7 State Agencies Wyoming Can Eliminate [OPINION]

Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon said that he would like to examine the state budget and find where we might be able to cut before we started to raise taxes.

Recently I spent almost the entire morning show, 4 hours on the air, chatting with the listeners what could be cut and why.

Normally a topic like that is death for a morning show's ratings. But between the calls, the messages that came in on the app, the response on FaceBook and E-mail, it seems that most everyone had something to say about what Wyoming might cut to save money, and why.

Here is a short list of items that, in my opinion, government should not be involved in and the state of Wyoming should stop spending money on.

(Realize my point of view is more of a Libertarian perspective.)

Eliminate From The Wyoming Budget:

Wyoming Dept. Of Tourism - Tourism is a private industry and not a government job. Companies involved in the tourist trade can start a private cooperative and spend their own money encouraging people to come visit Wyoming.

The State Loan And Investment Board - Regarding money loaned to private interest: There might be a reason a company can't find investors or convince a bank to loan them money. They should not be able to turn to the state after being turned down by everyone else.

Board Of Barbers & Board Of Cosmology - I have no problem with spot inspections of barber shops and salons to make sure that they are clean. We already have health inspectors for that. As for certifying these professionals to show that they have been trained properly, they can get that done privately.

Geological Survey - The state sets aside $4.5 million biannually for this. Unless they are doing something I don't know about we can shut that agency down. Private companies are already in the state doing the same thing.

Anything to do with Carbon Capture and Study - CO2 is Not a pollutant. It is not causing catastrophic climate change. It is actually good for the planet. We do not need to capture it. As for what can be done with CO2 or simply the carbon molecule, as it pertains to new products and innovation, the private sector has been doing that for decades. The state does not need to spend any money on a research facility.

Wyoming Dept Of Enterprise Technology - Again, the private sector is already doing this. Shut it down and save the money.

Close All Wyoming Tourist Information Centers - Hardly anyone uses them anyway. The information travelers need, when in our state, is on their phone already. Also, information centers where tourists like to use the toilets are pulling people away from gas stations along the way. Tourists can get the same information at a gas station, and they will spend money there at the same time. The money they spend fuels the local economy and pays some of our taxes.

This is the short list. A good starting point. More to come.

Please call the show or send me a message if you disagree or have anything else to add.