During a recent government meeting, significant discussions centered around the approval of the fiscal year 2025 budget and various proposed amendments aimed at reducing expenditures. The city treasurer, Darla Hawkins, presented the budget, which totals approximately $74.9 million and maintains the current mill levy at 8 mills. The budget was reviewed extensively over the past months, and Hawkins sought approval from the council.

Council member Andrew Patzak raised concerns about certain budget items, proposing five amendments to cut costs. The first amendment aimed to eliminate a $13,500 allocation for a consultant for the Fall Pumpkin Festival, suggesting that the event could be managed without external help. This motion passed with a vote of 4-2.

Patzak also proposed to remove a $3,500 budget item for a council member's attendance at the Wyoming Academy, arguing that the training primarily benefits the individual rather than the council as a whole. This motion, however, failed with a vote of 3-2, as some council members defended the value of the training for overall governance.

Further amendments included attempts to cut $25,000 for the Wyoming Association of Municipalities (WAM) membership and $20,000 for conference costs, which were met with resistance. Patzak criticized WAM for lobbying against taxpayer interests, citing specific bills they opposed that could have benefited citizens. However, no second was received for this motion, leading it to die without a vote.

Lastly, a proposal to remove $2,500 allocated for training by Dan Clark from Montana State College also failed to gain traction. The council ultimately approved the budget resolution with the amendments that passed, concluding the discussion at 6:32 PM.

The meeting also included a public hearing for a budget revision for fiscal year 2024, which involved funding for a settlement agreement and infrastructure for a sports complex, but no further public comments were noted.