| More campers have officials under pressure
Robert Georges of Cheyenne, who also owns property near Guernsey State Park faulted the reservation system because none of the money goes to Wyoming and because people from other states are able to reserve spots, then not show up.Westerfield said money is a problem with a reservation system as well as state law, which prevents the department from undertaking such a project."Now this is not something you can do on your kitchen table with a notepad," Westerfield said.Lou Miller of Cheyenne asked: "Is there going to be any enforcement on the amount of time they can stay?"The department is trying to beef up enforcement in all areas, Simpson said."We are having a really, really difficult time even attracting season employees," he said. The state's unemployment rate is extremely low and there are plenty of other higher paying jobs.The proposed rule changes also include making it illegal to possess fireworks, which are now only illegal if lighted in a park.And it includes a loosening of rules to allow glass containers in tents or campers but not outdoors in the parks.Westerfield said the no glass rule change has been aimed at drunken parties where people break bottles and leave the glass for others to be injured.
Gas line divide crosses party, regional lines
We have a process under AGIA that all the people in the Legislature but one voted for," she said. That one legislator was Rep. Ralph Samuels, R-Anchorage, and the House majority leader. "I wasn't a big fan of the process," acknowledged Samuels, who said he stands behind his lonely vote. House Speaker John Harris, R-Valdez, said that even though TransCanada was the only company the Palin administration certified as complying with the demands of AGIA, they were still going to look at competing proposals. "It is still a proposal that should be looked at by the Legislature," Harris said. That could open the door for another rejected proposal, the plan by the Alaska Gasline Port Authority for an all-Alaska pipeline to bring natural gas to Valdez, where it would be converted to liquid and exported by ship.
Corrections from The Virginian-Pilot
The name of Nigel McGilchrist was spelled incorrectly in a calendar item in Sunday's Daily Break section. CLARIFICATION An article about TodiMusicFest in Tuesday's paper ("TodiMusicFest's director steps down") said the festival could receive nearly $250,000 from the city of Portsmouth in the upcoming year. The total figure represents about $140,000 in grant funding recommended by the Museums and Fine Arts Commission plus additional money provided in other parts of the city budget. .
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