June 30, 2021. An odd day.

 An odd day, historically.

Rumsfeld the second time he served as Secretary of Defense.

Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense under Gerald Ford from 1975 to 1977, and again under George W. Bush, died at age 88.

Rumsfeld had a long career in government, including a stint in Congress.  His association with the military began in 1954 when he was a Naval aviator.  Under President Gerald Ford he would oversea the dramatic destruction of the Cambodian navy due to the Mayaguez Incident, demonstrating that the Untied States was not as weak communist forces in Southeast Asia might imagine.  And yet, in spite of serving in the Navy, and that example, and as Secretary of Defense twice, it was his gross overestimation of the effectiveness of modern technology that lead to the under deployment of US forces early in Afghanistan, a result which lead to a protracted guerilla war, and perhaps to the situation in that country which exists today.

And on the same day the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned Bill Cosby's conviction.

Cosby in 1969.

Cosby went from the heights of fame to the height of infamy when a series of allegations against him lead to convictions for sex crimes.  He's being released not because he was found to be innocent, so to speak, but because his prosecutor failed to honor an agreement with a prior prosecutor.

As for the allegations, we can leave them as they are, but we will note that Cosby had the odd status of having been viewed nearly universally as a conservative family man while simultaneously being one of the individuals frequently found at parties at uber creep Hugh Hefner's mansion. That should have raised some red flags, although he certainly wasn't the only one who shared this status.

Perhaps that should in some ways be his legacy.  What he was accused of was gross creepy sexual behavior, in a nation that has come to celebrate creepy sexual behavior.  If that didn't match his image of being the ideal patriarch, perhaps that signifies that in our modern society we've come to tolerate conduct in the patriarchs and matriarchs that's creepy.  We may be holding him to a higher standard than we hold ourselves, none of which argues for a restoration of his reputation, but a condemnation of our own.

Suffice it to say, both men have obtained reputations that will remain defined by events surrounding them late in life, and which stand in contrast, to some degree, with reputations obtained earlier in life.

Something we said in 2016:

We ran a long election post mortem in 2016. . .nothing like for the 2020 Election cycle of course, but pretty long, here:

Lex Anteinternet: The 2016 Election: I didn't see that coming. . . like all of the rest of the pundits. It's been a wild election year. Yesterday, Donald Trum...

One things, of many, we said there:

The voters who revolted are, no doubt, going to be accused of being racist.  But to desire the America they grew up in, which was more Christian, more employed, and more rural, doesn't make them that way.  The Democrats have been offering them Greenwich Village, the Republicans the Houston suburbs.  It turns out they like the old Port Arthur, Kansas City or Lincoln Nebraska better, and want to go back. That's not irrational.

 

Port Arthur Texas.  I listed to people discuss the upcoming election two weeks ago at the Port Arthur Starbucks and thought they'd really be surprised when Clinton was elected. Turns out, they were much more on the mark than I was.  And it turns out that people in Port Arthur like Port Arthur the way it was twenty or thirty years ago, and they don't like a lot of big, hip trendy urban areas that they're supposed to.

Will Trump be able to do that?

Well, any way you look at it, it's going to be an interesting four years.

Trump will have to act on his populist world view.  I'm certain that it will be only momentarily before the pundits will start opining about how Trump, now that he is the President Elect, will moderate his views, etc., but there is no reason whatsoever to believe that. So far, his entire behavior has been true to what appears to be his basic character. We can anticipate that he will continue to act that way. And an electorate that, essentially, voted to rip everything down wants it down.  I suspect, therefore, that's what we will get.

I also, quite frankly don't think that this is universally bad. As noted, I never supported Trump, and I did not vote for him yesterday.  I'm in the camp so disgusted by both political parties and their candidates that I could not bring myself to hold my note and vote like so many others did. But I do think that Trump will listen to the blue collar element of American society, and somebody needs to.  I do not think that this segment, which knows its being forced out of work by a combination of forces that are not of its own making, but which are more than a little the fault of policies favoring the wealthy, will be quiet.  Clinton would not really have done anything for those people other than to lament their status, Trump will have to do something.  And I also think that Trump will actually nominate justices to the Supreme Court who do not feel compelled to stick to it, such as Justice Anthony Kennedy or who have a social agenda that colors and informs their decisions.  Justices who decide the law are needed on the Court and I think they'll actually be appointed.

Did I get it right?

Something worth remembering . . .

Something worth remembering, posted here in 2016 in this thread Lex Anteinternet: Lex Anteinternet: The 2016 Election.

Lex Anteinternet: The 2016 Election

Lex Anteinternet: The 2016 Election: I didn't see that coming. . . like all of the rest of the pundits. It's been a wild election year. Yesterday, Donald Trum...

The popular vote:

Trump: 47%:  59,611,678

Clinton:  48% 59,814,018

Johnson:  3%  4,058,500

Stein:  1%  1,213,103

Others:  .07%  802,119

A disappointing performance for Stein, given that she was trying to riff of the popular Sanders.  Not very impressive for Johnson either, whom some thought would do well.  That's probably at least 3,000,000 votes off of Trump, however.

Trump becomes President with a minority of votes cast.  Clinton took more, albeit only 200,000 more.  An example, perhaps, of every vote counting, or not, depending upon your view.

Trump lost the popular vote, and had the votes that were spent on Johnson or even Steim. . . yes Stein, been applied elsewhere. . . . 

Anyhow, somehow it's been forgotten that the antiquated Electoral College is all, and I do mean all, that gave Trump the Presidency in the first place.  Those wondering how he could have lost. . . could recall he lost the popular vote last time.

Monday Morning Repeats. An Election Recollection Issue. The best post of the week of November 5, 2017.

We are running two Monday Morning repeats today, for two reasons.

One is that we missed last weeks, so we're making up for it.

The other is that this is suddenly timely again, but likely forgotten.

Lex Anteinternet: Go Donna! In a week of revelations, Donna Brazile...

Had Brazile had her way, the recent election probably would have been on whether or not to reelect Joe Biden. . . and his opponent probably would have been a much younger Republican.

Did we discuss Merrick Garland in 2016?

Yes, we did.

So what did we have to say?

Here's our first entry:

Monday, March 14, 2016

Monday at the Bar: Down to three potential Supreme Court nominees

Rumor has it that President Obama is down to three potential Supreme Court nominees, those being Merrick Garland, Sri Srinivasan and Paul Watford.  All have been vetted successfully by the Republican Senate before.

While the Senate leadership has indicated that it intends to stick to its guns and refuse to consider any pick prior to the next President taking office it has to be the case that the election, which has taken an unpredicted and odd course, may start to change some minds.  Most Republican Senators are undoubtedly of the view that a Trump nomination will go down to defeat against Hillary Clinton in the fall and everyone is aware that a Clinton nominee will be much more liberal than any of these three.  Backing down on their pledge not to consider a nominee would look bad, but the impact would not be as bad as suffering with a liberal appointee in the next Congress.

Obviously, by that time, the Republican leadership in the Senate had already issued its pledge not to consider President Obama's nominee.  

A few weeks had passed, by that time, since Justice Scalia had died.  But it was only March and much of 2016 was left to go. Things were developing in the race, however, as our next entry pointed out.

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Merrick Garland nominated to the Supreme Court

President Obama has nominated Merrick Garland, age 63, to the United States Supreme Court.

I don't know anything about Judge Garland, and indeed rarely do we know anything about a Supreme Court nominee prior to his nomination.  He apparently has a reputation as being a moderate to liberal Federal Judge.  He is a Harvard Law graduate (yet again) and he clerked for the legendary Judge Herbert J. Friendly prior to clerking for United States Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan.  Brennan was a liberal Supreme Court Justice and we will likely be hearing about that if the confirmation process begins.

His remarkably older than recent nominees, which is interesting.  At age 63 this will be his one and only chance to make the Supreme Court.  He also has more experience, apparently, on the Federal bench than any other prior nominee.

Other than that, I can't comment much on him.  I would note that this is yet another instance of the Ivy League law schools having a seeming lock on the high court, which I don't think is a good thing, and its also another instance of the only people being considered being people who are currently sitting on the Federal bench in a lower appeals court.  Having said that, given the political dynamics in play, President Obama had to either nominate a sitting judge or a non controversial politician.  An attempt to do the latter seems to have been made with the vetting of Nevada's current governor, who declined to be considered.

On the politics of this, this now puts the Senate to the test.  If it declines to consider Garland it gambles on the Republican Party taking the Presidency, which is looking increasingly unlikely.  Garland is likely to be less liberal, maybe, than anyone Hillary Clinton, who is likely to be the Democratic nominee, may make.  Additionally, given the extreme contentiousness of the current political season there is some question, although only sum, on whether the GOP shall hold the Senate.  I think it likely that it will, but if it fails to then the next nominee will definitely be a more liberal judge. Indeed, it is not impossible that the next justice, under that scenario, could be President Obama, following in the footsteps of President Taft.

Of course, backing down from the pledge not to consider a nominee would have political consequences, the most likely one being that it would become fodder for the Trump campaign, which is currently under siege from the Republican "establishment" and which would argue that the GOP was betraying the base.

I thought, at the time, as is clear that the gamble the GOP was making in not taking up Merrick Garland's nomination was really risky. As it turned out, it was brilliant strategically. By waiting President Obama out, the Republicans were able to secure a conservative replacement for Justice Scalia, although certainly not one of his intellectual weight.  It was a gamble that paid off for them.  It's essentially the same gamble that Ruth Bader Ginsburg made in the latter stages of President Obama's second term, betting on a Democratic administration, which didn't pay off.

What I also thought, but which I didn't put down in these posts, but might have elsewhere, is that it was Constitutionally questionable for the Senate not to take up the Garland nomination.  The Senate's job is to "advise and consent".  It didn't do that.

Indeed, in retrospect, Democrats could have filed suit and sought a Writ of Mandamus requiring the Senate to hold hearings.  But it would have been to no avail.  All that would have occured, had they won, was to convene hearings sometime that Summer which would have lead, I suspect, to a non confirmation.  That would have been quite politically awkward for the GOP, and it might have had the impact of swinging the election to the Democrats.

Contrary to what people seem to believe, things like this aren't that unusual.  I've known one well qualified nominee to the Federal bench who didn't get on as the Senate didn't take up his nomination for political reasons. Granted, that wasn't to the Supreme Court, but to a Federal District Court, but nonetheless these things occur. They simply waited that nominees President out until there was a new one.  That's exactly what the Republicans did, very openly, in 2016.

It doesn't appear that they'll do that here, but the Democrats don't really have a good argument that the GOP should wait.  In 2016  they argued against it.  There's no Constitutional requirement that waiting be done.  

The real question, therefore, is whether lifetime appointments of this type make sense any longer. The better evidence is that they don't.

Labor. 1920, and now.

 

Jewelry workers, 1920.

A Labor Day post.

It can be difficult to take the necessary wrenching steps to prepare for the future, but looking back at the past may help us to see how important these steps are. The graphic below depicts how occupational employment has changed in America since 1920. Students entering the workforce today face a dramatically different landscape of jobs than their parents did in the 1980s or their grandparents in the 1950s. And the work world that their great-grandparents entered in the 1920s is almost unrecognizable.

Back then, about 25 percent of jobs were in agriculture and 40 percent were in manufacturing and other blue collar fields. Today, fewer than one percent of jobs are agricultural and only about 20 percent are blue collar.

In the 1920s, only about 5 percent of workers held professional jobs. This has exploded over the last 90 years and today about 35 percent of workers have professional jobs. Rapidly advancing technology has not only automated and eliminated many jobs that once provided manufacturing, blue collar,  and agricultural employment for millions of Americans, but it has also increased demand for professionals who create, manage, and explain this technology, many of them working in occupations that were unimaginable 90 years ago.

From:  StatChat, University of Virginia.

Looking back a few years earlier, to 1915, reveals this interesting information:

Labor force participation. The 1915 annual average civilian labor force participation rate is estimated at 56.3 percent. This percentage isn’t strictly comparable to the 2015 annual average of 62.7 percent, because of differences in survey coverage and definitions.¹⁷ However, despite the similarity in overall labor force participation, the participation rates of men and women were very different from each other 100 years ago. The 1920 census shows that, among people ages 14 and older, the proportion of the population that was in the total labor force was 85 percent for men and 23 percent for women in January of that year. (Civilian labor force data by gender are not available for 1915.) In contrast, the Current Population Survey shows a 2015 annual average civilian labor force participation rate for people ages 16 and older of about 69 percent for men and nearly 57 percent for women. Table 1 points out that young boys were much more likely to be in the labor force in 1920 than now. Not surprisingly, women of all ages are much more likely to be in the labor force now than in 1920. Half of all boys ages 14 to 19 were in the labor force in 1920; nowadays, about one-third of boys age 16 to 19 are in the labor force. Labor force participation among girls those ages hasn’t shown as much change.

From:  Bureau of Labor Statistics.  And also from the BLS, this interesting statistic which we've discussed as a topic here before.

Education. A century ago, most jobs required little formal schooling, and most of the population had not gone beyond elementary or grammar school. In fact, high school graduates were a rarity: in 1915, only an estimated 18 percent of the population ages 25 and older had completed high school, and only about 14 percent of people ages 14–17 were in high school. Royal Meeker, appointed Commissioner of Labor Statistics by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913, had recently written a New York Times article advocating compulsory public education through the intermediate grades. He noted, “Boys and girls drop out of school at all stages of the educational process, but fail to drop smoothly into any part of our economic system.”¹⁸ While failure to graduate remains a concern, more than 86 percent of the U.S. population age 25 in 2010–14 had completed high school or more. The average length of the public school term was about 160 days a century ago, compared with 180 days now, and the average number of days attended in 1915 was only 121.¹⁹ Many young girls and boys worked instead of being enrolled in school. In fact, New York City’s State Factory Investigating Commission in 1914 reported that “nearly 75 percent of factory women studied had left school before the eighth grade, as had nearly 40 percent of the female store employees interviewed.”²⁰ The legal age for leaving school was generally 14, compared with 16–18 today.

And this interesting set of figures, related to the "everything was cheaper back then" claim that people so often hear:

Of course, most prices of food in 1915 were much different from those in 2015, and several staple items are substantially more affordable today. Here are some examples of 1915 and 2015 prices (using data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics):

Item	1915 price	1915 price in 2015 dollars	2015 price
Bread (1-lb loaf)	$0.07	$1.65	$1.42
Butter (lb)	.36	8.48	3.18
Eggs (dozen)	.34	8.01	2.81
Ground coffee (lb)	.30	7.06	4.61
Potatoes (10 lbs)	.15	3.53	6.55

Interestingly, in that chart, the only thing that's really climbed in adjustered prices is the price of potatoes, which is nearly double the current (or the 2015) prices.   The only thing that has near parity with its century old price is bread.

Blog Mirror: The life of American workers in 1915

 A fascinating read:

The life of American workers in 1915

Somehow I missed the fact that the master biographer Edmund Morris died last May.

He was 78 years old.

His series on Theodore Roosevelt, started as work when he was a graduate student, is an absolute masterpiece.  The three volume work was interrupted by his biography on Ronald Reagan, which I haven't read, but in which he included unusual writing techniques including the acknowledge inclusion of fiction in order to illustrate events which actually happened, a technique which lead the work to be condemned and which I suspect was done to address the problem that Ronald Reagan's early years simply weren't that interesting.

Morris was born in Kenya and had a clipped upper class English accent.  His early career was not in history or writing and The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, his first book, was not issued until he was 40 years old.  His last well known work, Colonel Roosevelt, and the second volume of his history of Roosevelt, Theodore Rex, were delayed by his twelve year effort researching Reagan, an effort that lead him to the conclusion that Reagan was almost impossible to understand.  

Morris wrote only seven books, with his final work on Edison being published after his death.  He'll always be remembered for his three volume set on Theodore Roosevelt.

The Wyoming Legislature 2020, Part Two

February 27, 2020.

While the old thread here was long, it wasn't so long that I couldn't have added to it.

I'm not, as I want to point out yet another land grabbing effort by certain members of the legislature, this time with Senate File 110.

The bill, which was principally the work of a dedicated opponent of Federal lands in Utah who is now a member of an organization that is involved in this topic, seeks to determine the "fair market value" of the Federal lands in Wyoming, ostensibly for the purpose of demanding that the Federal Government compensate the State for lost tax revenues.

It won't stay at that.

There's a section of the legislature that has its ears to the mouths of a very small minority of those in the state who really have a desire to have the Federal Government turn over to the state that which the State disavowed when it became a state, those Federal lands within the State.

Federal lands make the state what it is.  If they're lost to the Federal government they'll soon be lost to Wyomingites, as the state never saw a parcel of land that it didn't think it should sell.

Moreover, this would be the death of ranching and mineral exploration in the state even if the lands didn't change hands, something the legislators who are voting for this bill seem to have missed.  If the lands are worth more than the Federal government compensates us for, and we know their exact value, well then grazing leases ought to cost more, and oil and gas leases ought to cost more.  Everything ought to cost more, in fact.

The time has really come for this to cease.

Some prior threads of interest:

A second look at one of this season's bad political ideas. "Taking back" the Federal land

Holding meetings and flat out ignoring the comments

Lex Anteinternet: The 2018 Wyoming Legislative Session. At What Point Is Enough, Enough?

A Legislative Session to watch and the dynamics and culture of trying to grab the public lands.

Lex Anteinternet: "This land is my land, but shouldn't be your land"...

Getting a clue

Lex Anteinternet: Rally for Public Lands, Casper Wyoming, November 5, 2016

Exposing the foolishness of transfering the public lands

Proposed land swap comes under fire for restricting public access

It's worth noting, by the way, that these threads go back to 2014.  Enough of this is enough.  Legislators are flat out ignoring their constituents on this one.

The bill:

SENATE FILE NO. SF0110

Evaluating the tax equivalency of federal land in Wyoming.

Sponsored by: Senator(s) Steinmetz, Agar, Biteman, Dockstader, Driskill and Hutchings and Representative(s) Jennings, Lindholm, Olsen, Piiparinen, Sommers and Tass

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to public lands; requiring a study to evaluate federal payments in lieu of taxes and to appraise the value of federally held lands in Wyoming; authorizing the use of consultants; requiring reports; defining terms; providing an appropriation; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1. 

(a)  As used in this section:

(i)  "Federal land" means any land within the state of Wyoming that is owned, held or controlled by the United States government or any agency, department or subdivision thereof. "Federal land" shall not include:

(A)  Any federal military installation;

(B)  Any federal enclave created under article I, section 8, clause 17 of the United States Constitution;

(C)  Land within the limits of any Indian reservation as provided in 18 U.S.C. § 1151.

(ii)  "Payments in lieu of tax" means payments made by the United States government to the state of Wyoming or a county, municipality or school district in Wyoming. "Payments in lieu of tax" shall include:

(A)  Payments for entitlement land as provided in 31 U.S.C. §§ 6901 through 6907;

(B)  Impact aid payments as provided in 20 U.S.C. §§ 7701 through 7714.

(b)  Not later than November 1, 2021, the office of state lands and investments shall study the impact on the failure of the United States government to make payments in lieu of tax that are equivalent to the property tax revenue that the state of Wyoming would otherwise generate from lands under federal ownership or control within Wyoming. The office shall evaluate and appraise all federal lands in Wyoming in real time to determine the fair taxable value of all federal lands in Wyoming.

(c)  The office of state lands and investments shall work with professional consultant experts to complete the study required under this section. The office shall retain professional consulting experts for the purposes of this act.

(d)  As part of the study required under this section, the office of state lands and investments shall:

(i)  Hold at least one (1) public meeting to accept testimony from representatives of each United States senator and representative elected from Wyoming, any state agency, county, municipality, political subdivision and school district and any other interested party impacted by the United States government's failure to make payments in lieu of tax that are equivalent to the property tax revenue that federal lands would generate;

(ii)  Compile data necessary to conduct the real‑time appraisal required under subsection (b) of this section. The office of state lands and investments shall collect, provide and update information and data as requested by professional consultant experts working with the office. Other state agencies and counties shall prepare, collect, provide and update information and data as requested by the office of state lands and investments and professional consultant experts working with the office.

(e)  For the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending November 1, 2021, the office of state lands and investments shall report quarterly to the joint agriculture, state and public lands and water resources interim committee on the progress of the study required by this section. The first quarterly report shall be submitted not later than June 30, 2020. Each subsequent quarterly report shall be submitted to the committee not later than the final calendar day of each calendar quarter. The office shall submit a final report to the joint agriculture, state and public lands and water resources interim committee not later than November 1, 2021 on the results of the study required by this section.

(f)  The joint agriculture, state and public lands and water resources interim committee may coordinate with each United States senator or representative elected from Wyoming to secure payments in lieu of tax that are equivalent to the property tax revenue that the state would otherwise generate from lands under federal ownership or control within Wyoming.

(g)  The joint agriculture, state and public lands and water resources interim committee may sponsor any legislation necessary to complete the study required by this section. The committee may sponsor any legislation in response to the results of the study required by this section.

(h)  Notwithstanding W.S. 9-2-1008, 9-2-1012(e) and 9‑4‑207, five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) of the unexpended, unobligated monies appropriated from the legislative stabilization reserve account to the office of the governor under 2018 Wyoming Session Laws, Chapter 134, Section 331(h) shall revert and is appropriated to the office of state lands and investments for expenses associated with any consulting services procured by the office as provided by this act. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2022. This appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2022. It is the intent of the legislature that this appropriation not be included in the office's standard budget for the immediately succeeding fiscal biennium.

(j)  Notwithstanding W.S. 9-2-1008, 9-2-1012(e) and 9‑4‑207, two million dollars ($2,000,000.00) of the unexpended, unobligated monies appropriated from the legislative stabilization reserve account to the office of the governor under 2018 Wyoming Session Laws, Chapter 134, Section 331(h) shall revert and is appropriated to the office of state lands and investments for expenses associated with any licensing or subscription fees for software associated with the appraisals conducted pursuant to this act. Of this appropriation, not more than four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000.00) shall be expended in any one (1) fiscal year. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2026. This appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2026. It is the intent of the legislature that this appropriation not be included in the office's standard budget for the immediately succeeding fiscal biennium.

Section 2.  This act is effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.

On a somewhat related note, another bill is pending to seek to amend the state's constitution so that a super-majority isn't needed in order to introduce legislation during a budget session.

Way over 100 bills were introduced this session.  This bill isn't needed, it should be stopped. When Wyoming went to the current system in 1970 the idea was that legislation really could wait to be considered every other year.

It can be.

February 27, 2020, part two.

One thing I should have noted above is that we're now in the era of canned bills, and that's really influencing what we're seeing in the legislature.

By "canned bills" what I mean is pre drafted bills put together by organizations with an agenda.  Legislators go to conferences put on by these groups and the bills are therefore the taking.

In recent years political organizations, ie., groups that have a political agenda, have become back scene successes in Wyoming. This is so much the case that one old legislator I know told me that it saddened him to see Wyoming's legislature being bought, which is how he viewed it.  He is a reasoned fellow so his lament shouldn't be lightly dismissed.

What he meant is that organizations with a lot of money were now having an outsize influence in the state.  Indeed, we've seen the situation in which certain agendas seem to have become very prominent and local state organizations are left scrambling, year after year, to address them.

Part of this involves the pre drafted canned bill. These organizations have nationwide agendas and can hire lawyers to draft bills that they hand out everywhere where they might have an application.  This means that the hard work of drafting a bill, and it isn't easy, has already been done by somebody else.

There's likely nothing that can be done about this, but perhaps some effort should be made to shed a little light on where the bills ultimately come from.  On Senate File 110 I'm unaware of the back story to it, other than to the extent it was published in the Tribune, but its prime mover does seem to be a former Utah legislator who backed a similar bill in Utah, and whose efforts more recently bore fruit in Idaho for the same sort of bill.  As noted, Utah is the epicenter of the grabbing back movement, although even there it isn't universally approved of.  A Utah Congressman who was a big backer of such things met with a really hostile reaction from his constituents last time he backed such a bill and in the end thought it wiser to not run again.

________________________________________________________________________________

February 28, 2020

And SF110 passed its third reading.  Here's the breakdown of the votes:

Vote recorded: 2/27/2020 4:44PM
Ayes: AGAR, BEBOUT, BITEMAN, BONER, BOUCHARD, DOCKSTADER, DRISKILL, ELLIS, GIERAU, HICKS, HUTCHINGS, JAMES, KINSKEY, MONIZ, NETHERCOTT, ROTHFUSS, SCOTT, STEINMETZ
Nays: ANDERSON, ANSELMI-DALTON, BALDWIN, CASE, COE, KOST, LANDEN, PAPPAS, PERKINS, SCHULER, VON FLATERN, WASSERBURGER

In other legislative news, a bill that would require train crews to be no less than two passed.

________________________________________________________________________________

February 29, 2020

The hotel lodging bill which would impose a statewide lodging tax which would support the state's tourism industry passed and is on its way to the Governor's desk.

This is a bill that's been worked on for a long time and which previously met opposition from the hotel industry, but which was supported this time by the tourism industry.

A prior thread on tourism as a feature of Wyoming's economy:

Lex Anteinternet: Issues In the Wyoming Election. A Series. Issue No. 1 (d). The Economy again. . . Tourism. The fragile leg of the stool

The House passed a bill to create a state gaming commission, widely seen as a bill that would legalize gambling statewide.  It provides:

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0171

Wyoming gaming commission.

Sponsored by: Joint Travel, Recreation, Wildlife & Cultural Resources Interim Committee

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to gaming; generally amending statutes concerning pari-mutuel events, gaming and gambling; reconstituting the pari-mutuel commission as the Wyoming gaming commission and increasing membership; establishing duties for the commission; regulating skill based amusement games as specified; authorizing skill based amusement game fees, collections and distributions as specified; creating an account; authorizing commission employees to be peace officers and authorizing enforcement by the attorney general as specified; providing penalties; providing applicability; requiring rulemaking; making conforming amendments; requiring a report; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1. 

(a)  Notwithstanding W.S. 6‑7‑102, skill based amusement games operating in the state prior to January 1, 2020 shall be allowed to continue operation until June 30, 2021 in accordance with the requirements of this section.

(b)  Any skill based amusement game that does not meet the requirements of this section shall be removed from the state.

(c)  Within sixty (60) days of the effective date of this section a skill based amusement game that meets the requirements of this section shall be approved by the commission to continue operating in the state or it shall be removed from the state.

(d)  Each operator shall provide for a nationally recognized, independent gaming laboratory approved by the commission to directly submit to the commission a general functional evaluation laboratory report regarding the software installed on each skill based amusement game indicating whether the skill based amusement game is in compliance with this section. Any skill based amusement game that does not meet the requirements of this section as indicated by the laboratory report shall immediately be removed from the state.

(e)  Skill based amusement games that meet the requirements of this section shall bear a commission issued decal that identifies the operator of the game. No skill based amusement game shall be operational unless it bears a commission issued decal. The commission shall charge a fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) for a decal. Each decal shall include the bucking horse and rider emblem. Fees collected shall be deposited to the commission gaming account, which is hereby created. For the period from the effective date of this section through June 30, 2021, funds within the account are continuously appropriated to the commission to pay for reasonable expenses incurred to administer this section.

(f)  No skill based amusement game shall allow a game play of more than three dollars ($3.00) per play.

(g)  No skill based amusement game shall allow a payout of more than three thousand dollars ($3,000.00) per play.

(h)  No establishment shall have more than four (4) skill based amusement games at any one (1) time. Only an establishment that had a skill based amusement game operating within the establishment as of January 1, 2020 may continue to have a skill based amusement game operating pursuant to this section.

(j)  An establishment shall not locate a skill based amusement game in an area of the establishment into which a person under the age of twenty‑one (21) years may enter. An establishment shall conspicuously mark each area of the establishment with a skill based amusement game as an "age restricted area." The establishment shall not allow a person under the age of twenty‑one (21) years to play a skill based amusement game.

(k)  An establishment shall pay the commission a fee of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) to continue to have skill based amusement games in the establishment until June 30, 2021. Operators of skill based amusement games shall pay the commission a fee of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) to operate skill based amusement games until June 30, 2021. Fees paid pursuant to this subsection shall be deposited into the commission gaming account.

(m)  Taxes shall be calculated and paid on a weekly basis based on the gross income earned during the prior week on skill based amusement games.  On a weekly basis, an operator shall remit to the commission an amount equivalent to twenty percent (20%) of the gross income earned during the prior week on the operator's skill based amusement games. The commission shall deposit these monies to the commission gaming account. The commission shall report on amounts received under this subsection to the joint appropriations committee quarterly.

(n)  The commission may promulgate any necessary rules to implement and administer this section.

(o)  This section shall not apply to pari‑mutuel wagering on events that have previously occurred.

(p)  As used in this section:

(i)  "Commission" means the commission created under W.S. 11‑25‑101;

(ii)  "Establishment" means a single physical place of business;

(iii)  "Gross income" means all revenue less payment of winnings;

(iv)  "Manufacturer" means a person engaged in the business of constructing or procuring skill based amusement games and selling or leasing skill based amusement games and software to operators;

(v)  "Operator" means a person that possesses and operates skill based amusement games for profit;

(vi)  "Skill based amusement game" means a game played in exchange for consideration of cash, credit or other thing of value on a fixed, commercial electrical gaming device in which the bona fide skill of the player, determined by an individual's level of strategy and skill, rather than any inherent element of chance, is the primary factor in determining the outcome and for which the player may be awarded a prize or other thing of value for a successful outcome.

(q)  Any person who violates any provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00), imprisoned for not more than six (6) months, or both.

(r)  This section is repealed effective July 1, 2021.

Section 2.  W.S. 6‑1‑104(a)(vi)(P) and by creating a new subparagraph (R), 6‑7‑101(a)(iii)(A), (D)(I), (F)(intro), by creating a new subparagraph (M) and by creating a new paragraph (xiii), 7‑2‑101(a)(iv)(N) and by creating a new subparagraph (P), 7‑19‑201(a)(vi), 9‑1‑627(d), 9‑2‑2008(e)(xiii), 11‑25‑101, 11‑25‑102(a)(ii) and by creating a new paragraph (xv), 11‑25‑103, 11‑25‑104(a), (e) and by creating new subsections (n) and (o), 11‑25‑105(b)(ii) through (iv) and 11‑25‑112 are amended to read:

6‑1‑104.  Definitions.

(a)  As used in this act, unless otherwise defined:

(vi)  "Peace officer" includes the following officers assigned to duty in the state of Wyoming:

(P)  Any superintendent, assistant superintendent or full‑time park ranger of any state park, state recreation area, state archeological site or state historic site who has qualified pursuant to W.S. 9‑1‑701 through 9‑1‑707, when acting within the boundaries of the state park, state recreation area, state archeological site or state historic site or when responding to a request to assist other peace officers acting within the scope of their official duties in their own jurisdiction; and

(R)  Any person qualified pursuant to W.S. 9‑1‑701 through 9‑1‑707 and employed by the Wyoming gaming commission when engaged in the performance of that person's duties.

6‑7‑101.  Definitions.

(a)  As used in this article:

(iii)  "Gambling" means risking any property for gain contingent in whole or in part upon lot, chance, the operation of a gambling device or the happening or outcome of an event, including a sporting event, over which the person taking a risk has no control, but does not include any of the following:

(A)  Bona fide contests of skill, speed, strength or endurance in which awards are made only to entrants or the owners of entries. This exception shall not include skill based amusement games;

(D)  Bingo games conducted, or pull tabs sold, by charitable or nonprofit organizations where the tickets for the bingo are sold only in this state and the pull tabs are sold only on the premises owned or occupied by the charitable or nonprofit organization provided that:

(I)  Bingo games and pull tab games shall only be conducted by charitable or nonprofit organizations, which have been in existence in this state for at least three (3) years and, commencing July 1, 2020, are licensed by the Wyoming gaming commission under W.S. 11‑25‑104(n) to conduct bingo or pull tab games;

(F)  Calcutta wagering on contests or events conducted by a bona fide nationally chartered veterans', religious, charitable, educational or fraternal organization or nonprofit local civic or service club organized or incorporated under the laws of this state and, commencing July 1, 2020, licensed by the Wyoming gaming commission under W.S. 11‑25‑104(n) to conduct calcutta wagering on contests or events, provided that:

(M)  Activities authorized by the Wyoming gaming commission pursuant to law.

(xiii)  "Skill based amusement game" means a game played in exchange for consideration of cash, credit or other thing of value on a fixed, commercial electrical gaming device in which the bona fide skill of the player, determined by an individual's level of strategy and skill, is a factor in determining the outcome and for which the player may be awarded a prize or other thing of value for a successful outcome.

7‑2‑101.  Definitions.

(a)  As used in W.S. 7‑2‑101 through 7‑2‑107:

(iv)  "Peace officer" means:

(N)  The director and full‑time staff instructors of the Wyoming law enforcement academy when duly appointed and acting pursuant to W.S. 9‑1‑633(b); and

(P)  Any person qualified pursuant to W.S. 9‑1‑701 through 9‑1‑707 and employed by the Wyoming gaming commission when engaged in the performance of that person's duties.

7‑19‑201.  State or national criminal history record information.

(a)  The following persons shall be required to submit to fingerprinting in order to obtain state and national criminal history record information:

(vi)  Persons applying for a permit or license under W.S. 11‑25‑104(f) or if otherwise required under title 11, chapter 25 of the Wyoming statutes;

9‑1‑627.  Authority to compile, disseminate and exchange information; immunity; access to information limited; security precautions.

(d)  Access to criminal history record information is available to the Wyoming pari‑mutuel gaming commission as provided for by W.S. 11‑25‑104(k) law. The commission shall take reasonable security precautions to prevent unauthorized persons from gaining access to criminal history record information in accordance with rules and regulations established by the Wyoming division of criminal investigation. For the purpose of this subsection "criminal history record information" means information, records and data compiled by criminal justice agencies on individuals for the purpose of identifying criminal offenders consisting of identifiable descriptions of the offenders and notations or a summary of arrests, detentions, indictments, information, pre‑trial proceedings, nature and disposition of criminal charges, sentencing, rehabilitation, incarceration, correctional supervision and release. Criminal history record information is limited to information recorded as the result of the initiation of criminal proceedings. It does not include intelligence data, analytical prosecutorial files, investigative reports and files of statistical records and reports in which individual identities are not ascertainable.

9‑2‑2008.  Department of administration and information created; director appointed; structure.

(e)  The following functions or programs shall be transferred from the department of commerce to the department of administration and information under a Type 3 transfer:

(xiii)  Pari‑mutuel Gaming commission;

11‑25‑101.  Wyoming gaming commission created; composition; qualifications.

The Wyoming pari‑mutuel gaming commission is created to be composed of seven (7) nine (9) persons who have resided in the state for four (4) years and are qualified electors of Wyoming.

11‑25‑102.  Definitions.

(a)  As used in this act:

(ii)  "Commission" means the Wyoming pari‑mutuel gaming commission;

(xv)  "Net proceeds" means all revenue less the payment to the player.

11‑25‑103.  Gaming commission; appointment, terms of office and political affiliation of members; vacancies; appointment districts.

The governor with the consent of the senate shall appoint the seven (7) nine (9) members of the commission in accordance with W.S. 28‑12‑101 through 28‑12‑103. One (1) member Seven (7) of the nine (9) members shall be appointed from each appointment district under W.S. 9‑1‑218. One (1) of the remaining members shall be, at the time of appointment and during the term of appointment, an active county or municipal law enforcement officer certified under title 9, chapter 1, article 7 of the Wyoming statutes. Members shall be appointed for terms of four (4) years and until their successor is appointed and qualified. Any vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the governor as provided in W.S. 28‑12‑101. A member of the commission may succeed himself for one (1) full four (4) year term. The governor may remove any member as provided in W.S. 9‑1‑202. Additionally, one (1) senator appointed by the president of the senate, one (1) representative appointed by the speaker of the house and one (1) gubernatorial representative shall serve as liaisons to the commission.  Legislative liaisons shall be paid salary, per diem and mileage as provided in W.S. 28‑5‑101 when attending meetings of the commission.

11‑25‑104.  Gaming commission; officers; director; meetings; quorum; records; licenses generally; effect of financial interest in events.

(a)  The commission shall annually elect from its membership a president and vice‑president, and may employ a director who has a working knowledge of pari‑mutuel betting, and horse racing and other forms of gaming regulated by the commission or an executive secretary, or both. The director may be retained on a yearly basis or for the racing season only as determined by the commission. Salary for the director or executive secretary shall be determined by the commission with the consent of the personnel division. The commission may also employ other personnel required to carry out this act.

(e)  The commission shall authorize by permits license or permit and supervise all the conduct of all events provided for and regulated by this act., and The commission shall make reasonable rules and regulations for the control, supervision and direction of applicants, permittees, including regulations providing and licensees. The rules shall include procedures for resolving scheduling conflicts and settling disputes between permittees, and for the supervising, disciplining, suspending, fining and barring from pari‑mutuel events of all persons required to be licensed or permitted by this act, and for the holding, conducting and operating of all pari‑mutuel events conducted pursuant to this act. The commission may require that license applicants be fingerprinted for identification purposes as a condition of licensing. The commission shall announce the place, time and duration of pari‑mutuel events for which license or permit fees shall be required and establish reasonable fees for all licenses and permits provided for by this act. The fees shall be established to ensure that the costs of administering this act are recovered through the total revenues received under this act. The commission shall establish security access safeguards for licensees to use for advance deposit pari‑mutuel wagering. The commission shall prohibit advance deposit pari‑mutuel advertising that it determines to be deceptive to the public.

(n)  Commencing July 1, 2020, any person conducting an activity as specified by W.S. 6‑7‑101(a)(iii)(D) or (F) shall first obtain a license from the commission. Under this subsection, the commission shall not charge license applicants any fee and shall not require any fee for any license issued. Any person required to be licensed under this subsection shall file an annual report with the commission as specified by rule.

(o)  In addition to all other duties, the commission, in the reasonable exercise of its discretion, shall enforce W.S. 6‑7‑101 through 6‑7‑104.

11‑25‑105.  Licenses and permits; fees and reports; disposition of funds; enforcement of provisions.

(b)  Every Wednesday following any pari‑mutuel event, the permittee shall:

(ii)  Pay an amount equal to one‑quarter percent (1/4%) three and three hundred seventy‑five thousandths percent (3.375%) of the total amount wagered net proceeds attributable to historic pari‑mutuel events and one and one‑half percent (1 1/2%) of the total amount wagered attributable to live pari‑mutuel events, shown by the report to the commission, to be credited by the state treasurer to a separate account, in the manner indicated in subsection (d) of this section;

(iii)  Pay an amount equal to one percent (1%) thirteen and one‑half percent (13.5%) of the total amount wagered net proceeds attributable to historic pari‑mutuel events, shown by the report to the commission, to be transferred by the commission to the county and the city or town in which the permittee is located, in equal shares, or to the county alone if the permittee is not located within the boundaries of a city or town. The county, city or town receiving an amount under this paragraph may credit that amount to the state fair account upon a majority vote of the county's, city's or town's governing body; and

(iv)  Pay an amount equal to one‑quarter percent (1/4%) three and three hundred seventy‑five thousandths percent (3.375%) of the total amount wagered net proceeds attributable to historic pari‑mutuel events, shown by the report to the commission, to be credited to the legislative stabilization reserve account.

11‑25‑112.  Penalties.

(a)  Any person, corporation or association holding or conducting any pari‑mutuel event in connection with the pari‑mutuel system of wagering without a permit issued in accordance with this act, or any person, corporation or association who violates any other provision of this act is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00), imprisoned for not more than six (6) months, or both.

(b)  The attorney general may, at the request of the commission, act on behalf of the commission to prosecute criminal actions under this chapter or title 6, chapter 7, article 1 of the Wyoming statutes if after a thorough investigation the attorney general determines the action is supported by probable cause.

Section 3.

(a)  The Wyoming pari‑mutuel commission is continued as the Wyoming gaming commission, as provided in this act. All positions, personnel, appropriations, property and equipment of the Wyoming pari‑mutuel commission shall be under control of the Wyoming gaming commission, as created by this act. The validity of rules, regulations, orders, contracts, agreements or other obligations of the Wyoming pari‑mutuel commission shall not be affected by this act.

(b)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this act, members of the Wyoming pari‑mutuel commission shall continue their current terms as members of the Wyoming gaming commission.

(c)  The appointment of the newly created eighth and ninth members to the Wyoming gaming commission may be made under this act on or after the effective date of this section.

Section 4.  The Wyoming pari‑mutuel commission or the Wyoming gaming commission, as applicable, shall promulgate rules necessary to implement and administer this act as expeditiously as necessary.

Section 5.  The Wyoming pari‑mutuel commission or the Wyoming gaming commission, as applicable, shall conduct a study of gaming in the state. The study shall evaluate skill based amusement games in the state. The commission shall examine how many games are operating in the state, the locations of all of the games, the amount of wagers made on the games and revenues earned from the games. Additionally, the commission shall provide options to the legislature for regulation of skill based amusement games, video game terminals, sports wagering and other commercially viable forms of gaming. Additionally, the commission shall evaluate impacts to other states that have recently expanded forms of legal gaming. The commission shall report in writing the results of its study to the legislature by September 1, 2020.

Section 6.  This act is effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.

That bill now goes to the Senate.

And the Speaker of the House rebuked a former legislator for telling a weird joke about pornography on the floor of the House.  It was weird, and not funny, and will not be repeated here.

_______________________________________________________________________________

March 6, 2020

The "Crossover Voting" bill died in the Senate where it was not introduced.

This bill has been a major GOP theme in some quarters the past few years and is based on the thesis that a lot of Democrats crossed over into the GOP to vote for Governor Gordon in the last Republican primary. The University of Wyoming, in looking at it, stated that this isn't true.

What likely is true is that the near death of the state's Democratic Party, which started during the Clinton Administration, has caused Democrats to "crossover" to the Republican Party, or to non party status, over a period of thirty years.  That grates on the hard right in the state's GOP was has actually become strong in some counties only very recently, making themselves initially felt during Governor Mead's administration. They've never dominated the state's GOP but they are definitely a factor.  Their presence is more recent than that of former Democrats, including at least one Republican member of the state Senate who was a former candidate for Governor, but they chafe against what they see as Crossover Democrats and RINO's (Republicans In Name Only).

The truth of party politics in the US is, of course, that anybody can be a member of any party they want to be in and therefore parties generally have no control over the beliefs of their members.  People are normally attracted to one of the two big American parties, which is part of a larger political problem in the US, and they generally go where their beliefs generally take them, but by and large most Americans actually don't fully support the platform of any party they are in.  Rank and file Wyomingite Republicans, for example, don't support the hand over the Federal lands platform the GOP adopted nationally in 2016 through the influence of Western Senators like John Barrasso, and its notably in fact that here in the state there's some very conservative GOP members who have taken a dislike to Barrasso as of about that time.

The point is that the recent efforts at the committee level to impose political purity tests and to address crossover voting are missing the point completely.  Most Republicans aren't as right wing as the activists at the county level in some counties, and the Democrats who "crossed over" did so mostly long ago and stayed. Their Republicans now, like it or not  Sen. Cale Case, who chose not to introduce the bill into the Senate, may very well have recognized that not only is this the case now, but that banning party switching actually keeps people in the party at the very time that they might be looking at moving to the Republican's detriment.  I.e, if Republicans are worried about Democrats crossing over, they already have, and a bill such as this actually keeps them from crossing back, or crossing out.

On other matters, the University of Wyoming has a $12,000,000 budget item in the proposed budget to fund expansion at the law school. The expansion would cost more than that but the other half of the project, for which about $5,000,000 has apparently been raised, would come from private donors.  Based upon a photograph that has been released, the expansion would reconstruct a large portion of the building to it's north and actually radically alter its appearance.

Frankly, the appearance of the law school could stand to be altered.  I've never thought much about it but the building has a real late 1970s, maye 1980s, appearance to it.  It's not a bad looking building by any means, but it doesn't have that Ivy League look to it that people have come to associate with law schools.  The renovation would add 19,000 square feet to the existing structure and renovate 23,000 square feet.  The added space would add multiple rooms for clinics.

The Law School was last renovated, and it wasn't all that long ago, when a major renovation was done to the library.  The library was a good one to start with but there was apparently a concern at that time that if work wasn't done to it the school's ABA accreditation would have been threatened.  At the same time a massive and very nice Moot Court was added to the building where the old large class room and an adjoining class room had been.

The school has seemed tight for space for decades and it probably really need the addition.  None the less I'm surprised frankly that this budget item has received so little opposition.  It did receive a little, but only a little, and the opposition was very gentle.  Lawyers aren't a popular class in society at large and over the last decade the profession has been in real trouble due to law schools producing a lot more lawyers than society can absorb at the entry level.  Admission standards to practice have really dropped and the state's adoption of the UBE has caused a lot of problems in the practice for entering lawyers and practicing ones.  An argument can be made that the UBE has made the original purpose of the law school less important and a recent effort by UW's President, two presidents ago, to attempt to cause it to focus on the state's energy sector failed when opposed by the then law school dean.  None of this seems to have reflected back on any lack of support for the school in the legislature, where most of the members aren't lawyers, and of course the lawyer members of the legislature are pretty dedicated to the school.

________________________________________________________________________________

March 7, 2020

A lot of bills died this past week, some of which died through a parliamentary move of legislative leaders just not assigning a bill that passed the other house to a committee.  Stuff like that tends to make the bills supporters mad, but its a long established legislative practice and it demonstrates why a leadership position has real power.

So, as to bills that didn't make it.

A House bill to prevent a future gun buy back, which had passed the House overwhelmingly, died out in the committee cold in the Senate.

A House bill to allow landowners to appeal appraised value for land swaps with the state also died.

A House bill to offer a tax refund to impoverished elderly or disabled likewise died.

So did a Senate bill raising the retirement age for state employees.

And the House bill that required two man train crews died in the Senate.
________________________________________________________________________________

March 9, 2020

2020.  Governor Gordon issues the following statement.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 9, 2020 CONTACT: Michael Pearlman, Communications Director Governor Gordon issues statement on Wyoming legislators who attended a conference where an attendee tested positive for coronavirus CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon has issued the following statement about members of the Wyoming Legislature who attended the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). An attendee of the conference was subsequently diagnosed with coronavirus.  It has come to my attention that several Wyoming legislators attended the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on February 29 where an attendee was subsequently diagnosed with coronavirus. I am given to believe that House and Senate leadership is aware of the issue. At this time it does not appear that any members of the Wyoming legislature had contact with this individual. Our state health officer has been notified and has identified these legislators as low risk. She advised that these individuals should continue to monitor their health closely at this time. I urge Wyoming citizens to recognize that as Covid 19 becomes more widespread, it is likely that many of us will eventually cross paths with someone with symptoms of the disease and people who are later diagnosed. We should continue to follow recommendations from healthcare professionals, including regular hand washing, covering the nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, and staying home when sick.

________________________________________________________________________________

March 10, 2020

Governor Gordon signs 28 bills on Tuesday, March 10

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon signed the following bills into law today:

Bill No.	Enrolled Act #	Bill Title
SF0016	SEA0006	School district procurement.
SF0019	SEA0007	Ad valorem-confidentiality exception.
SF0023	SEA0008	Insurance code updates.
SF0024	SEA0009	State employees' and officials' group insurance.
SF0038	SEA0010	Health insurance costs-bundled payment study.
SF0041	SEA0011	Animal damage management funding.
SF0045	SEA0012	Underground disposal wells-regulation.
SF0018	SEA0013	Wildlife conservation efforts-2.
SF0044	SEA0014	Mining permit applications-objections.
SF0013	SEA0015	Public defender-indigency standards.
SF0082	SEA0016	Public records-amendments.
SF0083	SEA0017	Budget and financial data reporting.
SF0060	SEA0018	Wyoming pollution discharge elimination system fees.
SF0077	SEA0019	Prescription tracking program.
SF0048	SEA0020	Solid waste cease and transfer program funding.
SF0046	SEA0021	Wyoming Money Transmitters Act-exemption.
SF0017	SEA0022	Hathaway need-based scholarships-graduate school.
SF0021	SEA0023	Coal fired electric generation facilities.
SF0057	SEA0024	Local government distributions.
HB0003	HEA0023	Wyoming energy authority-amendments.
HB0004	HEA0024	Wyoming coal marketing program.
HB0103	HEA0026	Chancery court amendments.
HB0045	HEA0027	Special purpose depository institutions-amendments.
HB0042	HEA0028	Good time allowances for jail time.
HB0051	HEA0029	Professional services procurement-amendments.
HB0050	HEA0030	Government procurement-amendments.
HB0052	HEA0031	Public works and contracts.
HB0073	HEA0032	Nicotine products-taxation.

_________________________________________________________________________________

March 12, 2020

Governor Gordon to hold formal bill signing on Thursday, March 12

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon will hold a formal bill signing ceremony at 2:00 pm on Thursday, March 12 in the Governor's Ceremonial Conference room in the State Capitol. Legislators, media and members of the public are welcome to attend. This list of bills is subject to change.
The Governor will act on the following bills during the formal bill signing ceremony:

Bill No.		Enrolled Act #		Bill Title
SF0091		SEA0030		Global signature authority for health care providers.
SF0022		SEA0031		Surface water diversion.
HB0057		HEA0036		Underground facilities notification-exemption.
HB0032		HEA0034		Resident tuition for military members and family.
HB0069		HEA0038		Wildlife conservation efforts-1.
HB0043		HEA0043		Food freedom amendments.
HB0113		HEA0045		Importation of prescription drugs-study
HB0032	HEA0034		Resident tuition for military members and family.

In other legislative news the legislature passed a bill requiring physicians to provide emergency care to aborted fetuses who are delivered alive.  The legislature also passed the bill that would put Wyoming on Central Time year around if neighboring states do, which there is no sign that they will.

________________________________________________________________________________

March 13, 2020

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon will hold a formal bill signing ceremony at 2:00 pm today, March 13 in the Governor's Ceremonial Conference room in the State Capitol. Legislators, media and members of the public are welcome to attend. This list of bills is subject to change.
The Governor will sign the following bills during the ceremony:

SF0036	SEA0045	Large scale solar and wind energy facilities
SF0092	SEA0043	Volunteer pension account-funding.

HB0176	HEA0048	Game and fish-data protection.
HB0151	HEA0076	Economic development large project loans-amendments.

HB0102	HEA0082	Wyoming combat sports commission.
HB0047	HEA0070	Local sales and use taxes.

_________________________________________________________________________________

March 13, 2020, part two.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon took action on 29 bills on Friday, March 13.
The Governor signed the following bills into law today:

Bill No.	Enrolled Act #	Bill Title
SF0020	SEA0036	Election code revisions.
SF0056	SEA0037	Absentee polling places.
SF0064	SEA0038	Trust companies-statutory amendments.
SF0047	SEA0039	Digital assets-statutory amendments.
SF0036	SEA0045	Large scale solar and wind energy facilities.
SF0093	SEA0046	Wyoming works-application period.
SF0116	SEA0047	Off-road recreational vehicle-definition.
SF0050	SEA0053	Nicotine products-lawful age and penalties
SF0042	SEA0054	Nicotine products–age verification and shipping.
SF0072	SEA0055	Revisor's bill.
HB0019	HEA0047	Municipal right-of-way franchise fees.
HB0176	HEA0048	Game and fish-data protection.
HB0025	HEA0049	County reserve accounts.
HB0076	HEA0051	Veterans property tax exemption-access.
HB0088	HEA0052	Livestock board investigators.
HB0235	HEA0056	Life insurance benefits-payments and interest.
HB0016	HEA0058	Consolidation of theft crimes.
HB0074	HEA0060	Small modular nuclear reactor permitting.
HB0164	HEA0061	Investment of public funds.
HB0099	HEA0067	Animal reimbursement program-amendments.
HB0187	HEA0069	Game and fish-selling agents.
HB0047	HEA0070	Local sales and use taxes.
HB0056	HEA0072	Good neighbor authority revolving account.
HB0027	HEA0073	Select committee on blockchain, technology and innovation.
HB0012	HEA0074	Motor vehicle violations-penalties.
HB0126	HEA0075	Emergency call location information.
HB0151	HEA0076	Economic development large project loans-amendments.
HB0127	HEA0077	Prohibition of female genital mutilation.
HB0212	HEA0084	Select committee on tribal relations.

_________________________________________________________________________________

March 14, 2020

The House and Senate were unable to reach a compromise on a construction spending bill yesterday with the results that several construction projects now lack funding.  These include community college upgrades, building a community college campus in Jackson, even though the projects have otherwise been approved and are moving forward.  Project that will now come to an unfunded halt are the construction of chancery court facilities as the new state office building in Casper, a new swimming pool for the University of Wyoming, work on War Memorial Stadium and the expansion of the University of Wyoming's law school.  The University of Wyoming projects brought an end to the near compromise.

What this means for these projects isn't clear.  The law school has been working on obtaining funds on its own and hoped to receive matching funds from the legislature, which it did not.  The other projects would presumably rely entirely on state funding.

________________________________________________________________________________

March 17, 2020

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon will hold a formal bill signing ceremony at 1:30 pm on Tuesday, March 17 in the Governor's Ceremonial Conference room in the State Capitol. Legislators, media and members of the public are welcome to attend, however group size in the room will be limited to comply with current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations. This list of bills is subject to change.
The Governor will sign the following bills during the ceremony:

SF0085	SEA0057	Uranium taxation rates
SF0126	SEA0051	Game and fish law enforcement definition amendments
SF0120	SEA041	Office of guardian ad litem-2.
HB0092	HEA0065	Pioneer archery licenses
HB0102	HEA0082	Wyoming combat sports commission.
HB0165	HEA0085	School nursing- state school nurse.
HB0109	HEA0089	Electronic monitoring in long-term care facilities.

________________________________________________________________________________

March 27, 2020

And then it was all over.

Governor Gordon takes action on final 11 bills of the legislative session

 

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon took action on the final 11 bills remaining on his desk. The Governor signed two bills, vetoed four bills and allowed five bills to go into law without his signature. Included in the vetoes were SF 0138 Investment of state funds-2, which outlines the process for evaluating the land in the Occidental Land Purchase. In his veto letter on the bill, the Governor noted that the Legislature’s failure to pass SF 0119- State-funded capital construction eliminated the funding mechanism that would be utilized to proceed with due diligence. The Governor and other members of the State Board of Land Commissioners will continue to explore the purchase of lands and assets from Occidental Petroleum, and would have to bring any proposal back to the full legislature for a vote.

The Governor signed the following bills into law:

HB0137

HEA0054

Worker's compensation-legislators.

HB0243

HEA0097

Oil and gas tax-new production.

The Governor vetoed the following bills, each of which are accompanied by a letter published on the Governor's website:

HB0119

HEA0046

Medicaid billing for school-based services.

SF0097

SEA0052

Born alive infant-means of care.

SF0140	SEA0068	Banking division-classification and salary exemptions.
SF0138	SEA0069	Investment of state funds-2.

For SEA 52 Governor Gordon, who is pro-life, made this statement: “Laws already in place protect children from being denied life-saving care simply because they were born as a result of an abortion. This bill will not do anything to improve on those laws which already exist. Instead, this bill will harm people it never intended to harm - parents who want a child, but have received the devastating news that their pregnancy is not viable. The State should not seek to make that moment for parents any more tragic than it already is. For this reason, I am vetoing this bill.”

The following bills went into law without the Governor's signature and are also accompanied by a letter published on the Governor's website:

HB0174	HEA0059	Kindergarten start date.
HB0162	HEA0083	State trust lands-proposals and study.
HB0040	HEA0096	School finance - model recalibration.

SF0117	SEA0056	First responder workplace mental injury coverage.
SF0134	SEA0061	Special event liquor licenses.

While the session may be over, the commentary is of course not, so some followup commentary on this years sessions and bills that passed and failed is likely.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Related Threads

The 2020 Wyoming Legislature

The 2020 Wyoming Legislative Session. The early committee efforts.