Wyoming Management Council cuts interim committee days from six to four, gives chairmen topic control

The Management Council voted on April 8 to reduce interim committee meeting days from six to four and to give committee chairmen authority to set interim topics, a change proponents said will save taxpayer dollars and force committees to prioritize work.

Supporters framed the move as both a budgetary and quality measure. "As a result of that motion … it's about $120,000 to $140,000 that we can save the taxpayers of Wyoming to reduce the amount of interim committee days from 6 to 4," said Senator Nethercott, who offered the motion. The council adopted the change by voice vote.

Why it matters: Management Council controls the legislature's interim calendar and staff planning. The Legislative Service Office (LSO) told the panel that rising staff days and more complex meetings have driven interim costs upward in recent years, and members said the change should force leaders to focus on higher‑priority work.

LSO context and costs Matt O'Brick, director of the Legislative Service Office, briefed the council on staffing and interim committee bill statistics and warned management council that creating select committees or task forces has a measurable effect on staff and member workload. "For an interim committee meeting for legislators, it's about $8,500 per day, for a 14 person committee," O'Brick said, describing a typical per‑meeting cost range the office uses when estimating budgets.

O'Brick and members discussed why staff days have risen, citing increased IT and remote participation needs, more complex subject matter and a training role LSO now performs for new staff. He also said the LSO will circulate updated budget estimates to committees based on a schedule of one two‑day meeting followed by two one‑day meetings, and will work with committee chairs to craft agendas that fit the new limits.

Debate and safeguards Opponents and some members expressed concern that committees will simply try to cram the same work into fewer days or create more subcommittees — which can increase staff work. O'Brick warned management council he would report if staff began seeing an uptick in ad hoc subcommittees. "If I start hearing from my staff that chairmen are doing that, I'll report that to management council and that can be addressed on an individual basis," he said.

Supporters said chairs should have latitude. "We should basically delegate that ability to them," Representative Yin said earlier in the meeting, arguing the process would be more efficient if chairs set topics for their committees.

Implementation and next steps Council members instructed staff to circulate new budget calculations and asked committee chairs and assigned staff to resolve topic overlaps among committees. Matt O'Brick said LSO would send a letter asking chairs to work with LSO staff and other chairs to reduce conflicts and to submit revised interim topic lists within two weeks; unresolved conflicts will be returned to Management Council for resolution.

The council also left an on‑table option for committees that need it: chairs may petition Management Council for additional days later in the interim if a committee can justify extra time.

Votes at a glance The motion to reduce interim committee days from six to four and to allow chairmen to set interim topics passed by voice vote; the record does not show a roll‑call tally. The council adopted the motion after substantial floor debate and the body directed LSO to produce updated budgets and to coordinate topic overlaps.

What stayed the same / what to watch Staffing demands, the cost of remote participation, and the use of subcommittees remain central implementation risks. LSO will monitor staff workload and report back if committees attempt to reallocate work onto subcommittees in ways that increase staff days. Committees must also reconcile overlapping topics with other committees and submit revised plans on the timetable directed by council.