Senate candidate Kost rejects Freedom Caucus, defends public education

Outlines priorities in the Senate District 19 race

Former state senator R. J. Kost says his decision to seek a return to the Wyoming Legislature comes from a belief that the government should focus less on ideology and more on people.

Speaking at a town hall meeting in Lovell last Thursday, Kost discussed everything from education funding and property taxes to agriculture, mental health and the influence of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus. Throughout the evening, he repeatedly returned to themes of local control, public education and finding practical solutions to the challenges facing rural Wyoming communities.

“I want you to vote for what’s best for our county,” Kost told those attending. “I’m going to make the choices that I know the people want.”

Kost, 73, has spent most of his life in the Big Horn Basin and has deep roots in both Big Horn and Park counties. He said the values that have guided his life can be traced back to his parents and his upbringing on a farm near Otto. Growing up in rural Wyoming taught him the importance of hard work, self-reliance and serving others, lessons he carried with him throughout his career in education and public service.

After attending high school in Basin, he pursued higher education and eventually devoted his professional life to teaching and educational leadership.

Kost moved to Powell in 1982 and spent decades as an educator with Park County School District No. 1. Following his retirement, he remained active in public service, serving on the Powell Valley Hospital Board, the Northwest College Board of Trustees and the Wyoming State Board of Education.

In 2018, Kost was elected to represent Senate District 19 after defeating former state senator Ray Peterson in the Republican primary. He served from 2019 to 2022 before losing his re-election bid to Dan Laursen.

Kost says his career in education and public service has been driven by a desire to give back to the communities that helped shape him.

“I need to give back to the communities that have done so much for me,” he said.

Education remains
top priority

Not surprisingly for a retired educator, education occupied much of the discussion. Kost strongly defended Wyoming’s public schools and challenged criticism that the state’s education system is failing.

“Our kids are staying here for good-paying jobs,” he said while discussing recent career and technical education statistics. “The 2024 statistics of kids in CTE that have graduated shows more of those kids staying in the state of Wyoming than going out of the state of Wyoming.”

He also pointed to Wyoming’s academic performance.

“In all the states in the nation, the ACT test that’s required by everybody to take in the state, we’re number one,” Kost said. “When you take a look at fourth grade, we’re in the top six. If you look at eighth grade, we’re in the top 10.”

Kost said schools need to become more focused on helping students find pathways that fit their interests and abilities rather than steering everyone toward a four-year degree.

“I’m not against college. I’m very much in favor of college,” he said. “But every kid does not have to go to college.”

He argued that skilled trades deserve greater respect and support.

“It’s a crime when some kid says, ‘I really would like to weld. I really would like to be a carpenter,’ and somebody says, ‘Why would you want to do that?’”

Defending local control

Kost repeatedly voiced concerns about state-level mandates and funding formulas that reduce local decision-making.

“I’m a firm believer in local control,” he said.

He argued that communities throughout northern Wyoming are different and should not be governed by a single statewide approach.

“Lovell has a different culture and climate than Greybull. Lovell has a different culture and climate than Powell,” Kost said. “If we try to throw all of these in the same basket, it’s not going to work.”

Kost also criticized aspects of Wyoming’s school funding recalibration process, particularly when decisions are made without giving local districts flexibility to address their own needs. He noted that teachers are vital but said support staff are often overlooked.

“Every staff person is important to a kid’s education,” he said. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s a custodian, a bus driver or the cooks. They meet somebody. They talk to them. And all of a sudden there’s a relationship built there that means something to those kids.”

Public schools versus
school choice

Asked about the Steamboat Legacy Scholarship program, which provides public funding for private education and homeschooling expenses, Kost left little doubt about his position. “I’m not in support of it,” he said simply.

Kost said parents have every right to choose homeschooling or private education but should not expect public funding for those decisions.

“You have a choice to be in public school, or you have a choice to homeschool, or you have a choice to private school,” he said. “The choice to be in private school or homeschool is your choice, but then understand you shouldn’t get funding from the state for that choice.”

He also said charter schools receiving public money should be held to the same accountability standards as traditional public schools.

On economic issues, Kost rejected the idea that Wyoming faces an immediate fiscal crisis.

“We’ve got literally billions of dollars in savings for our state,” he said. “Almost 50 percent of our funding is covered by the money that comes from our investments.”

At the same time, he warned against making cuts that could harm local institutions. Pointing to Northwest College, where he serves on the board, Kost said major reductions in property tax revenue could have serious consequences.

“If we lose that 50 percent, we’ll probably have to fire somewhere between 70 and 80 people because there’s nothing left in the community colleges to get rid of but people.”

He expressed similar concerns for healthcare about some proposed tax and budget cuts.

“That hospital is going to take a pretty big cut,” he said, referring to North Big Horn Hospital.

Kost emphasized that rural towns remain essential to Wyoming’s future.

“Our small communities are the backbone of our state,” he said. “It’s important that we make sure that we find ways to help them.”

Agriculture and water concerns

Kost also spent time discussing agriculture and infrastructure. Born and raised on a farm, he said one of Wyoming’s biggest long-term challenges may be maintaining aging irrigation systems.

“Our irrigation system is over 100 years old,” he said.

When discussing water and agriculture, Kost warned that Wyoming’s aging irrigation infrastructure deserves more attention. Pointing to water challenges affecting other parts of the state, he said local communities cannot afford to wait for a major failure before taking action.

“That’s the blood of our life for our farms,” Kost said, emphasizing that agriculture depends on a reliable water supply and continued investment in irrigation systems.

Another issue Kost believes deserves greater attention is mental health.

“Right now we look at mental illness as, ‘Come on, pull your boots up, get tough,’” he said. “That’s not fair.”

He called for additional resources and a greater understanding of the challenges many families face. More broadly, Kost said the government should be focused on helping people rather than dividing them.

“I don’t care who they are. I don’t care how rich they are or how poor they are,” he said. “I care that they’re people.”

Opposition to the
Freedom Caucus

One of the evening’s most direct exchanges came when an attendee asked about the Wyoming Freedom Caucus. Kost responded forcefully.

“I am not a member of the Freedom Caucus,” he said. “I will not be a member of the Freedom Caucus.”

He criticized the organization for expecting lawmakers to follow predetermined voting positions rather than making decisions based on their districts. “The Freedom Caucus pretty much tells you the way you should vote on a certain bill,” he said. His strongest criticism came moments later.

“It’s not a Freedom Caucus. It’s a group that doesn’t have free choice.” Instead, Kost said legislators should answer first to the people they represent.

“Each bill has to work for me and the people I represent,” he said. “I’m a firm believer in District 19 and in Big Horn County.” As the meeting concluded, Kost summarized his approach to public service in simple terms.

“It’s about people, taking care of people,” he said. And while he is seeking a return to the Wyoming Senate, he said he still prefers a less formal title. “You see me on the street, don’t call me senator,” he told the audience. “Call me R. J.”

Voters will choose the Republican nominee for Wyoming Senate District 19 during the state’s primary election on Tuesday, Aug. 18. The winner will advance to the general election on November 3.

Kost will face Powell resident Paul Hoeft, a retired mechanic, in the Republican primary. According to the Wyoming Secretary of State’s candidate roster, the two are the only candidates who filed for the seat. No Democrats have filed to run.

Senate District 19 covers eastern Park County and northern Big Horn County, including the communities of Powell, Garland, Cowley, Byron, Deaver, Frannie, Lovell, Greybull and Shell.