Wyoming Senate adopts supplemental budget amendments for maternal care, behavioral health and cultural projects; rejects some staffing requests

Cheyenne — The Wyoming Senate on Feb. 5 adopted a package of supplemental budget amendments to Senate File 1 that added targeted funding for Medicaid maternal-care rates, behavioral-health provider rates, child development centers and several building-maintenance and cultural projects, while rejecting some staffing requests and a proposal to draw money from the tourism reserve for search-and-rescue funding.

Why it matters: The changes reallocate state dollars outside the regular budget cycle to address what senators described as urgent needs — declining local access to maternity care, a strained behavioral-health system and long-running gaps in early-childhood intervention services — and to preserve and curate state historical material.

The Senate approved a mix of ongoing and one-time appropriations and voted down several amendments that sought to create or restore positions funded in different accounts. Sponsors and opponents debated appropriate funding sources and whether items belonged in a supplemental bill rather than the biennial budget.

Major outcomes

- Maternal care: The Senate adopted an amendment that appropriates $1,195,135 in general-fund dollars to be matched by federal funds to raise Medicaid reimbursement for maternity services toward Medicare-equivalent levels. Sponsors said the change aims to slow the loss of obstetric services in parts of the state that have recently closed labor-and-delivery units.

- Behavioral health: Lawmakers approved an $833,153 appropriation, also matched by federal funds, to rebase behavioral-health provider rates. Supporters said the majority of Medicaid behavioral-health patients are children and that higher rates are needed to keep providers in the state.

- Child development centers: The Senate added ongoing funding intended to support early intervention and child-development services. Backers argued earlier intervention reduces later special-education costs and preserves services for rural communities.

- Department of Health staffing and operations: The Senate adopted an amendment restoring funding to address staffing shortages in state health facilities (including Title 25 care), after members said the agency has relied on higher-cost traveling nurses. Sponsors said the appropriation is ongoing to ensure care for involuntary-commitment patients and to stabilize services.

- Facilities and maintenance: The Senate approved amendments that add custodial and trades positions to staff newly acquired state buildings, reversing earlier removals after a callback and additional explanation from agency officials.

- Cultural preservation: The body approved two culturally focused items: funding to retrieve and conserve an 1893 inscribed survey tree (estimated helicopter and curation costs) located in a remote wilderness meadow, and a $10,000 appropriation for an exhibit about former Gov. Stan Hathaway to be placed in the Hathaway Building during renovation.

Items defeated or amended

- Search-and-rescue funding: An amendment to transfer $400,000 from the Wyoming tourism reserve to Homeland Security for search-and-rescue grants drew debate about the proper funding source. After roll-call confusion and a later quorum determination, the amendment was recorded as adopted on the floor after a brief procedural pause; proponents framed it as meeting increased demand on county sheriffs who perform search-and-rescue missions involving out-of-state visitors, while opponents objected to tapping tourism reserves.

- Secretary of State staffing: An amendment to add two positions to the Secretary of State's business-services division failed after senators said procurement and process questions had not been resolved by the office.

- State engineer positions: A proposal to add three water-engineering positions focused on interstate-compact work in Division IV failed on the floor; supporters argued the positions were needed to protect industry and municipal water interests amid multi-state Colorado River negotiations, while opponents focused on funding source and resource-allocation concerns.

Votes at a glance (selected amendments to Senate File 1)

- Amendment 1 — Search-and-rescue funding ($400,000 from tourism reserve to Homeland Security): Adopted on the floor after roll-call reconciliation; recorded tally on first roll call: 15 Aye, 12 No, 4 Excused (see provenance). Sponsor: motion recorded by the floor as moved (sponsor not specified in transcript excerpts).

- Amendment 2 — Secretary of State: Add two positions to business division (staffing request): Failed (7 Aye, 20 No, 4 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Smith.

- Amendment 3 — Custodial staff for DEQ building (2 positions): Adopted (21 Aye, 6 No, 4 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Driscoll.

- Amendment 4 — Two trades positions for building maintenance: Adopted (20 Aye, 8 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Driscoll.

- Amendment 5 — Retrieve and conserve inscribed survey tree, cultural resources (~$16,000 to helicopter + $15–$20k curation): Adopted (22 Aye, 6 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Hicks.

- Amendment 6 — $10,000 exhibit honoring Gov. Stan Hathaway: Adopted (16 Aye, 12 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Driscoll.

- Amendment 7 — State Engineer: Add three positions for Division IV water work (Colorado River, compacts): Failed (8 Aye, 20 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Jones.

- Amendment 8 — Transfer $40,000,000 to Wyoming wildlife natural trust income account (wildfire/noxious weed restoration grants): Adopted (24 Aye, 4 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Larson.

- Amendment 9 — Maternal-care Medicaid rate increase (state match $1,195,135): Adopted (recorded on floor as 20/3 Aye, 5 No, 3 Excused; see roll-call transcript). Sponsor: Senator Giroo (as recorded on floor).

- Amendment 10 — Behavioral-health rate rebasing (state match $833,153): Adopted (21 Aye, 7 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Garew.

- Amendment 11 — Child development center funding (ongoing): Adopted (24 Aye, 4 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Landon.

- Amendment 12 — Department of Health positions reinstated to cover Title 25 and facility staffing (addresses travel-nurse shortfalls): Adopted (18 Aye, 10 No, 3 Excused). Sponsor: Senator Driscoll.

What lawmakers said: Supporters repeatedly framed some requests as time-sensitive: maternal-care reimbursement changes were described as a response to recent hospital closures and falling delivery volumes in towns including Riverton, Kemmerer and Lander; behavioral-health increases were described as primarily benefiting children and youth on Medicaid; child-development funding was defended as both a statutory responsibility and a cost-saving early-intervention investment. Opponents focused on process and funding-source concerns — urging some items be handled in the biennial budget, objecting to using tourism reserves for operational needs, or saying the sponsoring agency had not followed procurement or callback procedures.

Next steps: Adopted amendments become part of the supplemental appropriations under Senate File 1 and will be reflected in the enrolled bill and subsequent fiscal documents. Senators and committee chairs on the floor signaled ongoing oversight and further discussion on long-term staffing, procurement and funding-source choices.

Sources and provenance: This article is based on the Wyoming Senate floor transcript of the Feb. 5 session covering second-reading debate on Senate File 1 (supplemental budget) and the roll-call votes recorded on the floor (see provenance segments). Direct attributions and vote tallies in the text mirror the floor transcript and recorded roll calls.