wyoming County Commissioner's Association, spoke in favor of raising the caps.   Co-Chair Von Flatern noted that this is not an issue which was approved by Management Council and Senator Geis and Senator Hastert agreed to sponsor the bill.

 

Oversize / Overweight Fee Comparison

Colonel Powell reviewed a comparison of surrounding states' oversize/overweight fee structures.  Col. Powell described the difficulty in comparing fees and the necessity for preparing six different scenarios.  See Appendix 7, supplement to Tab 8.  Col. Powell noted that the final rates are somewhat misleading because the registration fee is the largest component of the fees paid and some states charge lower registration fees, but collect the money in the form of property taxes.  The Committee asked Col. Powell to determine the impact of these property taxes by determining the property tax paid in relevant cities in the surrounding states.  The Committee decided that the fee comparison might also be useful if the registration fee is simply not included in the calculation.   Co-Chair Von Flatern noted that the primary purpose of the study is to determine if oversize/overweight trucks are bearing the cost of the damage they do to Wyoming roads.  Tim Hibbard noted that $8.3 million is collected in oversize/overweight fees every year and two-thirds of registration fee monies come from trucking registrations.  Mr. Hibbard did note that the vast amount of money paid for registration goes to the counties as a result of their fees.

 

Brent Taylor from the Trucking Association cautioned the Committee that higher fees at this time would drive many trucking companies out of business and opined that there is misinformation about the roadway damage done by trucks.

 

I-80 Commuter Report

Pat Collins and Martin Kidner of Wyo.DOT provided a summary of the newly completed Commuting Patterns and Proposed Vanpool Operations Report, included in Appendix 7, supplement to Tab 1.  The commuter numbers do not present a clear indication that a commuter system would be economically feasible.  They also discussed the newly-released Commuter Rail Study, which studies the feasibility of a commuter rail system on the front range. See Appendix 10.  This report focuses on the area north of Fort Collins to Casper and is considered phase one of the study because Colorado has not yet completed its study of the Fort Collins and south area.  At this point, the commuter numbers do not indicate that it would be economically feasible to do the construction necessary to accommodate high-speed commuter rail.  The construction would likely cost approximately $1.5 million per mile.  Wyo.DOT will bring the consultants who generated the report to the October meeting.

 

Co-Chair Von Flatern noted that the Committee has now studied the Cheyenne/Laramie commuter situation and, unless the Committee receives other information, no legislation appears necessary.

 

I-80 Tolling

 

Information was presented to the Committee and is contained in Appendix 7, supplement to Tab 4.  The Committee reviewed the tolling feasibility study which has now been partially completed.  The study concludes that tolling for congestion management is not needed on Wyoming's portion of I-80.  Also, tolling is not necessary to pay for any localized, expensive transportation improvement (e.g. large bridges, tunnels etc.).  Rather, tolling may be a necessary means of paying for large-scale improvements and/or for continued maintenance in the face of declining federal funding.  Current funding levels will not be sufficient to pay for the maintenance of I-80 in the future.  However, both Pat Collins, Assistant Chief Engineer, and Wyo.DOT Director John Cox stressed that funding should come from the federal government.  They assured the Committee that Wyo.DOT is going to do everything possible to see that Wyoming's portion of I-80 is recognized as a critical freight corridor.  This recognition would make more federal funds available.  Director Cox suggested that Wyoming do nothing to take the pressure off the federal government to provide funding for I-80.  Director Cox believes that going forward with tolling is premature and that the political climate is not particularly suited toward tolling.  He believes this is a federal issue and that we must keep pressure on Congress to fund I-80. 

 

Wyo.DOT will have the tolling experts available for the Committee's October meeting.  The Committee asked that any suggested changes to Wyoming's statutory law be presented at that time.  Those changes would likely include modifications to allow tolling and/or public/private partnerships.

 

Cost Allocation Study

Wyo.DOT provided the Committee with its Highway Cost Allocations Study, Fiscal Years 2004-2006, included as Appendix 11.  Martin Kidner reviewed the report and explained that it provides a breakdown on the proportionate amount being paid by taxpayers, according to the type of vehicle they drive.  The report shows that, generally, taxpayers are paying 67% of the costs necessary to maintain the roads.   However, single-unit trucks (those trucks that do not have detachable trailers) are bearing a higher proportion of the costs than other types of vehicles. 

 

The Committee complimented Wyo.DOT on its organization and its ability to provide quality information to the Committee.

 

 

 

 

MEETING ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, Co-Chairman Von Flatern adjourned the meeting at 11:20 a.m.

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

 

 

 

Senator Michael Von Flatern                                       Representative Dave Edwards

 

 

 

Appendix		Appendix Topic		Appendix Description		Appendix Provider
1		Committee Sign-In Sheet		Lists meeting attendees		Legislative Service Office
2		Map		Map of area toured near Camp Guernsey		Military Department
3		Committee Meeting Agenda		Provides an outline of the topics the Committee planned to address at meeting		Legislative Service Office
4		Wyoming Veterans' Commission Notebook		Notebook  containing information presented by Veterans' Commission		Wyoming Veterans' Commission
5		Wyoming Youth Challenge Program Pamphlet		Pamphlet describing the Wyoming Youth Challenge Program		Military Department
6		Wyoming Military Department Notebook		Notebook with 8 tabs  containing information presented by the Wyoming Military Department		Military Department
7		Wyo.DOT information packet		Information packet containing supplements to the Wyo.DOT notebook binder given to the Committee during its May meeting		Wyo.DOT
8		09 LSO 0079 – Severance tax distribution		Draft legislation to fund the multi-lane account.		Legislative Service Office
9		09 LSO 0077 – Industrial Road Program		Draft legislation to change the matching funds limit from $1 million to $2 million		Legislative Service Office
10		Commuter Rail Study		Commuter Rail Study		Wyo.DOT
11		Highway Cost Allocation Study		Wyo.DOT Highway Cost Allocation Study, Fiscal Years 2004-2006		Wyo.DOT