Wyoming is set to receive less revenue in coming years, and it’s likely entire state-funded programs will be cut. Which programs to eliminate, which ones receive budget cuts and by how much will be decided in the upcoming Legislature. 

According to the latest report from the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group, Wyoming’s budget is set to drop from $4.01 billion in 2013-14 to $3.44 billion for 2015-16 and $2.89 billion for 2017-18.

It’s easier to think of state economics in household budget terms. 

Suppose you’re accustomed to earning $40,000 per year — going out to eat, taking road trips, and occasionally indulging in buying new things — fairly common practices since the bills are easily taken care of with money left over for fun. 

Then circumstances change, and you’re left with $34,000 per year. Now going out to eat is less common and limited to the dollar menu at fast food restaurants, road trips are shortened and less frequent. “Fun money” is saved for when there are really good sales.

Then once again the household budget gets cut down to just $28,000 per year. There’s no “fun money” left, so that means going out to eat is replaced with packing a peanut butter sandwich, eliminating road trips and only leaving town when absolutely necessary.  Simply paying the bills gets all the attention, while waiting for the economy to change direction. 

Meanwhile, there is a savings account set aside from years of planning — just like Wyoming’s rainy day fund. Do you dip into the savings account and continue living the same lifestyle in hopes that luck will change, or do you cut back to the bare bones essentials and weather the storm?

This is the situation Wyoming is currently facing. 

If Wyoming was a household, it might be looking at possibly cutting the cable, downgrading its phone plan, selling its horses and ATVs and just sticking to the necessities. 

Unlike the federal government, Wyoming’s Constitution requires the Legislature to approve a balanced budget. We can’t go borrowing money from China — not that we would want to anyway. This forces our politicians to come up with real solutions to real problems, and not everyone is going to leave Cheyenne happy. 

Currently, Wyoming’s schools are facing a $600 million shortfall in the coming biennium. We hope a solution is found so that our schools can continue offering the same level of quality education. 

Two of Wyoming’s biggest budgetary items are health care and education. Sen. Hank Coe, R-Cody, said both would get a “reality check.”

We believe education and health care are both vitally important and should be carefully examined before making any decisions. It’s possible there are aspects of every budget that can be trimmed while still maintaining the same quality, but we hope those programs are last in line for funding cuts. 

It’s difficult to say whether this is the new normal for Wyoming or if it’s just a temporary setback. The most recent CREG report called for low prices for oil, gas and natural gas for the next five years. As for coal, the future seems to be impossible to predict, but it seems unlikely coal revenues will be returning to their previous level in the near future. 

Fortunately tourism is up and Wyoming’s investments are doing well enough to soften the blow from the drops in mineral extraction. 

Perhaps Wyoming will find a new niche in the global market. But one thing is certain: Wyoming depends on having a healthy and well-educated population to help make its future a bright one.