Bob Beck

The Wyoming Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union says that most complaints surrounding state prisons and jails involves improper medical of mental health care.  Much of that has to do with inmates not getting their necessary medication.  

Wyoming strives to curb ozone levels to meet federal mandate

The Wyoming Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has studied those who are in jail or in prison in Wyoming for a number of years.  Wyoming is a state that likes to put people behind bars.  The U.S. Justice Department notes that in 2010 Wyoming’s crime rate was 17-percent lower than the national average… but Wyoming’s incarceration rate is only four percent lower.  Meaning that if you commit a crime, you will probably get some time.  Director Linda Burt of Wyoming’s ACLU tells Bob Beck about how those inmates are being treated.

The Cheyenne Regional Medical center and the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper are considering a partnership that they believe may be necessary to remain financially strong in the future.  They are looking at ways to share things from medical providers to joining together to enhance health care across the state.   Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck reports that neither hospital CEO is positive the partnership will work, but they both believe they need to give it a shot in order to remain financially viable.

(Sound of hospital)    

This week, the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson Hole is celebrating its 25th anniversary.  It kicks off a number of events that will be part of the celebration.  The museum was a dream that’s come a long ways from its humble beginnings.  Co-founder Bill Kerr tells Bob Beck that the idea was to feature art that may have been overlooked.

Despite opposition, the Wyoming Department of Health announced today that it will go ahead with its new plan to have one management organization handle and distribute substance abuse and suicide prevention money across the state. 

Currently, 52 different agencies distribute the prevention money, and State Health Officer
Dr. Wendy Braund said that leads to administrative costs of between eight- to 11-percent at each agency.  She says that is a problem, as fewer prevention dollars are available to states.

The Casper City Council will be taking public comments on a proposed ordinance that would ban smoking in all indoor places. 

The group Smoke Free Natrona County says the public and employees need to be protected from second hand smoke.   It would ban smoking within ten feet of a building, although it exempts clubs and smoke shops. 

Former Mayor Mike Reid, who owns a smoke free bar, says the city council is going too far.

For years, Eastern Wyoming has struggled with poverty and it appears things have not changed. 

 The Center for Rural Affairs says that 2010 census numbers confirm that poverty in Eastern Wyoming is at a rate that is actually higher than many urban areas, especially for children.  Report Author Jon Bailey says that part of the problem is that federal subsidies for large farms is harmful to rural development. 

He says there are innovative ways that can be used to turn things around such as developing federal, state and local partnerships.  But Bailey adds that this problem has been ignored for a long time.

Election year politics are derailing efforts to improve Wyoming’s economy.
President Obama is chiding Congress for not acting on his slimmed down plan to spur economic growth in Wyoming and elsewhere. Matt Laslo reports from Washington that election year politicking is expected to derail this latest effort to get the economy moving.

Earlier this year the Wyoming legislature set aside some 30 million dollars in matching money to help pay for a major upgrade in U-W’s College of Engineering.  With an anticipated cost of nearly 100 million dollars, it would be U-W’s most expensive building project.  The last major addition to the College occurred in 1980.  Right now labs are too small, classrooms are crowded and the front portion of the building has a distinct 1920’s flavor.  As Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck reports…at a time when other building projects were occurring on campus…the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee said skipping the College of Engineering would have been a crime….

The city of Casper is considering a ban on smoking in all public places.   It’s an issue that supporters have been pushing for a number of years and next week there will be a public hearing on the issue.  In the past, supporters of the ordinance have been on board with the program, but not everybody is in love with it.   So today we will hear from an opponent.  Former Mayor Mike Reid is the co-owner of Poplar Wine and Spirits in Casper that includes an adjoining smoke free bar.  Reid tells Bob Beck the smoke free approach has worked well.

Bob Beck recently spoke with Gov. Matt Mead in his office about a number of topics including proposed state budget cuts.

The 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress or NAEP  shows that Wyoming eighth graders continue to outperform the national average test score in science. 

The Wyoming Department of Education says that Wyoming students also increased their science scores from those reported in 2009.

State Superintendent Cindy Hill says there was a lot to like in these latest results, including the fact that female students improved their scores and that only five states scored higher than Wyoming.  But Hill is also pleased that the gap in test scores between high and low income students was very small.

“We know our gap is actually one of the smallest gaps in the United States, the gap between our highest and our lowest performers and we feel very good about that.”

A five year effort in Teton County has come to an end.  County commissioners and the Jackson Town Council have voted to adopt a new comprehensive plan that will guide future development in the county. 

Under the plan most new development will occur in existing neighborhoods and communities.  Jackson Mayor Mark Barron says that will protect open space.

“It makes darn good sense if you are going to be a planning a community to put any additional density where dense masses already exist.  For example the town of Jackson, Teton Village, the town of Wilson, so that you can maintain more open space opportunities. ”

Barron hopes that the plan will ease the concerns of many residents. 

Some in the wind energy industry have expressed concern that the wind production tax credit might expire at the end of the year. 

U.S. Senator John Barrasso says he shares that concern and blames the on-again, off-again nature of such tax credits on the lack of a federal energy policy. 

“There have been incentives one year and not another year,” Barrasso said. “You know, it’s not any way to have a long term energy plan.  We need a long-term energy plan and find a way to use all of our resources in the way that you and I know, and the Wyoming people know, they ought to be used.”