This story is part of a collaborative legislative initiative by WyoFile, Wyoming Tribune Eagle, The Sheridan Press and Jackson Hole News&Guide to deliver comprehensive coverage of Wyoming’s 2026 budget session.
CHEYENNE—Before voting to deny funding that could restore a deteriorating building at his local community college, Rep. Ken Pendergraft, R-Sheridan, said it was one of his most difficult decisions as a lawmaker, despite supporting the move in the past.
“I’m a contractor. I understand the arguments. In fact, I’ve made them,” he said. “At this time I’m going to be a ‘no’ on this amendment. That’s probably the most reluctant ‘no’ that I’ve ever given.”
His decision came while the Wyoming House of Representatives was discussing changes to a bill allocating $445.7 million in federal, state and private funds for the state’s capital construction budget over the next two years.
While the bill authorizes massive projects like the $87 million remodel of the Veterans’ Home of Wyoming, the second-reading debate centered on how the state should handle deteriorating community college buildings and whether to bypass Gov. Mark Gordon’s recommendation to prioritize private funding over state tax dollars.
Funding community colleges
An amendment to the bill brought by Rep. Trey Sherwood, D-Laramie, sparked debate on the House floor. It sought to restore the state’s traditional 55% match for community college projects, shifting approximately $28 million for renovations at Laramie County Community College and Sheridan College from private funding back to the state’s general fund.
Sherwood argued that delays were becoming too costly.
“I think that we all like to get stuff done, and we like to finish what we start,” she said. “Between delays and inflation, we all know construction costs have gone up. I want the community colleges to be able to move forward and finish these projects … for the students that are working in them.”
Supporters of the amendment described the state of campuses that justify the need for this move. Rep. Rob Geringer, R-Cheyenne, highlighted the concrete issues at Laramie County Community College, where buildings were constructed with aggregate that has caused the structures to degrade over time.
“If we continue to let that go, eventually we’ll reach the point where those buildings are not able to be used anymore,” Geringer said. “It’s not just a beautification facade project … it’s also a safety measure.”
Rep. Marilyn Connolly, R-Buffalo, said the science building at Sheridan College is outdated and unsafe, noting the facility has ventilation problems and issues with fire suppression, lighting, security and functionality of lab spaces.
“I just don’t want to see us hurting our kids’ opportunities and to get these local community colleges to take advantage of those services,” she said.
In addition to Pendergraft, opposition to the move was led by Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, who urged the House to stick to the priorities established by the governor and the Joint Appropriations Committee. Bear suggested that with only $3.8 million remaining in the JAC’s planned allocation, the House risked overspending.
“You can decide right here whether you want to go ahead and spend that $3.8 million that’s remaining and go into the negative on the checking account,” Bear said. He argued that the community colleges should be required to raise private funds “until more general funds become available.”
Rep. Landon Brown, R-Cheyenne, challenged the notion that the state was “out of money.”
“One thing that I keep hearing is our JAC gave us $40 million to spend … how gracious,” Brown said sarcastically. “This idea that we had $40 million — we’ll call it a slush fund — that they gave us to appropriate out of, and if we appropriate out of this, we’re going to go negative in our checking account, ladies and gentlemen, we have $750 million to invest in our community colleges if we need to.”
Rep. Lloyd Larsen, R-Lander, cited the Veterans’ Home in Buffalo as a cautionary tale of legislative hesitation. He noted that a project once estimated at $49 million has ballooned to $87 million due to a decade of delays.
“We got tangled up on when the government or the VA would reimburse us for those costs,” Larson said. “We kept putting it off … and so now we could have built two of those for what we’re paying for it now. … It’s time to do it now. It’s the most cost-effective.”
The House ultimately sided with the community colleges, adopting Sherwood’s amendment in a 33-26 roll call vote.
Park County shooting complex
The session began with a move to secure the future of the Wyoming State Shooting Complex in Park County. Rep. Art Washut, R-Casper, brought an amendment that he described as a “belts and suspenders” measure to ensure the project remains funded even if it fails to cross the finish line in the main budget bill.
“There’s an old saying in the Legislature that sometimes you wear belts and suspenders to keep your pants up. In other words, we’d like to have two horses in the race,” Washut said, explaining that the amendment includes a dollar-for-dollar reduction to prevent double-dipping if the project is funded elsewhere.
Bear, who is chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, expressed slight hesitation about keeping the actions singular, but the body ultimately adopted the amendment in a standing vote.
Next steps
In addition to the college and shooting complex debates, the House adopted amendments to allow the state to begin acquiring land for a future state penitentiary. The bill also includes $2 million in private funds for a new floor at the State Fair Show Center in Douglas to mitigate biohazard treatment costs.
House Bill 111, “State funded capital construction.” passed second reading and now moves toward its final hurdle in the House before it goes to the Senate for consideration.
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