Committee advances bill to create Wyoming‑Ireland Trade Commission

The House Travel, Recreation, Wildlife & Cultural Resources Committee advanced Senate File 144 to create a Wyoming‑Ireland Trade Commission aimed at promoting bilateral trade, investment, tourism and academic exchanges between Wyoming and Ireland.

Senator Driscoll, the bill sponsor, told the committee the commission is a low‑cost, membership‑based body modeled after similar state efforts. "This is a cheap way to enter into trade with other countries," he said, adding that Ireland is a gateway to the European Union and that Wyoming already trades with Ireland in multiple sectors including energy and agriculture. He described membership in the commission as including legislators, representatives from the governor’s office, the Wyoming Business Council and other stakeholders.

The bill lays out commission membership and terms: two appointees from the governor’s office, two from the House, two from the Senate, representation from public higher education, trade organizations and the Irish‑American community in Wyoming. Nonlegislative members would serve two‑year terms and be reimbursed for travel and per diem, while legislative members serve biannual terms tied to appointment cycles.

Ron Goldberg, strategic partnerships director for the Wyoming Business Council, told the committee the council would administer minimal clerical and meeting support and said the approach is similar to the office Wyoming established in Taiwan in 2018. Goldberg cited craft distillers and Wyoming‑branded beef as export stories that had benefited from the earlier Taiwan office and said the commission could better coordinate business, cultural and higher education exchanges.

Why it matters: Proponents argued the commission could expand markets for Wyoming products, attract investment and strengthen tourism links. Committee members asked whether separate commissions or a single, centralized trade office would be preferable; sponsors said country‑specific commissions let stakeholders focus on unique market opportunities.

Formal action: The committee recorded a roll call vote on Senate File 144. The clerk read nine aye votes: Representative Campbell (aye), Representative Connolly (absentee aye), Representative Harshman (aye), Representative Jarvis (aye), Representative Provenza (aye), Representative Store (aye), Representative Thayer (aye), Representative Wharfe (aye) and Chairman Byron (aye). The motion to advance the bill carried.

Next steps: The committee advanced the bill without amendments at the time of the roll call; sponsors said they would coordinate further with agencies and stakeholders on implementation details and possible appropriations in future budget cycles.