Wyoming’s first public records ombudsman aims to boost transparency

CHEYENNE – After working for nearly 30 years in Washington, D.C., Ruth Van Mark wasn’t expecting to take on a new job in Wyoming. Instead, she was planning to retire back in the state she grew up in.

Then, one day this summer, she got a call while hanging out at her family’s wheat farm in Goshen County.

“This call comes from this undisclosed name and number. I thought, ‘Somebody is trying to sell me a trip to Bermuda,’ so I just ignore it, but it comes again,” Van Mark said. “I answer it, thinking, ‘I’m gonna let this person know I’m not interested.’ Then, lo and behold, it was the governor saying, ‘Hey, would you be willing to apply for this position?’” (Read more here…)