Committee approves amended House Bill 18 to boost CTE supplies for small Wyoming schools

The Appropriations Committee voted to pass House Bill 18 as amended to establish a minimum funding threshold intended to help small school districts purchase career and technical education (CTE) supplies and equipment. The committee adopted an amendment that would remove HB18 funding if House Bill 235 is enacted.

Supporters told the committee the measure is aimed at addressing how CTE funding is currently calculated and how that calculation disadvantages smaller districts. Wanda Maloney of the Wyoming Department of Education said the superintendent supports House Bill 18 and described how the current funding model generates money both by student counts and by thresholds. Maloney said, “if you look at how funding is calculated for career and technical education, it's really the model generates it in 2 ways.” She explained the bill sets a minimum for districts with two or fewer CTE teachers and cited figures in the bill and the external cost adjustment, saying the bill shows “18,857 for that threshold of 2 teachers” and that the external cost adjustment would equate to roughly $14,184 per teacher and “then the threshold of 2 teachers would be 28,369.”

Jessie Dafoe of the Wyoming Association for Career and Technical Education said the change will give small districts “a fighting chance,” noting smaller districts lack the buying power of larger systems. She said the interim committee examined CTE statewide and that more legislation addressing CTE will follow. Randy McKay, president of the Wyoming Business Alliance, said businesses face a shortage of qualified workers and that insufficient materials constrain CTE instruction; he described examples in which teachers buy supplies out of pocket or students are charged for materials.

Committee members also discussed how HB18 relates to House Bill 235. Several members said the House amended HB18 into HB235; if HB235 passes, HB18 would not be needed. To avoid duplicate funding, a committee amendment was offered and approved to strip HB18 funding should HB235 become law. A committee roll call on HB18 as amended was recorded as 4 ayes, 1 absent (Senator Driscoll excused); the motion result was “do pass amended.”

Committee witnesses and fiscal notes said the proposal would affect small, rural districts statewide. A fiscal note cited approximately 21 school districts and roughly 24 schools as impacted; a precise student count was not specified.

The bill’s supporters emphasized workforce connections: Dafoe said “currently, 60% of our open jobs in Wyoming are CTE related,” and proponents argued modest statewide spending — described in committee discussion as “less than $300,000 a year” — could increase access to equipment such as lathes and welding machines in small districts.

With the committee’s amendment in place, members said they expect HB18’s appropriation language to either be superseded by HB235 if that bill passes or to remain available as a backstop if HB235 does not advance.