Legislative update from Rep. JD Williams
The Budget Session is over but I am grateful that some of you are still asking questions about the details of the Legislature. All legislators need to be held accountable and that can only be accomplished when you participate. Wyoleg.gov is the best resource for factual information regarding bills that interest you. I am not aware of any other website that is unbiased. If you are interested in unfiltered legislative data, the following information may be of interest.
The bill status sheet is called the "purple sheet." Each day of session we receive a new purple sheet reflecting the actions of the legislature up until that time. You can reference this same resource that gives the status of every bill this session on wyoleg.gov by clicking on the "Session Information" tab under "Legislation".Â
When I look up a bill of interest on wyoleg.gov, I first read the text of the bill. This is helpful as the title of a bill doesn’t always give me an accurate idea of what is found in the bill.  I reference the amendments to the bill, and I look at the fiscal note of how much it is going to cost. I also go to the "digest" or "votes" tab to consider how the votes were cast. There is a time stamp recorded on the "votes" tab when the vote was taken, which is very helpful when we want to look it up on YouTube to observe the debate. To find the legislative YouTube channel click on the YouTube icon in the top right corner of your screen when you are on the wyoleg.gov page. When searching through YouTube videos it is also helpful to remember that AM floor sessions usually begin at 10:00 (after 8-10:00 committee meetings), and the PM floor sessions begin at 2:00 (after 12-2:00 committee meetings).
 If you are trying to look up the votes on amendments to the budget (HB0001, and SF0001), the YouTube videos are very helpful to understand the details of the amendment. To correlate the language on the video with the number on the amendments, the following citation: HB0001H3034 would be stated as 3rd reading amendment #34 to House Bill number 1. HB0001(House Bill 1), H3(3rd reading), 034(amendment number).
One of the bills some of you have asked questions about this week is HB0107-Local Government Distributions. Direct Distribution is payment from the state to help fund local counties and municipalities.  Oversimplified, Direct Distribution was established in 2004 and became, in part, a backfill mechanism for local governments when the sales tax exemption on groceries was enacted in 2006. These funds have been allocated in the budget for the last 2 decades but HB0107 put the practice into law so local governments are not obligated to lobby the Joint Appropriations Committee every biennium. This bill was strongly supported by Wyoming’s 99 municipalities and 23 counties. HB0107 as originally written would distribute 5.6% of the state’s sales and use tax revenue for the direct distribution program. It was established in committee meetings that 8% would be closer to the actual amount that had been allocated in the past biennium (~ $75Million/yr). 8% is where the bill ended up, and if it is of interest to some of you how the legislature arrived at that point, a short explanation outlining the documentation on wyoleg.gov follows.
To review this bill go to wyoleg.gov, select Session Information under Legislation and locate HB0107. There we can read the bill text and track the amendments. House of Representatives, second reading amendment #1 (HB0107H2001) proposed moving the percentage from 5.6% to 8% and was voted down. Second reading amendment #2 moved the percentage from 5.6% to 7% and was adopted 38-22 with 2 excused. The roll call vote can be noted when the “votes” tab is selected. Second reading amendment #3 was an amendment out of left field (my opinion) which the bringer of the amendment brought to multiple different bills. This amendment was voted down on a voice vote because it had no appropriation, which is the trigger for a roll call vote. Second amendment #4 was an attempt to lower the percentage to 6%, and it was withdrawn by the sponsor. The time stamp for each roll call vote (helpful for finding the YouTube recording) is given under the votes tab, for example: the bill passed 3rd reading in the House on 2/16 at 12:34 PM. The most relevant Senate amendment was Standing Committee #1 to House Bill 107 (HB0107SS001) where the Senate Appropriation Committee raised the percentage to 8%. As many of you have expressed, “Thank goodness for the Senate.”
Some budget amendments that have been the topic of conversation this week are listed below. I include the time and date of the vote recorded on wyoleg.gov. When we find that moment on the YouTube video we can rewind to listen to the discussion regarding the amendments.
Employee compensation for Wyoming State workers: 2nd reading amendment HB0001H2115, failed 28-31, vote taken 2/18/26, 9:14 PM. 3rd reading amendment HB0001H3099, adopted 31-29, vote taken 2/21, 5:15 PM.
UW funding: 3rd reading amendment HB0001H3060, adopted 31-29, vote taken 2/21, 12:25 PM. 3rd reading amendment HB0001H3120, adopted 32-28, vote taken 2/21, 12:58 PM.
SUN Bucks funding: 2nd reading amendment HB0001H2051, failed 26-34, vote taken 2/18, 1:29 AM. 3rd reading amendment HB0001H3034, failed 29-31, vote taken 2/20, 8:12 PM.
Researching these discussions is cumbersome but informative. Those of you who make the time to watch the videos are often surprised by the debate. The more of us who become informed the better for the great state of Wyoming. Please let me know if I can be helpful. jd.williams@wyoleg.gov, 307.340.6006
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