The city of Laramie is joining the state of Wyoming in setting a hiring freeze until the state’s financial difficulties get sorted out.
Laramie City Manager Janine Jordan notes that the state is cutting its current budget by 200 million dollars and state lawmakers will likely cut back on local government spending as energy prices remain low.
“Everyday it’s bad news whenever I pick up the newspaper or turn on NPR or whatever it may be coming out of the capitol building. And we know that historically when the state doesn’t fare well that translates and trickles down to local government. So we are freezing hiring other than essential public safety positions pending the outcome of the budget session.”
Jordan says during the last state fiscal downturn, the city had to lay off a number of employees, and she’d prefer not to go through that again. The legislative budget session begins in February.