Legislative session begnins

The Wyoming Legislature convened on Tuesday at the State Capitol to kick off its 37-day general session. As always, a variety of services will be available both online and offline to help members of the public participate in the session.

The numerous bills so far introduced cover potential new laws such as a significant increase to nonresident hunting tags; prevention of crossover voting; 12 months of Medicaid coverage for women after giving birth; an increase to tobacco tax; the creation of a 988 suicide and crisis lifeline; a “back to school tax holiday” to provide relief for parents buying student supplies; prohibiting discrimination based on a person’s vaccination status or whether they are wearing a face covering; the ability to form a special district to provide ambulance services; and an increase of the minimum age at which a person may get married to 16.

Information about the session will be updated daily on the Wyoming Legislature website at legisweb.state.wy.us, including the text of all bills, information about amendments, a record of roll-call votes and actions taken, bill status, daily calendars for the Senate and House and standing committee meeting schedules.

A typical day during the session begins with three hours of committee meetings at 7 a.m., followed by the House and Senate convening in Chambers. After a two-hour recess at noon that also includes committee meetings, the House and Senate again convene at 2 p.m.

To access calendars for the next day’s floor proceedings and committee meetings, visit the website in the late afternoon.

To find out the status of a bill, call 1-800-342-9750 to access a limited service that provides information about where a particular bill is in the legislative process.

To recommend support for or opposition to a piece of legislation, or to leave a short comment regarding a bill that will be available to all legislators, the telephone hotline is available at 307-777-7881 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on days when the Legislature is in session. You can also leave a comment via the online hotline at wyoleg.gov.

Audio proceedings of both the Senate and House of Representatives will stream live throughout the session and will also be available in an archive on the Wyoming Legislature YouTube channel.

The website will be updated daily throughout the session with current information about the status of bills, amendments and votes.

For residents with hearing impairments, the toll-free Wyoming Relay Service is able to provide information on any bill via 1-800-877-9965.

Legislators can be contacted via email. To contact Senator Ogden Driskill directly, email [email protected]; to contact Representative Chip Neiman, email [email protected].