Gutting fire, EMS and police funding is anarchy, not conservatism

This time of year, we are reminded of the importance of fully funding our firefighters and other first responders in every city and county across the state. They do vital work to save lives, homes and businesses. These resources should remain sacrosanct for lawmakers everywhere.

Opinion

We in the West are facing the usual fire season this summer. As the rising temperatures grind on, we see our skies go from beautiful clear blue to hazy and leaden gray with decreasing air quality, causing medical issues for many of our most vulnerable citizens. Wildfires in Wyoming are not a new seasonal occurrence, but they seem to be growing more frequent, and as always, can be very deadly. The danger to homes, livelihoods and domestic animals remains real. Funding is critical at both the state and federal level.

The National Preparedness Level now sits at a 5, the highest rating, meaning all national resources are heavily committed in multiple geographic areas to combat rampant wildfires across the West. Wyoming’s Air Guard is involved in that work. Pray for the men and women on the front lines of these fires.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently authorized federal funds to help with the costs of fighting the Pleasant Valley Fire in Platte and Goshen counties. The state requested the funds after determining the extent of the destruction, with homes destroyed in Hartville and other communities in imminent danger. We have seen more towns evacuated, more animals in need of rescue and more families displaced. First responders are working night and day to contain these fires and keep our citizens safe.

For lawmakers meeting in the cold of January, February and March, it’s sometimes tempting to push an argument for reducing or even removing such important services, especially for firefighting when the snow is falling and the windchill is below zero. And while a robust discussion in favor of trimming a burgeoning state budget is healthy and necessary, some items are far too important to be placed on the chopping block. As many have argued and continue to argue, we must keep these areas of government stable, even as we may go through a season of budgetary pruning.

And so, as a conservative Republican, it’s important for me to point out the things that, while always needing continued review and oversight, are critical functions of our state and local communities. Many will disagree with my list while many will have more they want to add, and that’s ok. But this is the list I see as essential to the safety and welfare of our communities.

Firefighting is one of them. Emergency services is another. Our law enforcement functions can be added to the list and are equally vital. These are the trifecta of government services that are non-negotiables for me and for many conservative Republicans. I rarely vote for any tax increase on my ballots, but I will almost always vote for increases to ensure the proper functioning of our police, firefighters and emergency services. The protection of lives, property and personal livelihoods is consistent with conservatism.

But it’s important to point out that more and more “Republicans” these days are becoming more and more libertarian (or some odd version of libertarian) in their argumentation and voting, much of which I suspect is not very well thought out. And while classical libertarians might rightfully take some umbrage at defining these folks as “libertarian,” it’s hard to find any other classification to place them under. A rhetorical position that seems to embrace an odd mix of calling for low to no taxation and an irrational distrust of any kind of government is difficult to square with a constitutional order.

It’s an odd mix of philosophies that leads a Wyoming lawmaker to argue against ambulance services or firefighting capabilities. But whatever hybrid of thoughts might create this mix, it’s just plain wrong. And it certainly isn’t conservatism. It’s closer to anarchism.

We can only hope rains will come, the fires will go out, and lawmakers will remember their duty to fund these services come January. While your community might not be affected by fires this season, we all know our time is coming.

But for now, if you’re looking for an issue to draw a difference between two candidates in the upcoming Aug. 20 primary elections, ask each of them if they voted or would vote for the state budget, the vehicle for funding our firefighters. The state budget holds important funding for all our first responder services.

The one who says “no” is the one who doesn’t understand the importance of saving lives, property and livelihoods. Based on that simple answer, I would encourage you to place your vote elsewhere. If you don’t agree with me, take some time to ask the families in our communities affected by fires this summer. Many of them have lost their homes and businesses. They understand how important it was to have firefighters, aid workers and urgent government grants to help them piece their lives back together.

This could be any one of us.

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