Joint Corporations Minutes

Draft Only Approval Pending of SUMMARY P ROCEEDINGS JOINT TRANSPORTATION, HIGHWAYS AND MILITARY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE COMM ITTEE M EETING I NFORMATION September 8-9, 2014 Central Wyoming College ITECC, Room 116 Riverton, Wyoming COMM ITTEE M EM BERS PRESENT Senator Michael Von Flatern, CoChair Representative David Zwonitzer, CoChair Senator Stan Cooper Senator Floyd Esquibel Senator Dave Kinskey Senator Bill Landen Representative Stan Blake Representative David Blevins Representative Rita Campbell Representative Lynn Hutchings Representative Allen Jaggi Representative Bunky Loucks Representative Robert McKim Representative Tom Reeder COMM ITTEE M EM BERS NOT PRESENT [None] LEGISLATIVE SERVICE OFFICE STAFF Gerald W. Laska, Staff Attorney OTHERS PRESENT AT M EETING Please refer to Appendix 1 to review the Subcommittee Sign-in Sheet for a list of other individuals who attended the meeting. The Committee Meeting Summary of Proceedings (meeting minutes) is prepared by the Legislative Service Office (LSO) and is the official record of the proceedings of a legislative committee meeting. This document does not represent a transcript of the meeting; it is a digest of the meeting and provides a record of official actions taken by the Committee. All meeting materials and handouts provided to the Committee by the Legislative Service Office, public officials, lobbyists, and the public are on file at the Legislative Service Office and are part of the official record of the meeting. An index of these materials is provided at the end of this document and these materials are on file at the Legislative Service Office. For more information or to review meeting materials, please contact the Legislative Service Office at (307) 777-7881 or by e-mail at [email protected] . The Summary of Proceedings for each legislative committee meeting can be found on the Wyoming Legislature’s website at www.wyoleg.gov. PAGE 2 OF 9 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Committee met over two days in Riverton, Wyoming. The Committee considered and voted to sponsor bills clarifying residency requirements for renewal of veterans' license plates and establishing a fund to receive and disburse grazing fee income from Military Department-owned lands. The Department of Transportation reported on: right-of-way upon entering a highway; authority for individuals to opt out of some Real ID requirements; CDL requirements and exemptions; the ignition interlock program; car dealer license requirements; and the status of current and projected WyDOT budgets. The Wyoming Transportation Safety Coalition reported on their continuing highway safety initiatives. The Committee requested bill drafts to clarify right-of-way upon entering a highway and to repeal the residential CDL license classification, and agreed to consider as a committee bill the draft offered by Representative Sommers to revise CDL exemptions. The next meeting of the Committee is scheduled for December 1 and 2 in Cheyenne. CALL TO ORDER (MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8) Co-Chair Zwonitzer called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. The following sections summarize the Committee proceedings by topic. Please refer to Appendix 2 to review the Committee Meeting Agenda. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Minutes from the June 30, 2014 Committee meeting were approved without amendment. WYOMING MILITARY DEPARTMENT Veterans License Plate Issue Larry Barttelbort, Wyoming Veterans Commission, Trudy Eisele, Laramie County Treasurer, addressed the Committee and distributed a handout on eligibility for disabled veteran license plates [Appendix 3] and a draft bill, 15LSO-0104 [Appendix 4]. They explained that W.S. 31-2-215(a) is clear that an applicant for a disabled veteran license plate must be a resident, but the same requirement is not stated for renewal licenses. Ms. Eisele testified that it is clear that some people, having obtained a Wyoming veterans license plate, continue to renew them even after moving out of state. The draft bill would clarify that residency is also required for license renewal. Ms. Eisele also distributed a list of items that could be amended into the bill as proof of residency [Appendix 5]. Senator Cooper, seconded by Representative Blake, moved that the Committee sponsor the bill. The motion carried on a vote of 13-1, with Representative McKim voting no. Range Management Fund General Luke Reiner and Colonel Tammy Maas addressed the Committee. They first reviewed the status of Camp Guernsey distributed copies of a PowerPoint presentation [Appendix 6] and reviewed the grazing income received for the last four years. General Reiner explained that the grazing lands at Camp Guernsey are state lands that are deeded to the Military Department, and that they command a premium lease rate of $11.84 to $23.52 per animal unit month because of the quality of the grazing and the maintenance services performed by the department. He also reviewed the improvement projects planned over the next five years, including some water development projects using both natural flow and well water. JOINT TRANSPORTATION, HIGHWAYS, AND MILITARY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE Summary of Proceedings WYOMING LEGISLATIVE SERVICE OFFICE • 213 State Capitol • Cheyenne, Wyoming 82002 TELEPHONE (307) 777-7881 • FAX 307-777-5466 • E-MAIL [email protected] • WEB SITE www.wyoleg.gov PAGE 3 OF 9 General Reiner explained that in the past, the grazing fee income was appropriated to the Military Department for the maintenance expenses. However, a similar provision in the 2014 budget bill was not passed, so the income currently goes into the general fund. Without the appropriation of the grazing income, the department must use general funds for the maintenance and improvement projects and is therefore asking that the continuous appropriation of grazing funds be restored. Without a source of funds for the program to pay its own way, there is little incentive for the Department to maintain the grazing program. General Reiner explained a draft bill, 15LSO-0105.2, that would create a special account called the Wyoming military department range management operations fund. [Appendix 7] The bill would provide for all range management income from Camp Guernsey and other department-owned lands to be deposited into the account and continuously appropriate those funds to the Department for the sole purpose range management operations. Senator Von Flatern, seconded by Senator Landen, moved that the Committee sponsor the bill. The Committee amended the bill to provide: that income be credited to the account as it is received, rather than monthly that funds be used at the training facility from which the grazing fees were received; that the Department report to the Committee regarding the grazing program; that the legislation be effective immediately upon passage; and that the legislation sunset in six years. The motion to sponsor the bill was adopted on a vote of 10-4, with Senator Kinskey and Representatives Jaggi, Loucks and Reeder voting no. Referrals to Wyoming Youth Challenge Program General Reiner, Colonel Chris Smith and Ruby Calvert (Wyoming PBS general manager) addressed the Committee. General Reiner distributed a chart comparing features of the Wyoming Cowboy Challenge Academy ("WCC") to other juvenile treatment facilities [Appendix 8]. Ms. Calvert stated that Wyoming PBS has been focusing on high school graduation rates for several years, and she would like to make a plug for the WCC. She presented a short video documentary about the program, which will be airing nationally on September 27 during a special programming session about innovative educational efforts. General Reiner noted that the WCC was one of five programs chosen nationally to be featured in a special presentation at the National Guard offices in Washington, D.C. Referring to Appendix 8, he stated that the per student cost at WCC is much less than the four comparators of group homes, residential treatment facilities, the Girls' School and the Boys' School. Committee members generally discussed how the program works, the general profile of students and the graduation rate. General Reiner distributed a PowerPoint summary of the program [Appendix 9]. He stated that the program works very well, but there is room for more students and the Department would like to have access to public school records for the purpose of identifying and approaching students who have or at risk of dropping out of high school. A bill to authorize that was defeated last year, due to concerns about the Federal Educational Records Protection Act. A similar proposal was prepared by the Department for the Committee's consideration [Appendix 10]. General Reiner requested that the Committee move forward with the bill, pending an opinion from the Attorney General about the federal law. JOINT TRANSPORTATION, HIGHWAYS, AND MILITARY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE Summary of Proceedings WYOMING LEGISLATIVE SERVICE OFFICE • 213 State Capitol • Cheyenne, Wyoming 82002 TELEPHONE (307) 777-7881 • FAX 307-777-5466 • E-MAIL [email protected] • WEB SITE www.wyoleg.gov PAGE 4 OF 9 Following discussion, Senator Esquibel, seconded by Representative Blake, moved that the Committee request a bill draft for the next meeting, as suggested by General Reiner. The motion failed on a voice vote. WYOMING DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Drivers' License – CDL requirements / general weight restrictions – agriculture Tom Loftin, WyDOT Support Services Administrator, addressed the Committee. He reviewed the history of Commercial Drivers License statutory provisions in Wyoming, including the 1947 Chauffer's and Driver's

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