Rest of the world, take notice!

[Flashermac]

Governor signs bills into law;

Permanent food tax repeal, open container among items endorsed by Freudenthal

 

By Jennifer Frazer

 

 

CHEYENNE - Gov. David Freudenthal signed two popular bills into law on Wednesday, to the delight of Sen. Tony Ross, R-Cheyenne, and former Rep. Ann Robinson.

 

He signed Senate File 33, a bill that bans nearly all open containers of alcohol in motor vehicles, and House Bill 93, the bill that permanently removes the sales tax on groceries.

 

"During over 10 years work on this bill, there were times I never thought I'd see this day," Ross said of the open-containers bill. "I'm so very pleased that we can do something positive to protect our citizens on our state roads and highways."

 

Freudenthal said he also was pleased that the bill passed at a time when he was able to sign it.

 

"I don't know whether to commend Senator Ross, then Representative Ross, for being the most tenacious or the slowest person I know to ever get a bill passed," he said teasingly.

 

Ross said current statistics show that states that pass open-container laws see about a 5.1 percent decrease in fatal, alcohol-related traffic accidents.

 

Many Wyoming municipalities - including Cheyenne - already ban open containers, but open containers have remained legal on state highways.

 

Officials with the National Conference of State Legislatures said Wyoming is one of six states that did not meet federal standards for open-container laws.

 

However, despite the passage of the bill, the state still may not be in compliance with federal standards, according to Wyoming Department of Transportation Director John Cox.

 

"It's kind of a good news, not-so-good news thing," Cox said. "We're really enthused about the new open-container law because it will address some distinct safety issues that we could not address before.

 

"The Wyoming law says, in essence, that while a vehicle is rolling, you can't have open containers of alcohol on the highway," Cox said.

 

He said federal standards do not specify that a vehicle be in motion for an open-container law to apply.

 

Wyoming and other states that are not in compliance with federal open-container law standards see federal funds shifted from highway construction accounts to highway safety.

 

Cox said the state's federal funds will still go toward highway safety, since the law is not up to federal standards.

 

"Federal requirements are still stricter then ours," Cox said, "but we've made some serious progress here."

 

Sales tax on food

 

Former Rep. Ann Robinson beamed as the governor signed the bill making the temporary removal of the sales tax on food passed last year permanent.

 

Bills to lift the tax had first been brought by lawmakers in the 1950s, she said, so Wednesday also marked the end of a very long process for that idea as well.

 

"Food is the most basic need of the people of Wyoming," she said, "and it is not a place for collecting taxes."

 

Robinson said she has been stopped several times by people she has never met before in Casper grocery stores to thank her for spearheading the grocery tax abolition effort.

 

Though it only means 5 cents on the dollar for a Casper grocery bill, it makes a big difference to a lot of people, she said.

 

"The best thing we can do for working people is keep taxes low and keep money in their pockets," said Sen. John Barrasso, R-Casper, one of the bill's Senate sponsors.

 

Sen. Curt Meier, R-LaGrange, pledged to the communities of Wyoming that the Legislature will make sure they have the money they need to make up for the revenues lost on the food tax.

 

 

[Bangkoktraveler]

The open container laws can be a bummer. If you pick up the trash along the road and just happen to toss in a beer bottle that has been opened, you can get busted.