The legislative session is beginning its third week. Wednesday, January 26, 2011 is the last day for Senate Files to be submitted for introduction. We will continue to update you on the status of bills and new bills that have been filed. All bill information can be found 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  

Amended and passed House Third Reading.

Authorizes Medicaid payment to relatives of persons with developmental

disabilities or acquired brain injuries.

Passed House Third Reading and Senate received for introduction.

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

Introduced and referred to House Judiciary Committee. 

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

Amended and passed House Committee of the Whole.   

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

Amended, Passed House Third Reading, and Senate received for introduction.

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

Introduced and referred to House 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.

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

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

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

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

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

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

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

Amended, placed on House General File, and referred to House Appropriations Committee.

Creates the primary care support program which will 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.

HB65 Marital Counseling, Sponsored by Representatives Buchanan and Brechtel and Senators Dockstader and Ross

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

Requires premarital counseling before obtaining a marriage license or imposes a waiting period for those who do not complete marriage counseling.  It also requires marital counseling before receiving a divorce decree and requires a waiting period for those who do not obtain marriage counseling.

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

Amended and passed House Third Reading.

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

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

Amended and passed House Second Reading.

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

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

Placed on House General File.

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 Committee of the Whole.

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

HB82 Unfair Employment Practices, Sponsored by Representatives Byrd and Connolly and Senator Hastert

Placed on House General File.

Includes retaliatory acts as discriminatory and unfair employment practices. 

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

Introduced and referred to House Education Committee.

Changes the process for teacher suspension and requires an investigation.

HB118 Abortion-Available Information for Decision, Sponsored by Representatives Brechtel, McKim, and Peasley and Senators Dockstader, Jennings, Meier and Nutting

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

Requires physicians to provide patients with specified information before certain nonemergency abortion procedure.

HB131 Tip Sharing, Sponsored by Representatives Stubson, Brown, Gingery and Dan Zwonitzer and Senators Christensen, Coe, Jennings and Perkins

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

Allows employers to require employees to share tips and gratuities to the extent it is permissible under the Fair Labor and Standards Act.

HB142 Discrimination, Sponsored by Representatives Connolly, Bonner, Childers, Petroff, Shepperson, Wallis, Dan Zwonitzer and Senators Burns and Von Flatern

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

Prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

HB149 Marriage-Definition, Sponsored by Representatives Connolly, Childers, Petroff and Dan Zwonitzer and Senator Rothfuss

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

Defines marriage as a contract between two natural persons.

HB150 Civil Unions, Sponsored by Representatives Connolly, Childers, Wallis and Dan Zwonitzer and Senator Von Flatern

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

Establishes civil unions and related rights and responsibilities, which are the same as those whose marriages are recognized as lawful in Wyoming, and provides for the recognition of foreign civil unions.

HB164 Sexual Assault Victim Advocate, Sponsored by Representatives Davison, Barbuto, Brechtel, Brown, Harvey, Jaggi, McKim, Roscoe, and Throne, and Senators Cooper, Dockstader, Jennings and Meier.

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

This bill allows for victims to have an advocate present with them if requested at the time of questioning by law enforcement.

HB165 Insurance-Coverage of Inherited Disorders, Sponsored by Representatives Dan Zwonitzer, Craft, Krone and Teeters.

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

This bill requires insurance coverage for inherited enzymatic disorders.

HB166 School District-Teacher Evaluations, Sponsored by Representatives Harshman, Burkhart, Kroeker, Krone, Madden and Teeters and Senators Barnard, Burns, Coe and Landen.

Introduced and Referred to House Education Committee.

This bill provides criteria for teacher evaluations, including increased frequency and allowing for video mentoring and recording systems.

HB181 Wage Rates-Penalties, Sponsored by Representatives Connolly, Davison, Greene, McKim, and Throne and Senator Hastert.

Introduced and referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

This bill allows the Department of Employment to confidentially investigate required payment to tipped employees.

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

Introduced and Referred to House Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee.

This bill repeals state minimum wage statutes.

HB198 Admissibility of Evidence in Sex Offense Cases, Sponsored by Representatives Burkhart and Krone.   

House Received for Introduction.

This bill allows for admissibility of evidence of similar acts and offenses in criminal and civil cases involving sexual assault and child molestation.

HB210 Landlord/Tenant Return of Deposits, Sponsored by Representatives Greene, Connolly, Harvey, Illoway, and Nicholas and Senators Hastert and Rothfuss.

Bill Number Assigned.

This bill provides that an owner of a rental property who does not return a rental deposit is liable for double the amount of the full deposit.  

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

Passed third reading in Senate and House Received for Introduction.

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

Introduced and referred to Senate Health, Labor, and Social Services Committee.

Authorizes a statewide network of aging and disability resource centers.

SF29 Long-term Services and Support, Sponsored by Select Committee on Developmental/Intellectual Programs

Introduced and referred to Senate Health, Labor, and Social Services Committee. 

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. 

SF 30 Wyoming Safe Homes Act, Sponsored by Senators Hastert and Cooper and Representatives Barbuto, Connolly, Craft, Davison and Pedersen

Introduced and referred to Senate Judiciary Committee.

Allows a victim of sexual or domestic violence to terminate a lease, and allows for a tenant to require the landlord to change locks if requirements are met. 

SF52 Teacher Tenure, Sponsored by Senators Coe, Anderson, Jennings and Von Flatern and Representatives Buchanan, Childers, Lubnau, McOmie, Quarberg and Teeters

Introduced and referred to Senate Education Committee.

Removes continuing contract status from the Wyoming teacher employment law, meaning that both new and experienced teachers become at-will employees (voiding tenure) and are evaluated annually.

SF53 Child Preference in Custody Determinations, Sponsored by Senator Landen

Received for introduction.

Allows for the wishes of a child to be considered in child custody determinations.

SF89 Adult Protective Services, Sponsored by Senator Ross and Representatives Gingery, Stubson and Throne

Introduced and referred to Senate Judiciary Committee.

Specifies that the Department of Family Services shall not act as a caregiver but may furnish protective services.

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

Introduced and Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee.

This bill creates the dietetics licensure board.

SF96 Open Primaries, Sponsored by Senator Rothfuss and Representative Throne

Introduced and referred to Senate Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee.

Allows for any voter to request any ballot at the primary election meaning a voter can cross party lines without having to change party affiliation.

SF115 DUI-Child Endangerment Fines, Sponsored by Senator Ross

Introduced and Referred to Senate Transportation and Highways Committee.

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.

Introduced and Referred to Senate Labor, Health and Social Services Committee.

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

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

Amended and placed on Senate General File. 

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.

SJ3 Health Care Freedom-2, Sponsored by Senators Scott, Hines and Von Flatern and Representatives Blikre, Brown, Gay, Harvey, Kasperik, Lubnau and Wallis

Introduced and referred to Senate Judiciary Committee.

Joint Resolution to amend the state constitution to recognize the right of individuals to make health care decisions and prohibiting state actions that limit the right of individuals to make health care decisions.

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

Amended and placed on Senate General File. 

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.