AARP Wyoming News - August 2014

�e AARP Wyoming

NEWS

©iS

tock

phot

o.co

m/r

obh

and

©iS

tock

phot

o.co

m/a

ricsp

ence

In This Issue...

Voter Education - Saving Money - Telecommunications - And much more...

August 2014

Judging from all the campaign signs that dot our neighbor-

hoods and road ways, it’s easy to see that the election season is now in full swing.

As we approach the upcoming primary elections in August and the general elections in November, it is critical to become an informed and educated voter.

Do your homework on each candidate and ask them the right questions before you vote.

We encourage all Wyoming residents who are age 50 and older to ask their state legislative candi-dates the following questions:

Family Caregiving:

In Wyoming, family caregivers help seniors live independently at home – as opposed to costly nurs-ing homes that are often paid for by the state through Medicaid.

The unpaid assistance these individuals provide includes help with bathing and dressing as well as administering medication and wound care.

They provide this care with little or no support or training. Consid-

ering family caregivers are often on call 24/7 while holding down full time jobs.

What would you do to help them continue to safely care for their loved ones at home?

Rewriting the Wyoming Telecommunications Act:

Reliable telephone service is a basic necessity, allowing older people to maintain contact, pre-serve health and safety, and call for assistance in an emergency.

As Wyoming legislators con-template a rewrite of the current Wyoming Telecommunications Act in the upcoming 2015 session, it is important to remember that AARP opposes legislation that would un-fairly deregulate telephone service and put reliable phone service at risk.

Wyoming residents want access to telecommunications service that is affordable, reliable, and acces-sible and that is provided within a fair marketplace that allows them choice while also safeguarding their health, safety, and economic interests.

How will you assure that Wyo-ming residents, especially those living on low or fixed incomes, maintain access to affordable ser-vice?

Consumer Protection:

Will you support legislation to fully fund Adult Protective Ser-vices and increase civil or criminal penalties against elder financial exploitation?

Medicaid Expansion:

Will you support the expansion of Medicaid so that hardworking Wyomingnites who earn up to $15,000 a year can have access to affordable health coverage?

Home and Community-based Long-term Care Services:

About 89 percent of Wyoming residents 50-plus want to stay in their own homes and communities as they age.

How will you help expand Wyo-ming residents’ access to quality long-term care services provided at home and in the community instead of in costly nursing homes?

Be sure to ask candidates about issues that affect you

On the heels of the “great re-cession” we could all use tips

to help us stretch our money a bit further each month.

Regardless of your income, if you are working or retired, there are al-ways ways that you can keep more of your hard-earned money. It’s called living well on your income, whatever that might be.

In May, about thirty AARP Wyo-ming community volunteers from all over the state met in Saratoga to discuss financial and retirement security.

They wanted to come up with common sense, practical, Wyo-ming-based tips and suggestions that could be helpful to Wyoming’s 50 plus population.

This is not meant to be financial planning or legal advice. You should contact your financial planner or at-torney for that. These are just some tips that may help you save some money. Use them as appropriate for your individual situations.

AARP Wyoming volunteers broke the tips and suggestions down by the following categories. We have included only the top tips here. For the full list of tips, visit our website at www.aarp.org/wy

General Finances:• Do a complete inventory of your

financial assets and situation. Understand your limits and live within them. Avoid debt where and when possible.

• Choose your banks carefully. Look at all the possible banking fees that may apply.

• Check your bank statements and accounts at least monthly. Look for anything irregular.

• Check to see if you may be eligible for financial assistance programs, such as the Low-in-come Energy Assistance Pro-gram (LIEAP), Medicaid, SNAP, or others.

• Review and revaluate your insur-ance plans/deductibles regu-larly, adjust as needed.

• Review and update your wills and trusts as appropriate.

• Think carefully before lending money to your children and other family members.

Housing:• Does your current housing situa-

tion really fit or serve your needs as you approach retirement? Should you consider downsiz-ing?

• Consider cutting back on cos-metic home expenses.

• Check out your current mort-gage interest rate. Would refi-nancing save you money?

Medical/Health:• Eat right, exercise, get annual

physical exams.• Know your health situation and

health insurance benefits well.

• Get your flu shot annually.• Attend local health fairs, they

sometimes offer free or reduced-price health screenings.

• Be an informed consumer. Shop around for health care providers and ask questions.

Transportation:• Is your car meeting your current

needs? Should you downsize or upgrade?

• When buying a new car, watch carefully for unnecessary extras and add-ons.

• Consider using public transpor-tation when and where offered.

• Be car aware. Does your cur-rent car need maintenance or repairs? If possible, take care of it now, don’t leave repairs for the last minute when they may become much worse and more expensive.

• Do your homework and shop around for a good, honest me-chanic.

• Take a defensive driving course. Insurance companies usually offer a 5-10 percent discount on your insurance once complete.

• Look into auto repair discounts at high school or college auto programs.

Food:• Make sure you get the necessary

nutrition to keep you healthy for many years to come, don’t scrimp on good, healthy food.

• Be careful when buying foods in bulk. Remember that your

AARP Wyoming

NewsPublished by:AARP Wyoming2020 Carey Ave.Cheyenne, WY82001

Reach us at...1-866-663-3290www.aarp.org/[email protected]

Copyright 2014:Please contact AARP Wyoming for permission to reproduce content contained herein.Volume 2: Issue 2 Editor: Tim Lockwood

Page 2 aaRP Wyoming neWs

Tim summeRs

sTaTe DiRecToR

aaRP Wyoming

Making your hard-earned money last

Page 3aaRP Wyoming neWs

household needs may have changed, especially if you live alone. .

• Plan out your household meals in advance.

• If possible, buy a food saver to vacuum seal your extras, then freeze it for future meals.

• Look into community produce services like “Bountiful Baskets Co-op.”

• If you are 60-plus, consider senior center meals.

Utilities:• If you are living on a moder-

ate or low income, look into Wyoming’s Low Income Energy Assistance Program or other community programs, ask your utility company.

• Learn how to read your util-ity bill. Review it carefully and regularly.

• Be energy efficient. Set your thermostat somewhere between 65 and 70 degrees in the win-ter, depending on your comfort levels.

• Consider installing digital ther-mostats and using more energy efficient bulbs.

• Unplug electronics that you are not using. TVs, DVD players and cable boxes use-up a lot of energy.

• Have your furnace and air con-ditioning unit serviced annually.

Home Repairs and Maintenance:• Get written estimates BEFORE

you agree to a contract for any home repairs.

• Make sure your contract is in writing, not a verbal agreement.

• Do your homework about home repair contractors. Ask a lot of questions, ask if they are licensed and bonded. Ask for references.

• If possible for your situation, consider doing the projects

yourself, but be realistic.• Do regular maintenance to keep

little problems from becoming big ones.

Entertainment:• Consider free or discounted

local events or classes at com-munity colleges, high schools, libraries, senior centers, etc.

• Limit eating out.• Use your local library.• Look into online streaming op-

tions instead of cable.• Look into local theatre com-

panies, many offer discounted rates.

Travel:• Research group travel discounts

and offerings carefully.• Be selective in destinations, ser-

vices and activities.• Limit restaurant meals on your

trip if possible.

• Consider taking a road trip in-stead of air travel.

• Look into safe alternative ac-commodations, like hostels, etc and “Airbnb” offerings.

Gift Giving:• Reconsider your generosity in

light of your financial situation.• Pick names instead of giving to

every family member.• Consider re-gifting.• Send Email cards.• Share precious family recipes or

memories as your gift.• Give books. It’s okay to give used

books.

In conclusion, there are hundreds of ways that you can save money. We don’t claim to know them all.

So, if you have any creative ways to save money and increase your financial security, please email us at [email protected]

Sitting on the tailgate of my SUV, in the shade of Barn AA

on the Cheyenne Frontier Days Grounds, Vianna Gurney said, “I wish I could ride like I did when I was 20 years old.”

I’ve got news for you, Vi; there are plenty of 40-year-olds, 30-year-olds, and even 20-year-olds out there who wish we could ride like you do.

At 78 years old (“I’ll be 79 in August,” she says), Vi knows her way around a horse. She’s been running barrels since she was 15, and 43 years ago, she made the finals at Cheyenne Frontier Days.

“I rode in Greeley (Colorado) and Crawford (Nebraska) that year,” she says, “and I won second in Lander (Wyoming). There were no jackpots in those days. You just

went to the rodeos you could make it to.”

Though she probably could make a run now and then in the big rodeos, Vi is content these days to run in local jackpots. But just because a small-town barrel race doesn’t hold the same allure as, say, Cheyenne Frontier Days,

doesn’t mean it’s for the faint of heart.

At the Skylynn Memorial Barrel Race near Albin, Wyoming, a few days earlier, Vi made two runs on her horse Gator. On her first run, she covered the clover-leaf pattern in 17.185 seconds, and she ran a 16.838 on her second. Those times weren’t far off the fastest time of the day, which was just over 15 seconds. To put it in perspective, it would take a horse about 45 or 50 seconds to walk the full pattern, and about 30 to do it at a lope. A 16.838-second run was absolutely smoking fast.

And she’s showing no signs of slowing down. She retired her

old barrel horse, Wilson, a few years ago when she got Gator trained for barrel racing.

“Gator’s a cowboy’s horse,” she says. “He takes pretty good care of me on the barrels, but if he gets spooked, wow, he can buck. I’ve been lucky enough he’s never bucked me off, though.”

Keep in mind that Gator isn’t some used-up, broken-down trail horse. He’s usually kind and gentle, but he’s a running, gunning barrel horse when Vi turns him loose in the arena.

“He was just started (on his training) when I got him,” she says. “We had a few ‘understandings’ to get him where he is now.”

Vi gives full credit to a friend in Torrington for helping teach Gator the ropes.

“Linda Lay helped me understand how to make a good barrel horse out of him,” she says. “And she didn’t have to do that. Linda had horses for sale, too, but I didn’t buy Gator from her. She could have just said, ‘you didn’t buy him from

me, so he’s your problem.’ But she didn’t. And if she sees me doing something wrong and tells me what I need to do, I listen to what she says.”

That constant learning is one of the big reasons she keeps riding. She says there’s always something to learn, and learning new things is what keeps you young.

“There are people who say, ‘I’d never do that. I’m too old for that,’ ” she says. “They’d rather just sit around. Who wants to do that? They think people should bow down and kiss their feet because they’re old. Bull crap. They need to get up and get moving.”

That’s sage advice from a woman who hasn’t slowed down for nearly 79 years.

Ty sTockTon

guesT columnisT & ouTDooR enThusiasT


Barrel racing beauty still running hard at 78

Ty Stockton is a native of Wyoming. He has spent as much of his life outdoors as he can.

In each issue, he will share with us his stories of the outdoors and it’s impact on the 50+ population in Wyoming.

We’d love to hear from you. If you have a story about Wyoming’s outdoors you’d like to share, please email me at [email protected]. Maybe it’ll be featured here in an upcoming issue.

Your Outdoor Stories

Photo by Ty Stockton

Think AARP is about lobby-ing, discounts and insur-

ance for retired senior citizens? Think again!

AARP believes no one’s possi-bilities should ever be limited by

their age. Since its

founding in 1958, AARP has been offering programs and services de-signed to help people explore their real possi-bilities, serving as their ally to

bring those possibilities to life.Possibilities for financial secu-

rity, good health, career oppor-tunities, connecting with others, and discovery.

In 2014, AARP launched its Real Possibilities campaign fea-turing a series of national TV ads to highlight its true breadth and scope.

The ads spotlight programs such as Life Reimagined, which provides innovative tools to help people navigate major changes in their lives, AARP TEK, a pro-gram that keeps the 50+ current with technology (and connected with their grandkids), and Drive to End Hunger, a collaboration with 4-time NASCAR Champion Jeff Gordon that has donated nearly 30 million meals to com-bat hunger in the United States.

There’s a lot to AARP you may not know. AARP:

• Connected 120,000 budding

entrepreneurs with small business resources in 2013.

• Brings consumers together with technology companies to develop better health products for people over the age of 50.

• Raised more than $1 million for victims of Typhoon Hai-yan in the Philippines.

• Has an online dating site powered by HowAboutWe.

• Launched a unique online “travel experience.”

• Hosts its own film festival called “Movies for Grown-ups.”

• Shows people how to opti-mize their “brain health” and offers a special “Stay Sharp”

membership in collaboration with Posit Science.

• Taps the technological savvy of teens to “mentor” older adults through a program called MentorUp.

• Publishes the world’s largest-circulation magazine with 35.2 million readers.

• Alerts consumers to scams through the AARP Fraud Watch Network and provides information to protect them from identity theft.

There’s a lot more to AARP than you might have thought.

Find out about the full AARP story at aarp.org/possibilities. Real Possibilities is a trademark of AARP.

AARP: Bringing Real Possibilities to Life


For more information, visit aarp.org/possiblities

caThy gonzales

PResiDenT

aaRP Wyoming


Voting in Wyoming: What you need to know

To register to vote in Wyoming, or change voter registration, individuals may register in person with the town or county clerk, by mail, or at the polls on Election Day.

If attempting to change name and/or address citizens need to notify the county clerk prior to Election Day and re-register. Unlike other states, residents of Wyoming cannot register to vote at the DMV.

Note, to register to vote before Election Day citizens must fill out the Wyoming Voter Application and Change Form in front of a notary public and provide proof of identification (Driver’s License, Passport, Military ID, etc).

See the Wyoming Voter Registration Form for details at soswy.state.wy.us/Forms/Elections/General/VoterRegistrationForm.pdf.

How do you register to vote in Wyoming?

In order to register to vote, you must meet the following qualifications:

• 18 years of age on Election Day;• U.S. Citizen;• Resident of Wyoming and the precinct in which

you register;• Withdraw voter registration from any other

jurisdiction, if applicable;• Present a valid Wyoming Driver License if

you have one and if not; provide the last four digits of your Social Security Number. (If you have neither, please indicate this on the Voter Registration Application form.)

• Not been convicted of a felony, or if convicted, have had civil or voting rights restored.

• Nor adjudicated mentally incompetent.

What are the requirements to register to vote in Wyoming? The Wyoming Secretary of State offers a poll place

locator on their site at soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/PollPlace/default.aspx.

Also, this site provides a map of polling places, directions to polling places, election district information, and county clerk information.

Where do I go to vote in my community?

If getting to the polls is a concern, citizens may want to consider absentee voting.

To request an absentee ballot, contact your Wyo-ming County Clerk either in person, online, by mail, or over the phone. The list of clerks in the state can be found at soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/Docs/WY-CountyClerks.pdf

A caregiver applying for an absentee ballot on be-half of another citizen must produce the legal name, date of birth, and address of the voter as well as their name, address, driver’s license number, provide ex-planation of relationship to voter, and a signature.

Requests for absentee ballots must be turned in to your local county clerk at least one week prior to election day.

Also, completed ballots must be received on the afternoon or evening of the election.

What if I can’t make it to the polls to vote?

Although participation in one of our great rights as an American is encouraged, no citizen of the United States is required to cast a vote.

Citizens are welcome to fill in as much of the ballot as they are comfortable with. In a situation where the office or names of candidates are unfamiliar it is acceptable not to cast a vote for that race. Also, if the wording of a proposed statement is unclear it is more than acceptable not to cast a vote.

What if I don’t want to vote for everything?

July August

July 10Primary Absentee

Voting Starts

August 4Voter RegistrationCloses for Primary

August 18Absentee VotingEnds for Primary

August 19Primary Election7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

2014

Ele

ctio

n C

alen

dar


All candidates for office are required to register with the Wyoming Secretary of State’s office or, for local office races such as county commissioner, with their local county clerk.

State candidate information is available on the Secretary of State’s website at soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/2014ElectionInformation.aspx. Select the candidate roster list for the relevant election period, primary or general.

For local listing of candidates, contact your county clerk’s office either in person, by phone, or many post filings on their website. Contact information for your local county clerk’s office can be found at soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/Docs/WYCountyClerks.pdf.

How to contact a candidate for office

Wyoming’s U.S. House of Representative seat and one of its U.S. Senate seats are up for election.

All five of the state’s executive branch offices (Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer and Superintendent of Public Instruction) are up for election.

All districts of the Wyoming House of Representatives and the odd numbered districts of the Wyoming State Senate are up for election.

In the judicial branch, two members of the Supreme Court of Wyoming are up for consideration for retention and multiple district court and circuit court judges are up for consideration of retention as well.

In many counties, many offices including county commissioners, coroner, sheriff and others are up for election. Contact your local county clerk for a listing of offices up for election.

In some local municipalities, additional offices such as city council, mayor and others are up for election. Contact your local city clerk for a listing of offices up for election.

What statewide offices are on the ballot?

While it is too late for the 2014 election cycle, consider becoming a pollworker (election judge) in future years. Election judges are essential to our democracy.

Election judges are officials that staff local polling places, administer election procedures, and ensure the rights of voters are protected on Election Day.

Serving as an election judge provides an opportu-nity to learn about the elections process and is a great service to our community.

The duties of an election judge include: • setting up the polling place; • operating voting equipment; • directing voters to the correct line; • registering individuals to vote; • ensuring all qualified voters are permitted to vote; • demonstrating how to vote; • distributing ballots to voters; • assisting voters; • closing down polling place following voting; • determining results after polls close; • and certifying the polling place results.In order to volunteer as an election judge in Wyo-

ming, you must be a registered elector in Wyoming and you must be physically, morally and mentally competent to perform their duties.

In addition, judges should be able to communicate clearly with voters, able to remain impartial and not exert influence over voters and have a strong atten-tion to detail.

To volunteer as an election judge:1. Contact the county chairman of your major or

minor political party; or2. Contact your county clerk or your municipal

clerk.All appointments are made by your local county

clerk. If appointed, you must attend training con-ducted by your county clerk.

Vounteer to become a poll worker

September October November

September 25General Absentee

Voting Starts

October 20Voter RegistrationCloses for General

November 3Absentee VotingEnds for General

November 4General Election7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

AARP Wyoming supports Powwow; hosts brain health forum

Staff of the AARP Wyoming state office was fortunate

enough to be able to attend and support the largest powwow in Wyoming at the end of June

The 55th annual Eastern Sho-shone Indian Days is three days of dance contests, drumming and singing. The celebration is an im-portant cultural gathering for the Eastern Shoshone, and one of the largest reservation-based pow-wows in North America.

Thousands of people from all around came to the Wind River Reservation during the last week-end in June to participate and en-joy the dancing, music, and food.

The staff of the Wyoming office also took the opportunity to host “Gray Matters” - a brain health workshop near Riverton at the Wind River Casino.

The forum included presenta-tions on how exercise, nutrition and other aspects of every day living can impact the health of an aging brain.

The keynote presenter was Cindy Ann Works, MD, a clinical assistant professor with the Univer-sity of Wyoming Family Medicine Residency Program.

Works has traveled the world in her career with the opportunity to work in a variety of fields. For the last several years, she has special-ized in geriatric care here in Wyo-ming.

She has also had the opportu-nity to experience and be educated about some of the core Native American traditions in healing.

AARP Wyoming will host anoth-er brain health workshop in Cody on September 9.


Follow us: aarpwy facebook.com/aarpwy gplus.to/aarpwy

Head lady dancer Sarah Ortegon and head man dancer Jalen Abeyta during the grand entry. (Photo by Gregory Nickerson/WyoFile)

Wyoming Veteran Services Tidbits: The Veterans’ Home of Wyoming

The Veterans’ Home of Wyoming (VHW) was estab-

lished at Fort D.A. Russell, now FE Warren Air Force Base, in 1878.

The first resident of the VHW signed on in 1895. The VHW later moved to its current location south of Highway 16 at the base of the Big Horn Mountains, just outside of Buffalo, WY.

The VHW is an assisted liv-ing facility with 117 beds. Each resident occupies a single private room with two-room suites avail-able for couples.

Residents must be able to maintain their daily personal activities but may not be gainfully employed. Furthermore, residents are free to come and go as they

please and may bring a car or rely on VHW or community transpor-tation.

The VHW is committed to providing excellent care for all residents. In addition to a well-rounded diet and 24-hour nursing care, the VHW provides adminis-trative services, business services, social services, a veterans’ benefit specialist, as well as housekeeping and maintenance.

Moreover, residents pay what they can for all services provided, including a furnished private room, meals, laundry services, activities, transportation on week-days, and more.

Residents are encouraged to engage in activities that interest

them. VHW’s supportive com-munity includes games, music groups, opportunities away from the VHW, exercise equipment and classes, group activities, and fish-ing at a private pond fed by Clear Creek.

Also, most churches in Buffalo offer transportation services to bring VHW residents in for ser-vices.

To live at the VHW residents must be an honorably discharged veteran or a dependent of a vet-eran and a resident of Wyoming. Non-veterans are considered as space allows.

For more information on the Veterans’ Home of Wyoming, call (307) 684-5511.


The Wyoming Telecommunications Act

continues to be a hot topic during the Wyoming Legislature’s interim period as the act is currently scheduled to sunset on July 1, 2015. The sunset of the Act would mean that all telecommunications activities would be deregulated, but also means certain consumer protections would be eliminated such as anti-cramming and slamming provisions.

The Joint Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivisions Committee of the Wyoming Legislature serves as the steward of the topic and its discussion. During the 2013 interim period and the current interim, the committee has been diligent about keeping the topic at the forefront of their discussions. Most recently, the committee directed a task force of legislators, industry

experts and consumer advocates to be formed. The task force is charged with bringing reasonable solutions to the committee to consider on how to deal with the sunset of the Act next year.

The task force, in which AARP plans to have a representative, will look at the language and policy within the Act to consider what needs to be removed, what needs to be updated and what should be left unchanged. The task force plans to meet multiple times so that it can provide recommendations by the committee’s September meeting.

Having options in September provides the committee the best timeline to develop legislation for dealing with the 2015 sunset.

While the simplest solution is to extend the sunset, it might not be the best solution because the Act contains policy that is

outdated. But as discussed earlier, allowing the sunset to occur eliminates current regulations, consumer protections and also recent legislation that deals with broadband providers.

Other options include a complete rewrite of the Act from top to bottom or taking the time to edit the language to address current issues in the industry and remove aspects that are outdated.

The trend of landline use being replaced by other alternatives such as cellular- or broadband- based services is likely to continue. The one key issue is that landlines are not completely gone and, as recently surveyed by AARP, 75 percent of our members in Wyoming still have traditional telephone service. In addition, of those members surveyed, almost half said that they oppose the deregulation of that service.

AARP understands there might be a time when traditional telephone service is a thing of the past and, with it, will go the Wyoming Telecommunications Act. However, until that is a reality, our members have told us they want to preserve a certain level of regulation.

They want consumer protections, options for conflict resolution with a company and an assurance that quality services that can be, will be provided for a reasonable charge.

During the 2014 interim period, these are the goals AARP will focus on as it advocates for the continuation of the Wyoming Telecommunication Act.

Telecommunication discussions continue forward

She’ll pass within a mile of Aspen Alley and Adobe

Town, roll through Red Canyon, swing past the Grand Teton National Park entrance, and see Devil’s Tower off in the distance on her way back to Cheyenne.

She’s not traveling Wyoming’s highways to see the sights, though. She’s out there to conduct audits of stockbrokers in order to protect the Cowboy State’s investing public.

Principal Compliance Auditor for the Compliance Division Kelly Vierk says one of the duties of the Secretary of State’s Office is to keep a close eye on those who manage investments by auditing stockbrokers and brokerage firms. Audits come in two forms: routine or for-cause.

“For routine audits, we set up a schedule of audits for the year,” she says, “based on geographical location, trends, recent news, and other factors.” When a stockbroker or brokerage firm is scheduled for an audit, that firm or broker provides Vierk with a great deal of information about the investments handled out of that office.

“We typically spend a full day on-site with the stockbroker and any staff,” she says. “There we complete a books and records check to make sure they have all the documentation they are required to have. That consists of advertising files, correspondence files (communications going both out to clients and in from clients), customer complaint files, commission runs, and other paperwork.”

After the on-site visit is

complete, copies of documents and a sampling of customer accounts are brought back to the Secretary of State’s Office to analyze the transactions. The auditors look for things like unsuitable trades and other violations within the account.

For-cause audits are conducted when the Compliance Division is informed of a potential transgression by a firm or a stockbroker.

Though Vierk says most complaints stem from normal downturns in the market, rather than wrongdoing on the part of the brokerage, every complaint must be investigated thoroughly.

If the Compliance Division finds reason to conduct a formal audit, Vierk and her team take action quickly. They start out taking the same steps they’d take for a routine audit, but without always forewarning to the firm.

For-cause audits then require the auditors to dig much deeper into the allegations and involve much more detail.

Vierk says some audits can take up to a month to complete, and if they find anything the firm needs to address, depending on the severity of the incident, the Compliance Division can take corrective action.

That action ranges from a letter informing the firm of what it needs to do to get back in compliance all the way up to filing criminal

charges.Action as drastic as the latter is

rarely needed, though. Vierk says brokerage firms are

serious about providing good service to their clients, and they run their own annual internal audits to stay ahead of any potential problems that could affect their customers.

“Stockbrokers in Wyoming are honest and hard-working individuals who operate in a highly regulated industry,” says Wyoming Secretary of State Max Maxfield. “My office is responsible for the oversight of that industry in Wyoming and keeping those


Compliance division keeps close tabs in Wyoming

Secretary of State Max Maxfield (R) and Kelly Vierk, Principal Compliance Auditor, (L) discuss an audit summary from a recent visit. Photo courtesy of the Wyoming Secretary fo State’s Office.

stockbrokers in compliance.”“The audits come back clean

more often than not,” Vierk says. “In the audit report, we usually just have a few comments, such as, ‘clean up your advertising folder and you’re good to go.’ “

But auditing isn’t all the Compliance Division does.

Vierk, Director Karen Wheeler and the rest of the staff are responsible for registering all stockbrokers in the state, as well.

If a stockbroker wants to represent even one Wyoming resident, that broker must be registered with the Secretary of State’s office.

There are more than 84,000 stockbrokers registered, but fewer than 600 of those actually live and work here in the Cowboy State.

Additionally, there are more than 1,300 firms registered in Wyoming, though there are only about 350 located here.

For those brokers and firms operating outside Wyoming’s borders, Vierk says they must first be registered in their home state. They also must complete an extensive registration form detailing their background (including any criminal charges, bankruptcies, and even customer complaints).

Meanwhile, they will be thoroughly vetted by a background check before the Compliance Division will allow them to conduct any business with Wyoming investors.

Vierk says she typically gets five to ten registrations a day, though at the same time, other brokers or firms drop out of the registry.

“Anytime a stockbroker leaves the business or stops representing clients in Wyoming, they rescind

their registration.” In fact, brokers are required to

update their information anytime they experience a relevant change in their status – if they change their mailing address, change employers, or get a customer complaint, for instance.

“All that is updated on the stockbroker’s record,” Vierk says. “As Secretary Maxfield says, the securities industry is highly regulated.”

“I encourage anyone to call my office to check out a stockbroker or brokerage firm,” says Maxfield.

For more information about the Compliance Division or any investment opportunity, please contact the Secretary of State’s Compliance Division at 307-777-7370 or visit the Compliance Division website at www.WyInvestorAwareness.gov


Entrusting a stranger with your savings is not

something to take lightly. The Wyoming Secretary of State’s Compliance Division exists to help protect investors, and most brokerage firms take their responsibility very seriously.

If you’re planning to invest with a firm, do some research before you commit. Visit the Compliance Division website at http://soswy.state.wy.us/Investing/InvestorHome.aspx and click on the “Look Up Your Stockbroker” link.

That will take you to the Financial Regulation Authority’s (FINRA) Broker Check page, where you can see if the stockbrokers you’re considering have a favorable rating.

If the stockbrokers you’re researching have been involved in customer disputes, the site will give you a detailed history of those complaints. Keep in mind that any stockbroker who has been in the business for a long time may have at least one complaint on file. Read through the details of those disputes carefully. Quite often, the incidents are deemed to be no fault of the stockbroker.

Reading the information on the FINRA site also can help you make better choices in your own investments. In customer complaints, both the complainant and the stockbroker provide comments that are published. In many cases, these comments serve as a reminder that investors need to take an active role in their investments, provide accurate information to their stockbrokers about what types of investments they want to make (high-risk or low-risk, for example), and to only invest what they can afford to lose, should the market take an unexpected plunge.

The Secretary of State’s investing website at http://soswy.state.wy.us/Investing/IAHome.aspx also provides other advice to investors. There’s a checklist to fill out to help you decide what types of investments you want to make, articles about good investing strategies, explanations of investing terms, and other tools for investors.

Do your homework before you commit. As the Secretary of State’s office advises, “Investigate before you invest.” -By Ty sTockTon

guesT WRiTeR

-By Ty sTockTon

guesT WRiTeR

Investigate before you invest

Are you running around in circles?

Life Reimagined offers tools, activities and support to help break out of your routine, and rediscover what you love. Visit LifeReimagined.org to help you find your what’s next.

Wyoming Office2020 Carey Ave.MezzanineCheyenne, WY 82001

AARP Wyoming News - August 2014

Documents

percent of wyoming residents

telecommunications service

wyoming legislators

wyoming residents access

money telecommunications

reliable telephone service

wound care

ways ways