A new study shows that Wyoming is the third worst in the nation when it comes to personal freedoms.
The latest Freedom in the 50 States map published by the Cato Institute, a Libertarian and conservative think tank, found that Wyoming had the third lowest score for overall personal freedom in the country.
Buoyed by a strong economic freedom score, Wyoming did much better for overall freedom, ranking 16th.
More than 230 policy variables were factored into the study, which collected data through 2023.
Why So Low?
What pulled down Wyoming’s personal freedom score was a poor showing in the categories of educational freedom, cannabis and salvia (a psychedelic drug) freedom, and the state’s rate of incarceration and arrests.
The study gave a higher score to states that offered expansive school choice options, decriminalized or legalized marijuana and had a lower arrest rate per its population. The incarceration category, where Wyoming placed 44th, made up one-fifth of the personal freedom index score.
Tyler Lindholm, a former state legislator and Wyoming state director for Americans For Prosperity, another Libertarian group, said he doesn’t disagree with the results of the study. While, he believes Wyoming has some of the best freedom in the country when it comes to certain sectors, in other areas it struggles.
“I personally agree with Cato,” he said. “Parents need to be allowed to do what they want with their children’s public education funds and Wyoming still lacks that universal access.”
State Rep. Karlee Provenza, D-Laramie, a police reform advocate, also said she wasn’t surprised by the results.
“The lawmakers of Wyoming have decided that cannabis is not something that veterans can use for medicinal purposes,” she said. “When you try to control the substances that someone uses in their own private home, it results in more incarcerations.”
There were certain categories of personal freedoms where Wyoming did better. The Cowboy State was eighth best for gun rights, fourth highest for tobacco freedom, and 15th best for asset forfeiture.
Secretary of State Chuck Gray said he doesn’t believe Wyoming’s Second Amendment ranking is high enough, which he blames Gov. Mark Gordon for. Gordon vetoed a bill banning gun-free zones in Wyoming earlier this year.
“The study is very telling with respect to Governor Gordon’s lackluster performance in protecting the Second Amendment,” Gray said. “As a legislator, and as a member of the State Building Commission, I have repeatedly advocated for our Second Amendment rights, which would move us to the top of this study.”
Education
To Wyoming’s credit, the state would have likely performed better on education freedom had the study been performed this year.
In March, the Legislature passed into law a bill establishing educational savings accounts (ESAs) in the state. Whether or not a state had ESAs or tax credit credits for private education was the determining factor for a state’s educational freedom score.
But Lindholm said Wyoming still has a long way to go when it comes to providing school choice options to parents.
“You either have to be wealthy or very poor to afford private education in Wyoming,” he said. “That excludes the majority of Wyomingites in that middle ground.”
His group plans to lobby for an expansion of Wyoming’s ESA law to include all income brackets, as the law passed this year only covers people who make 150% of the federal poverty line or lower. That partially occurred because of a Gordon line-item veto, which significantly lowered the previous income threshold, a point Gray also criticized.
In his veto letter, Gordon questioned whether the bill aligned with the Wyoming Constitution, which says the state may not provide any loan or credit unless it’s in "necessary support of the poor.”
“We must ensure that any allocation of state funds, whether to education providers or individual parents, aligns with the principles outlined in the Wyoming Constitution while simultaneously serving a clearly defined public interest and providing equitable returns for the state's investment,” Gordon wrote. “Failure to address these concerns could expose the program to legal challenges and undermine its viability and legitimacy. That would be unfortunate.”
Top To Bottom
The top states for personal freedom in the study tended to be more western and northeastern, while the bottom states were either socially conservative and southern or mid-Atlantic and liberal.
The 10 worst states for personal freedom were Texas, Idaho, Wyoming, Kentucky, South Carolina, Mississippi, Arkansas, Delaware, Alabama and Tennessee. All but one of these states is Republican dominated.
The states with the best individual freedom scores represented more of a mixed bag politically, split down the middle in the latest presidential election between President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. These states are Nevada, Arizona, Maine, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Vermont, Montana, Missouri, Massachusetts and West Virginia.
Much Better For Economic Freedom
Wyoming did much better within the category of economic freedom, ranking sixth highest for regulatory freedom and 13th best for fiscal freedom.
Republican-leaning and “purple” states dominated this ranking.
Wyoming is renown for its low overall taxes and lack of personal income tax and also features some of the lowest property tax rates in the country. It ranked third highest for state taxation and best in the country for lack of government debt.
Wyoming did horribly on government consumption, finishing second worst in the country, and government employment, placing last in the country.
The authors of the study also caution that lower economic barriers don’t always equate to an overall picture of freedom.
“Is the country with slightly lower taxes, but with a blatant infringement of religious freedom, truly freer?” authors William Ruger and Jason Sorens of the American Institute for Economic Research ask.
Provenza continued along that thread, saying a state’s ability to provide a diverse economy and quality jobs to young people will directly correlate to its crime and substance abuse rates. She believes the state has not been focusing enough on these issues and providing more affordable housing opportunities to help solve these problems.
“These situations create a breeding ground where people are more likely to commit crimes,” she said.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
