Recently a group of county commissioners hosted a group of high level staffers for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives for a tour around the Big Horn Basin. The goal, said commissioner Lloyd Thiel who helped organize the event, was to give staffers, most of whom had never been to Wyoming, a look at how policies made in D.C. could affect local people.

The goals, he said, were education and communication as commissioners, assisted by county staff and a Northwest College bus and driver, took the staffers on a 3 1/2 day tour around the Basin to visit numerous aspects of the state’s top three industries: Energy, tourism and agriculture.

“It was definitely a huge success,” Thiel said. 

The group rode 697 miles around the counties, starting and ending in Cody, making 22 stops and hearing from 64 different speakers. 

“Staffers were fully engaged with every stop,” Thiel said. “We started with tourism in Cody, then agriculture, energy … They were long days, some 15-16 hours. BLM, Game and Fish, Forest Service, state, everybody was involved. I thought we covered a lot of things in a short time.”

The event was the first of its kind in Wyoming, with plans to do more visits in other parts of the state. But the Basin, Thiel said, was chosen for the first tour due to it being a microcosm of the state’s top industries. The staffers were receptive. 

“This is a great opportunity to speak with local producers, landowners, and land managers about local perspectives on challenges facing agriculture and forestry,” said Paul Babbitt, staff director for the House Committee on Agriculture, Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry. “I’m thankful to the Wyoming County Commissioners Association for this opportunity to learn.”

The staffers were split evenly between Democrats and Republicans. Thiel said when the tour started the staffers kept separate, Democrats and Republicans on opposite sides of the bus, exiting into separate groups. By the end, all that division had broken down.

“By day four they were all together having fun,” he said. 

And they appreciated the region, and the people, they encountered. 

“They said people were open, direct and honest, it blew them away,” Thiel recalled. 

They also said they were awed by the wide open spaces as well. 

“As the employee of a House Appropriator, it is so important to see our tax dollars in action so that we can be better stewards and prioritize responsibly,” said Daniel Clayton, legislative assistant, Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD). “This trip, specifically, has enabled us to see how funds appropriated through the Farm Bill conservation programs are helping farmers stay viable while protecting water quality across the country. 

“I am grateful to everyone who made this trip possible, especially the Wyoming County Commissioner Association.”

Fellow commissioner Robert Short, of Converse County, said he thought the group learned the effectiveness of Wyoming’s local approach.

“Our major message: People don’t require a major federal policy framework to do what we’ve done for generations, be good stewards of the land,” he said. “We helped show how decisions made on the East Coast impact Wyoming, how we’re able to continue our livelihoods.”