Around the 307
News, commentary, and other items of interest from the greater Wyoming landscape.
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Here are Around the 307 items of interest for the week of March 31st, 2024:
Sorry folks—over the past weekend our Wyoming legislature voted down holding a Special Session to continue work on property tax relief and potentially override Governor Gordon’s veto of Senate File 54 (SF 54). [You may recall SF 54 was the bill approved by large majorities in both the Wyoming Senate and House and would have provided a 25% tax exemption applicable to the first $2,000,000 (two million dollars) of a home’s fair market value.] The Wyoming Senate actually voted in favor of holding the Special Session by a 16 to 15 margin. The House, alas, was 8 votes short with the Nay tally carrying the day with 35 against and only 27 in favor. The Star Valley Independent published an article via the Wyoming News Exchange on Tuesday April 2nd providing a rundown of the whole sad affair—you can read it here.
By the way—Do you know how your local Senators and Representatives voted on the question of holding the Special Session? Find out by reviewing the voting results here.
On Thursday, April 4th, Cowboy State Daily published an interesting article about a new Kemmerer Decarbonization Works (KDW) project that aims to build the first coal-to-ammonia production facility in the United States. The KDW proposal is unique as most energy-to-ammonia projects use natural gas, not coal. The $2.5 billion dollar facility is planned for construction adjacent to the Kemmerer Coal Mine and has an expected three-year build timeline that could begin as early as late 2025. Read the full story here. Another Cowboy State Daily article published today, Saturday, April 6th, explores how Kemmerer is working to build affordable housing for the expected influx of up to 12,000 workers who will man the myriad energy projects coming down the pipeline. Things are booming in Kemmerer!
Also on Thursday, April 4th, the Sweetwater County Historical Museum in Green River announced it will host an exhibit called “Rock Art in Wyoming”. The exhibit, which starts today, will feature images of carvings left by the Plains and Great Basin Native American peoples such as those found at the White Mountain Petroglyphs site near Rock Springs.
Lastly, have you been wondering what all that construction is on the west side of Highway 89 as you head into Jackson from the south? Well, it’s new Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) employee housing. Read the April 4th story about the project here in Buckrail. The folks who end up living there will have some nice views!
That’s all for today buckaroos! Thanks for reading and have a great week!
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