The budget bill passed in the last legislative session went into effect this month.

Meanwhile, the total dollar amount in Wyoming’s savings will soon eclipse $30 billion.

In the two-year state budget, the Legislature increased teacher pay, added funding to the Department of Health and slashed funds for the University of Wyoming’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

The Legislature also established a 988 suicide hotline trust but funded it at a lower number than proposed.

The budget is projected to add roughly $709 million in separate savings and reserve accounts that will gain interest over time.

As that legislation kicks in, the combined size of some of those accounts is expected to grow beyond $30 billion by early August, the most the state has ever had in its permanent trust fund accounts.

That’s according to Sen. Mike Gierau (D-Jackson), who said state investment income generated from trust funds make up about 30 percent of all incoming dollars to the general fund.

“Now, we're building a sustainable model, that up market or down, good market or bad, we're more insulated than we were 15 years ago,” said Gierau. “Who knows where this could go and where this ends up. But I can tell you that it's been an incredible thing to watch.”

Wyoming’s largest and oldest trust fund is the permanent mineral trust fund, which runs on taxes collected from natural resource extraction.

This reporting was made possible by a grant from the Corporation For Public Broadcasting, supporting state government coverage in the state. Wyoming Public Media and Jackson Hole Community Radio are partnering to cover state issues both on air and online.