GILLETTE, Wyo. — As the Aug. 18 primary election approaches, County 17 is introducing candidate questionnaires to help voters make informed decisions at the ballot box.

Every candidate in the primary field was sent the same three questions and given a limit of 500 words, which could be distributed among their answers as they saw fit. To ensure a fair and direct line to the community, all responses are published exactly as submitted, without edits or alterations.

Candidates were asked:

• What are the most crucial challenges your constituents are facing?
• If elected, how will you address these challenges?
• What qualities or qualifications do you possess that have prepared you to meet these challenges?

Questionnaires are being published on a rolling basis online through Aug. 11. They will be accessible via the County 17 Election Tracker.

Scott Smith (R), Wyoming state treasurer

What are the most crucial challenges your constituents are facing?

Everywhere I go many Wyoming citizens are concerned that our government is selling out our state lands to the highest bidder for crony capitalism. Some are concerned about Data Centers, Commercial Wind Generators, or nuclear waste storage. The biggest concern is the resources these outfits are taking, secondly, they are concerned about health issues related to living nearby, and lastly they are concerned with cost associated with these projects being passed onto the taxpayer. 

If elected, how will you address these challenges?

One of the things that many people don’t know is that the State Treasurer sits on the State Land and Investment Board. (SLIB) The same issues that concern our citizens are the same reasons that I have decided to run for this office. The SLIB has voted to lease state lands to a hydrogen plant in Converse County that would take eight gallons of our valuable water to produce one gallon of hydrogen jet fuel using wind and solar generation to power the plant. These same elected officials have sold off $100 million of our state lands to the federal government. I believe that some things are not for sale. As Treasurer you can count on me to count the cost and listen to the people in the public testimony. If we are going to accept some of these projects the citizens need to have the benefit, like lower utility costs. 

What qualities/qualifications do you possess that have prepared you to meet these challenges?

My bachelor’s degree is in Business Administration with an emphasis in management and marketing. I will be a leader in the state treasurer’s office that creates a positive work environment that will allow our investment team to create higher returns on the people’s money that the state invests. I would like to work with the legislature to use these interest earnings to buy down the people’s property taxes to alleviate part of the burden inflation has caused on the average citizen. My day job, I work as a bookkeeper and work with numbers day in and day out and have corrected some inefficiencies to help small businesses become more profitable. I plan to do that within the state office and make those profits available to the legislature to reduce the tax burden for the people. I have also served in the Wyoming House of Representatives for Goshen County and I have served on the Appropriations Committee and I am familiar with the massive state budget. 

Related

Scroll down for a list of fireworks restrictions across Wyoming.

I usually don’t buy fireworks for the 4th of July. I go places to watch them. But since this year is the 250th anniversary of our nation, I was going to purchase a small arsenal and have a blast, pardon the pun.

But this has been a very dry year, as happens now and then in the cycles of weather. So I figured I’d wait until things were wet again and just hold my personal celebration a little late.

Many towns across Wyoming have canceled their July 4th fireworks due to the drought. They don’t want you firing off any either.

Based on 2026 reports, several Wyoming towns and counties have canceled or significantly restricted Fourth of July fireworks displays due to high wildfire risks, drought conditions, and Stage 1 fire restrictions.

Canceled/Restricted Public Displays (2026)

• BLM Land: Fireworks are prohibited on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Wyoming.
• Weston County: A county-wide ban covers Newcastle and Upton due to high drought conditions.

Even little Chugwater, Wyoming, population 175, has banned fireworks inside its little town limits.

At the State Capital in Cheyenne, however, they will go right ahead with a fireworks display, right over the capital building itself. Dry weather be dammed.