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Lawsuit ties forced Cheyenne supercomputer transfer to alleged Trump retaliation
Wyoming Tribune Eagle
The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research is asking a federal court to block what it calls an unlawful effort by the Trump administration to take away its control over a national supercomputing center in Cheyenne. UCAR argues in a lawsuit that the move is part of a broader pattern of political retaliation against Colorado, doesn’t follow the law and would cause irreparable harm if allowed to proceed, the Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports. Read the full story.
Laramie County sets $170M sixth-penny ballot for Aug. 18 election
Cap City News
Laramie County commissioners unanimously approved a resolution and ballot language for a 1% specific-purpose sales and use tax, commonly known as the Sixth Penny, setting the stage for voters to decide on a roughly $170 million list of municipal projects in the Aug. 18 election. The approved ballot includes 13 propositions funding projects for Laramie County, the city of Cheyenne, and the towns of Albin, Burns and Pine Bluffs, alongside organizations such as Cheyenne LEADS, the local recreation board and the Laramie County Library, Cap City news reports. Read the full story.
Hageman stops by Sweetwater County
Green River Star
U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman made a whirlwind tour stop in Sweetwater County with an early morning town hall and meeting with local leaders. Hageman spoke during the federal partners update portion of the county commissioners’ meeting before commissioners took a break to have lunch with Wyoming’s lone House representative. Hageman later shared on Facebook that she also met with the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office and Wyoming Trucking Association. Some lamented the short notice and timing of the town hall as limiting public attendance, the Green River Star reports. Read the full story.
Beautification efforts aim to attract visitors to Hell’s Half Acre
Oil City News
After roughly three years of work, Hell’s Half Acre in Natrona County now boasts several improvements, which local officials will commemorate with a May 8 ribbon cutting ceremony. Encompassing roughly 320 acres, Hell’s Half Acre is a geologic oddity composed of deep ravines, caves, rock formations and hard-packed eroded earth. The landform was famously used as the location for the fictional planet of Klendathu in the 1997 Paul Verhoeven–directed movie “Starship Troopers.” Native American tribes also used the ravines to hunt bison, Oil City News reports. Read the full story.
Texas man receives jail time for walking off designated boardwalk in Yellowstone
County 17
The U.S. Attorney’s Office recently announced that a Texas man was sentenced after pleading guilty to walking off the designated boardwalk in a thermal area in Yellowstone National Park. Eric Bedient, 50, of Frisco, Texas, was sentenced to five days’ incarceration by U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie Hambrick. According to court documents, Bedient left the boardwalk and walked directly on several fragile and dangerous hydrothermal features in the Mammoth Hot Springs area, County 17 reports. Read the full story.