Wyoming's legislative session should end this Thursday, although legislators have additional days available to extend the session if needed. Any bill that did not pass out of the Committee of the Whole in the second house failed as of Friday, February 25, 2011.  Bills listed below are grouped by subject and those that have failed in past weeks are no longer reported on in our Legislative Watch. (All information is based on most current information available at

http://legisweb.state.wy.us/.   WYWF is not providing opinions on bills; we are providing information during the session.  We hope you will use the updates to become informed and able to converse with your local legislators. Legislative contact information can be found here:

http://legisweb.state.wy.us/LSOWeb/LegInfo.aspx.

Please share with us any information you receive from your legislators about these bills to help us keep our supporters informed with up-to-date information.  

HB20 Medicaid Reimbursement of Services, Sponsored by Select Committee on Developmental/Intellectual Programs.

Amended, passed House, passed Senate, House did not concur, House and Senate Joint Conference Committee members appointed.  Authorizes Medicaid payment to relatives of persons with developmental disabilities or acquired brain injuries.

HB21 Battery Against a Family Member, Sponsored by Representatives Barbuto, Buchanan, and Throne and Senator Hastert.

Bill failed.  Senate Committee of the Whole did not consider bill.

Removes restrictions relating to second and subsequent convictions for simple battery against family members.

HB23 Sex Offender Registration Amendments, Sponsored by Joint Judiciary Interim Committee.

Amended, passed House, passed Senate second reading.

Amends and increases the amount of information sex offenders are required to provide and requires specified juveniles to register as sex offenders.

HB27 School Year Required Contact Days, Sponsored by Representatives Gingery and McOmie and Senator Coe.

Bill failed to be reported out of Senate Education Committee.

Changes the number of school days from 175 to 180.

HB28 Child Protection Shelter Care and Initial Hearings, Sponsored by Joint Judiciary Interim Committee.

Amended, passed House and passed Senate. Changes the judicial procedures and requirements to follow after a child is placed into emergency protective shelter care. 

HB35 Health Care Choices and Protection Act, Sponsored by Representatives Brechtel, Burkhart, Edmonds, Gay, Jaggi, Kroeker, Peasley, Quarberg, Semlek, and Teeters and Senators Jennings, Meier, and Nutting.

Billed failed to be reported out of Senate Labor Health and Social Services Committee.

Establishes the Health Care Choice and Protection Act and deems enforcement of federal Health Care Reform as a criminal offense.

HB39 Health Litigation Fund, Sponsored by Joint Labor Health and Social Services Interim Committee.

Bill failed.  Did not pass Senate Committee of the Whole. 

Provides funding to litigate issues relating to federal health care reform.

SJ2 Health Care Freedom, Sponsored by Senators Nutting, Case, Driskell and Jennings and Representatives Brechtel, Gay, Jaggi and Kroeker.

Amended, passed Senate and House.

Joint Resolution to amend state constitution to specify no federal or state law shall compel participation in any health care system by any person, employer or health care provider.

HB36 Cancer Control Act Amendments, Sponsored by Representatives K. Esquibel, Bonner, Botten, Childers, Goggles, and Pedersen and Senators Dockstader, Landen, Martin, Nutting and Peterson.

Passed House and Senate.

Amends the Wyoming Cancer Control Act by allowing follow-up colorectal cancer screening when medically indicated.

HB49 Primary Care Support Program, Sponsored by Joint Labor Health and Social Services Committee.

Amended, passed House and Senate.

Creates the primary care support program, which would provide support to Wyoming primary care centers in need of immediate financial assistance. The intended result is to enhance delivery of services for underserved and vulnerable populations.  Community matching funds will be required to receive grant dollars to build or enhance new primary care facilities and services.

HB72 Teacher Merit Pay, Sponsored by Representatives Madden and Teeters and Senator Coe.

Bill failed. Did not pass out of Senate Committee of the Whole.

Requires the state superintendant of public instruction to develop recommendations regarding a teacher merit pay program.

HB85 Teacher Suspensions, Sponsored by Representatives McKim, Davison, Jaggi, McOmie and Teeters and Senator Dockstader.

Bill failed to be reported out of Senate Education Committee.

Changes the process for teacher suspension and requires an investigation.

SF146 Teacher Accountability Act, Sponsored by Senators P. Nicholas, Anderson, Coe, Meier, and Rothfuss and Representatives Buchanan, Harshman, and Teeters.

Amended, passed Senate and House, Senate did not concur, and House and Senate Joint Conference Committee members appointed.

This bill ties teacher evaluations and contract determinations to student performance and achievement.

HB74 Validity of Marriage, Sponsored by Representatives Petersen, Brechtel, Buchanan, Gay, Hunt, Kroeker, Luna and Teeters and Senators Geis, Hicks and Nutting.

Amended, passed House and Senate, House did not concur, and House and Senate Joint Conference Committee members appointed.

Makes any marriage that is not between a man and a woman (and only two parties) null and void and specifies that Wyoming courts have no jurisdiction over such void marriages.

SJ5 Defense of Marriage-Constitutional Amendment, Sponsored by Senators Meier, Cooper, Dockstader, Geis, Jennings, Nutting, Perkins, and Peterson and Representatives Brechtel, Buchanan, Davison, Jaggi, Kroeker, McKim, Petersen, Semlek, and Teeters.

Bill failed.  House Committee of the Whole did not consider bill.

Joint Resolution to amend the state constitution to specify marriage is between a man and a woman and is the only type of recognized legal union in Wyoming.

HB75 Victim Notification Amendments Sponsored by Representatives K. Esquibel, Brown, Buchanan, Connolly, Davison, Gingery, Lubnau, and Throne and Senators Anderson, F. Esquibel, Ross and Rothfuss.

Bill signed by Governor.

This bill modifies provisions requiring medical examinations for sexually transmitted diseases of persons accused of sex offense and crimes involving exchange of bodily fluid.

HB80 Service of Process in Family Violence and Stalking Cases, Sponsored by Representatives Davison, Brown, Buchanan, Craft, Harvey, Jaggi, Lubnau and Throne and Senators Cooper and Dockstader.

Passed House and Senate.

Requires in-state and out-of-state service of specified documents in family violence and stalking cases.

HB251 Abortion-Ultrasound Information, Sponsored by Representatives Brechtel, Edmonds, Eklund, Jaggi, Kroeker, Loucks, McKim, and Peasley and Senators Dockstader and Meier.

Billed failed to pass out of Senate Committee of the Whole.

This bill requires physicians to provide patients with the right to view an ultrasound and hear the heartbeat before nonemergency abortions.

HB 184 Minimum Wage Statutes Repeal, Sponsored by Representatives Gingery, Brechtel, Peasley, Pedersen, Stubson and Dan Zwonitzer and Senators Case and Scott.

Bill failed.  Senate Committee of the Whole did not consider bill.

This bill repeals state minimum wage statutes.

SF11 CHINS- Administrative Change of Placement, Sponsored by Joint Judiciary Interim

Committee.

Bill signed by Governor.

Allows for the placement of children who are in need of supervision and are in state custody without a court hearing.

SF25 Long-term Services and Support, Sponsored by Senators Martin, Hastert, Landen, Scott, and Von Flatern and Representatives Connolly, Craft and Davison.

Amended, passed Senate and House, and Senate received for concurrence.

Authorizes a statewide network of aging and disability resource centers.

SF29 Developmental Disabilities Services, sponsored by Select Committee on Developmental/Intellectual Programs.

Amended, passed Senate and House, and Senate received for concurrence.

Provides requirements for Medicaid reimbursement of home and community based waiver service providers, including enhanced reimbursement of certified

behavioral specialists, and provides for the development of a training and certification program for behavior specialists. 

SF93 Dietetics Licensure, Sponsored by Senators Martin and Landen and Representatives Bonner, Craft, and Pedersen.

Amended, passed Senate and House, and Senate received for concurrence.

This bill creates the dietetics licensure board.

SF115 DUI-Child Endangerment Fines, Sponsored by Senator Ross.

Passed Senate and House.

This bill provides an added fine for child endangerment while driving under the influence.

SF118 Career and Technical Training Grants, Sponsored by Senators Hastert, Cooper, Martin, Rothfuss, and Von Flatern and Representatives Connolly, Craft, Freeman, Krone and Loucks.

Bill failed.  House Committee of the Whole did not consider bill.

This bill establishes a career and technical training scholarship program in the Dept. of Workforce Services. 

SF138 Child Custody Orders Abandonment, Sponsored by Senator Perkins and Representative B. Nicholas and Throne.

Passed Senate and House.

This bill would terminate parental rights if child has been left in the care of another person without the provision for the child's support and without communication from absent parent for a period of one year.