The 2026 edition of Wyoming Legislature’s 20-day Budget Session is underway with the constitutional requirement that no bills, except the budget bills, may be introduced unless receiving a two-thirds vote of the members.
There are over 200 non-budget bills and resolutions numbered that would need the 2/3rd vote in order to be considered.
In my view, unless the sponsor of a bill can provide some compelling reason or showing an emergency exists, the bill should not be introduced.
A good example is the Corporation Committee’s “election reform” package of bills (6 bills in the House and 4 in the Senate) has received a lot of hype led by its primary cheerleader, the Secretary of State.
But there is absolutely no demonstrable need for any of this legislation; yet, my bet is that most will get introduced.
Catchy bill titles (perhaps the only part that some members read) may be enough to cross the 2/3rds hurdle without any compelling need.
Two that caught my eye dealt with “plates” and “saddles”. You can’t beat the title, “Saddles, not steering wheels act” which would define “vehicles” to exclude “horses, mules or other equines when ridden by a person” so that a person cannot get a DUI while riding one of those animals.
Closely followed by this title - the “Less is More Plate Act” that eliminates the requirement for license plates on the front of vehicles.
I suspect these catchy titles will convince enough members to vote for introduction, even though waiting until the next session won’t affect drunks on horses or new cars sold since most don’t have a place for license plates anyway.
There are some non-budget bills that deserve the 2/3rd vote, including bills dealing with property taxes and Select Committee’s bills on School Finance Recalibration since the latter is mandated and the former because past sessions have done nothing but create confusion and anxiety over the elimination or reduction of our property taxes.
This session is an opportunity to straighten who pays property taxes and how much. I know homeowners and county assessors would appreciate it.
In the 2024 budget session a high number of bills and resolutions, over 350, were offered with a large number introduced without any showing of some compelling reason for doing so.
If the past is prologue, far too many non-budget bills will be introduced this time around in spite there being no compelling reason.
Nevertheless, my hope is that our legislators will show some restraint and give careful consideration when voting on introduction of non-budget bills.
Don’t let the catchy bill titles persuade you.
Rex Arney, a native Wyomingite, served as a Republican member of the Wyoming House from 1973 through 1976 and in the Wyoming Senate from 1977 until mid-1988 when he resigned to become general counsel for National Endowment for the Humanities.
