The Wyoming Senate has advanced a bill that would create a taskforce to review the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The taskforce would include lawmakers and members of the business, education, health care, tribal and local government communities. All but the lawmakers would be appointed by the governor.
The group would evaluate aspects of the pandemic, like authority of public health orders, consistency and enforcement. Then, it would offer recommendations to improve the state's response in the event of another pandemic.
Senate Majority Floor Leader Ogden Driskill said such a review can have a good impact on the future.
"This is our last chance to decide if you want another pandemic when it comes, and there will be one, we've heard it on the floor. You want to handle the same as last one? Do you want the health orders to stay the same as last one?" he said.
But critics of the bill say lawmakers are already coming up with solutions, including an oversight bill recently passed by the Senate, then they don't need to spend the money to review the past year.
Powell Sen. R.J. Kost said they are already making a better system.
"How can we justify putting $50,000 into a task force to come up with solutions that obviously we already discussed and came up with what we wanted for solutions already?" Perkins asked senators.
But Driskill said this is a cheap investment and a chance to get many stakeholders involved directly.
"If you don't look back at your successes and failures and use them to judge how you go forward, I can assure you that you'll make the same mistake again. You'll come back and say, 'Oh my gosh, how did that happen?" Driskill added.
The bill has been supported by the governor's office as well as the Wyoming Association of County Commissioners.
The Senate will debate the bill for a final time Friday.
Have a question about this story? Contact the reporter, Catherine Wheeler, at cwheel11@uwyo.edu.
