A Look At Wyoming’s Legislature

The Wyoming Legislature has been busy and this week is no exception. Here is a look at some of the issues facing the House and the Senate this week.

The House and the Senate have been busy debating tough issues that face Wyoming. The House will be debating issues such as same-sex marriage, federal money extending unemployment benifits and abortions. The Senate on the other hand will be debating issues such as DUI testing, teacher tenure, government loans for energy efficiency projects and state construction contracts.

Wyoming House of Representatives

A bill is advancing to the House that would require Wyoming doctors to inform women seeking an abortion that they could view an ultrasound image of their fetus before the procedure. On Monday the House gave preliminary approval to the bill. It's sponsor is Bob Brechtel of Casper. Out of the sixty member chamber, thirty-three voted for it. The bill would require women to wait twenty four hours before receiving an abortion. Doctors would certify they informed the woman that they could view an ultrasound image. This bill is similar to one that died in the House last month but has been modified by Brechtel. The modification removed language that would have required doctors to inform women that fetuses over a certain age could feel pain.

A legislative committee will consider a proposed constitutional amendment that would specify the state wouldn't recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. The resolution calls for allowing Wyoming voters to decide whether to change the state Constitution to specify the state would only recognize marriages between one man and one woman. The Senate has already approved the measure.

The House of Representatives refused to change state law to accept federal money that would extend unemployment benefits for thousands of workers. Democratic Representative Cathy Connolly sponsored the bill and says it calls for changing Wyoming law to allow extending unemployment eligibility for 13 weeks. The bill also would have expanded unemployment in Wyoming, which would have carried a hefty $14.2 million in federal funds.

Senate

A bill that would eliminate a suspected drunken driver's right to refuse a breathalyzer or blood alcohol test will face the Senate. A Senate committee approved House Bill 29 yesterday but it is feared that the bill may die on the Senate floor this week. Some think refusing testing is a loophole for repeat offenders. Some believe it also prevents officers from collecting the necessary evidence for a conviction.

The Senate has also passed a bill that seeks to help ensure Wyoming contractors get preference on state construction contracts. Senate File 144 has been approved unanimously and will now go to the House for debate. The bill creates temporary restrictions requiring that at least 70 percent of subcontractors hired for public construction projects are from Wyoming. Project officials would have to provide justification for when Wyoming companies are not chosen for projects through 2012. The Legislature would study the issue during the interim and propose any permanent laws next year.