If Wyoming legislators vote to pass House Bill 80 and enact Medicaid expansion, Wyomingites could benefit in numerous ways: they’ll see greater access to health care coverage, a short-term budgetary bump and an influx of federal dollars for years to come.

Sen. Dan Dockstader has compiled a “big thick binder” containing all the property tax proposals that have failed in the Wyoming Legislature in recent years. Some date back to 2006 and 2007, when property values shot up in two western counties but not as much in the rest of Wyoming.

Low income Wyomingites are one step closer to qualifying for government-funded health insurance, as Wyoming legislators on the House Revenue Committee voted Thursday to advance legislation expanding Medicaid access to the House floor.

A bill that would establish a trust fund as a sustainable means of financing in-state 24/7 suicide prevention services passed committee of the whole in the House on Thursday.

Two committees on Wednesday advanced bills that would lead to the review or codification of provisions outlined in the Indian Child Welfare Act as the federal law faces legal challenges in court.

A House committee on Tuesday advanced a bill that would set a minimum age for marriage in Wyoming.

The House Revenue Committee voted 6-3 for House Bill 7, or “Underage marriage-amendments,” which states that individuals getting married should be at least 18 years old with a few exceptions. It also forbids marriages involving those under the age of 16.

A proposed resolution expressing the support of the Wyoming State Legislature to ban the sale of electric vehicles throughout the state by 2035 died in committee Monday, as even some lawmakers who initially supported it declined to bring the measure up for a formal vote.

A House committee on Monday unanimously passed a bill that would ramp up Wyoming’s missing persons alert systems to include adults at risk and to help tribal nations create an emergency communications network, especially in light of missing and murdered Native Americans.

Two measures intended to address the crisis of suicide in Wyoming narrowly cleared a crucial hurdle on Monday after they were favorably reported out of the Labor, Health and Social Services committee.

Most laws that pass the Wyoming Legislature don’t take effect for several months. But on Friday, Sen. Fred Baldwin (R-Kemmerer) urged his colleagues to set an immediate start date on a bill that would make it easier for the public and first responders to get opioid-reversing medications.

The Senate on Friday advanced two education bills in the legislature: one that would clarify Wyoming school districts’ policies prohibiting bullying aren’t limited to students and another that would repeal a statutory provision offering civil and criminal immunity for school staff for corporal discipline of a student.

The Senate education committee wasted no time getting down to business on the second day of the legislative session and passed a bill Wednesday that specifies Wyoming school districts must develop policies to prohibit bullying and harassment beyond just students.

Wyoming lawmakers were sworn into office on Tuesday, officially kicking off the general session of the 67th legislature, with the occasional sheddings of tears and expressions of gratitude for their supportive family members.

Wyoming state legislators return to Cheyenne today for the start of the 2023 general session, a period during which lawmakers have just 40 legislative days to debate and vote on dozens of measures impacting everything from taxes to tribal issues to health care.

A Wyoming legislature committee on Monday approved a bill that would establish a trust fund as a sustainable means of funding in-state 24/7 suicide lifeline coverage – a call to action many stakeholders in the mental health community have advocated as Wyoming reached a new record high suicide rate for 2021.

Wyoming legislators will have a full plate when they return to the statehouse in January for a 40-day general session. As the Wyoming Truth previously detailed, lawmakers are exploring a number of major changes: expanding access to mental health services, helping alleviate home tax rates and addressing a budget crunch impacting public education.

As 2022 winds to a close, Wyoming’s state legislators will soon return to work for a 40-day general session beginning Jan. 10, 2023. With the state budget approved through July of 2024 and legislative redistricting finalized earlier this spring, policymakers are honing in on which issues will top their priorities for next year.