CASPER, Wyo. (AP) - The Wyoming Department of Education will release the names and salaries of every school district employee in the state in response to a state senator’s request.
Republican Sen. Tom James, of Rock Springs, said he wants the list to better understand state budgeting.
One purpose is to see differences in pay between educators and administrators, though James filed similar requests with other state agencies, he told the Casper Star-Tribune.
“I’m not just picking on education,” James said Thursday.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow plans to honor the request by Dec. 27 but not without questioning it.
“I have difficulty figuring out and reconciling how the release of names that intrudes on the privacy of citizens in our Wyoming community, that potentially puts their security, safety and other aspects of their lives at risk, is in the best interest of the public,” Balow said.
Wyoming Education Association President Kathy Vetter and Laramie school psychologist Jackie Grimes, who is a state Senate candidate, voiced similar concerns.
“Because of the insistence on names, this request feels very personal and a violation to educators,” Grimes wrote in comments published by the state Democratic Party.
James is known as a government transparency advocate who previously recorded and publicized the votes of fellow lawmakers.
Other states including New York have publicized the names and salaries of educators for years.
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