Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Sorted by date Results 26 - 37 of 37
CHEYENNE — Lawmakers on the Joint Education Interim Committee spent more than an hour Friday discussing school safety, though they ultimately rejected a bill requiring school districts to adopt certain security policies. The bill, which failed by a 7-6 vote, would have required school boards to follow safety policies consistent with models developed by the Wyoming Department of Education. Under the bill, threat assessment procedures, which aim to identify threatening students prior to them committing a violent act, would have to be included i...
CHEYENNE — A bill that would have essentially doubled the state’s excise tax on alcohol in order to provide more funding for substance use treatment programs was rejected by lawmakers during a committee meeting Wednesday. The bill would have brought in slightly more than $2 million annually to the state, with the Department of Corrections and the Department of Health evenly splitting the funds for various mental health and substance use programs. But members of the Joint Labor, Health and Social Services Interim Committee rejected the bil...
CHEYENNE – A committee of state lawmakers voted Thursday in support of a bill that would establish a task force to study Wyoming’s mental health services. The bill would create a 12-member group consisting of legislators, mental health-care providers and representatives from the state Department of Health, and law enforcement. It also would include a spot for somebody who has received mental health or substance use services within the state. By a 10-3 vote, members of the Legislature’s Joint Labor, Health and Social Services Interim Commi...
CHEYENNE — State lawmakers on the Joint Revenue Interim Committee voted 8-5 Tuesday to move forward with a bill authorizing Gov. Mark Gordon to expand Medicaid coverage in Wyoming. If approved by the full Legislature next year, the bill would allow for expanding Medicaid to uninsured people whose income is at or below 138% of the federal poverty level. An estimated 19,000 people in Wyoming would be newly covered within 24 months of the expansion, according to recent estimates from the state Department of Health. Wyoming would cover 10% of t...
CHEYENNE — An education report released Wednesday shows Wyoming students scored higher than national averages on standardized reading and math tests. Wyoming students outperformed students nationwide on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the Nation’s Report Card, given every two years to fourth- and eighth-grade students. In Wyoming, about 8,900 students took this year’s test across about 210 schools. “This is one metric that we take pretty seriously in Wyoming,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian B...
CHEYENNE — Legislators took no action on a plan to store spent nuclear fuel rods within Wyoming – and heard about a possible alternative use of the rods – during a committee meeting Tuesday in Casper. Discussion of the plan was spurred by a bill that would have authorized the governor to negotiate with the U.S. Department of Energy over the storage. But Sen. Jim Anderson, R-Casper, pulled the bill during the Joint Minerals, Business and Economic Development Interim Committee’s meeting. “I found out that we really don’t need to give the governo...
CHEYENNE – A poll published Wednesday shows U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney leading former Congresswoman Cynthia Lummis by 20 percentage points in a potential race for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Mike Enzi. The annual poll from Montana State University-Billings previously focused exclusively on Montana. Jason Adkins, the MSUB political science professor who conducted the poll, said Wyoming was included this year partially because it is often overlooked in national discussions. “It made sense, just from a newsworthiness perspective, and Wyo...
CHEYENNE – An updated forecast for state revenues released Tuesday paints a grim picture of Wyoming’s economic landscape heading into the next decade. Though the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group’s October report shows the state gaining more revenue this year than initially projected, it estimates a $185.4 million drop in revenue for Wyoming over the next three years. Lawmakers received a rundown of the report from CREG co-Chairman Don Richards during the Joint Appropriations Interim Committee meeting Tuesday morning in Riverton. “Goin...
Dozens of supporters of President Donald Trump took to the streets in Jackson, Cheyenne and Gillette on Thursday to protest impeachment proceedings in the U.S. House of Representatives. The rallies were part of national activities organized by a group called "Women for America First" that featured marches in Washington, D.C., and other major cities around the country. JACKSON - Trump supporters rally downtown For the second time in two weeks, since first lady Melania Trump's visit earlier this...
CHEYENNE — After the grand reopening of the state Capitol in July, the final pieces of the renovation project are projected to be completed before the 2020 legislative session in February. That includes construction of an auditorium, student learning center and visitor center in or near the tunnel connecting the Capitol to the Herschler Building. Gov. Mark Gordon and other members of the Capitol Building Restoration Oversight Group received updates Wednesday afternoon from representatives of MOCA Systems, the firm serving as project manager. Ju...
CHEYENNE – With the state facing millions of dollars worth of unmet needs for its roads and bridges, a bill to create a task force to explore ways to fund repair work failed by a narrow margin Friday in committee. The bill would have created a 15-member group, comprised of legislators, stakeholders from transportation industries, and representatives from the Wyoming Department of Transportation and the governor's office, to explore funding strategies used by other states and entities. Ultimately, the bill failed in the Joint Transportation, H...
CHEYENNE - Wyoming first lady Jennie Gordon announced a hunger initiative Thursday aimed at fighting food insecurity for children and families across the state. The Wyoming Hunger Initiative will bring together various groups working on food security, according to a news release issued Thursday by Gov. Mark Gordon's office. "I am not interested in reinventing the wheel, but rather in making a difference for kids in Wyoming," Jennie Gordon said in the release. "If I can shed light on the work that is currently being done and bring organizations...