Plentiful vetoes for final set of bills

Governor Mark Gordon allowed a bill that prevents trans women from participating in women’s high school sports to pass into law on Friday, though he wasn’t very happy with the wording.

The bill says that, “A student of the male sex shall not compete, and a public school shall not allow a student of the male sex to compete, in an athletic activity or team designated for students of the female sex” and may only compete in activities designated for males or as co-ed.

If a lawsuit is brought and a judge temporarily suspends the new law while proceedings are ongoing – as happened with the “trigger bill” passed in 2022 that banned abortion – an article within SF 133 allows for the creation of an eligibility commission to decide on individual cases.

Gordon said he supports the overall idea of fairness in competitive female sports, but said the bill, “is overly draconian, is discriminatory without attention to individual circumstances or mitigating factors and pays little attention to fundamental principles of equality.”

Gordon went on to say, “While I freely acknowledge the intent of this legislation is well-meaning as a way to protect the integrity and fairness of women’s sports in our state, by enacting an outright ban on transgender individuals participating in sports teams, I believe Wyoming sends a harmful message that these individuals and their families do not deserve the same opportunities as others. Moreover, the ban leaves little or no flexibility for families to support their children. As a parent, that saddens me.”

Gordon said he will work with the State Superintendent of Public Instruction before the next school year – at which point the new law will be in place – to make sure there is clear guidance on the opportunities for transgender students to have some means to participate safely in interscholastic activities.

He said he recognizes that this may mean these young people may not be able to compete in athletics.

Ballot Forms

Governor Gordon also took issue with SF 131, which prohibits the distribution of unsolicited absentee ballot request forms to voters. The bill states that only a county clerk or the secretary of state can distribute absentee ballot request forms.

Gordon expressed concern that, as written, the bill could result in consequences that would have the opposite effect to the one intended. Instead of bolstering election confidence and integrity, he said, it could compromise them and provide a means to inappropriately suppress proper absentee voting.

Gordon said that the bill was originally brought forward to address the distribution of certain campaign materials and forms. In a letter explaining his line-item veto decision, Gordon referred to a statewide campaign that sent a mailer with a misleading marking saying that an “official election document” was enclosed.

Such an assertion, he said, “understandably could cause confusion and anger some voters”. However, he said it was important to note that this tactic did not put the integrity or security of Wyoming’s elections at risk because the law requires a voter to contact their county clerk to receive a ballot.

According to the governor, the Senate adopted an amendment to clarify the bill, but “some members of the House saw fit to take action to strike this useful Senate amendment while a number of its members were temporarily not on the floor”.

For this reason, Gordon chose to veto the bill.

“I want to be clear, at no time have I been presented with facts of fraud, mismanagement or malfeasance in Wyoming’s election process. Even so, over the past month, I have signed those bills which strengthen election integrity and security, such as codifying existing election rules,” he wrote.

“SF 131, as delivered to my desk, is superfluous and potentially confusing.”

Prescription Drugs

The governor exercised his line-item veto authority on parts of SF 151, the Wyoming prescription drug transparency act, removing parts of the bill that he felt could significantly impact prescription costs for Wyoming consumers.

Specifically, Gordon said that he felt the act would do “more harm than good” as drafted by shifting increased costs to consumers.

He also acknowledged the importance of independent pharmacies in rural parts of the state and the burdens on those small businesses of managing operations with insufficient reimbursements and increasing compliance costs.

To provide relief to these pharmacies, he signed a Governor’s Directive for the Wyoming Department of Administration and Information to negotiate payment of an increased amount of dispensing fee claims of up to $10 per brand label claim and $12 per generic brand claim to independent pharmacists participating in the Wyoming State Employees’ and Officials’ Group Insurance program. 

“This issue is so important to Wyoming, our communities, and our future that I implore health insurance providers to follow in our footsteps,” Gordon said.

“Together, working in unison, we can make a difference in our communities and keep local businesses operational while ensuring quality access to vital healthcare services.”

Stable Token

Gordon allowed the Wyoming Stable Token Act to pass into law without his signature. The bill creates a virtual currency equal to the U.S. dollar and a commission to oversee it.

“I continue to harbor some reservations about the potential impact this program may have on Wyoming’s hard-fought reputation as a thoughtful and strong leader in the world of digital assets,” he said.

While he said that it’s clear digital assets will be important to the rapidly evolving financial ecosystems, “Innovation does not always wait for the perfect, rather it emerges, is refined, and eventually becomes established. Still, first movers are not always rewarded.”

Despite what he described as a “compelling enthusiasm” to see a novel Wyoming stable coin set sail, Gordon spoke to his fear that, “less thought was given to the detailed implementation of such a program perhaps than to the imagined prospects of success”.

Gordon shared his concern that there did not seem to be a “business plan” for the currency – and that the legislation does not require there to be one before a director is hired.

“The Stable Token Commission should, at a minimum, have a solid plan in mind before proceeding to issue tokens,” he said. “Recent history should be a guide for what can befall a poorly thought through build-it-and-they-will-come scheme.”

However, despite his concerns, Gordon stated that enough improvements have been made to the legislation since he vetoed it last year that he decided to allow it to become law without his signature.

“The idea is intriguing enough and furthermore has no hope of being resolved without further diligence,” he said, referring to the job that the executive branch will now have to create a business plan and iron out additional details.