Senate passes resolution for constitutional convention of states

CHEYENNE — The State Senate is working on two resolutions during the early portion of the March in-person session for the 66th Wyoming Legislature.

In his weekly interview, Sen. Ed Cooper (R-Ten Sleep) reported that Senate Joint Resolution 2 – Convention of States, passed out of the Minerals Committee on a 3-2 vote with Cooper one of the three voting in favor.

The resolution requests Congress to call a convention for proposing amendments to the United States Constitution. The resolution calls for a convention of the states as provided under Article V of the U.S. Constitution. The specific issues to be addressed at said convention would be to impose fiscal restraints on the federal government; limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government and limit the terms of office for its officials and for members of Congress.

Per Article V, two-thirds of the states can call a convention for proposing amendments.

While a co-sponsor and voting to bring it to the full Senate floor, Cooper said he has listened to both sides of the need for a constitutional convention and the concerns for a constitutional convention.

He said during testimony in the committee last week, he look around the committee room at the people wanting to testify in favor of the convention, “it was the People of Wyoming standing in that room – these are the people that hired us to come down here to represent them.”

He said the majority of those speaking in favor and who have emailed him in support have been from Wyoming, while the majority of those opposed are from outside of Wyoming. “I feel it is our decision not theirs (out-of-state residents),” Cooper said.

He added that he has not made up his mind about the resolution but voted in favor of it in committee because “it was critical to move it to the floor for full consideration. It will get well vetted on the floor.”

Cooper also voted in committee in favor of Joint Resolution 3 – Federal Suspension and Orders on Oil and Gas Production. The resolution requests Congress and the federal government to reverse federal orders and actions that inhibit the safe development of oil and gas in Wyoming and that negatively and disproportionately impact Wyoming citizens and industries.

He said there will be an amendment to address damage to landowners by the orders, not just damage to the state.

Cooper said he voted against Senate File 96 – Homicide Amendments in committee and it was difficult but he felt the bill in its current form had “serious constitutional questions.”

In an interview Monday, Cooper said amendments have been drafted to address those issues. One amendment was withdrawn but the bill passed Committee of the Whole (first reading) on Tuesday.

SESSION

The session as a whole has been going well for the freshman legislator but he admits that sometimes he does not have the patience for the slower pace. “This is not a fast process, there is so much to each bill to be considered.”

“He said despite some people thinking that the legislators do not read or fully understand each bill, bills that come to the floor are vetted thoroughly through the process of the three readings.

“Each and every one of these bills gets taken apart on the floor. I’m amazed at how well these bills are vetted, something people should experience, Cooper said, noting they can by watching live or recordings of sessions and committee meetings.

“It’s a great process.”

He cited two examples of the process working. One was Senate File 17 regarding removing the requirement of publication of minutes for cities and counties. The bill was defeated on third reading Friday thus the publication requirement remains intact.

While senators voted in favor of the bill on first and second readings, he said senators did not necessarily change their mind on third reading but had all the information they needed on third reading to make the most informed decision. The bill failed on a 9-20-1 vote.

“A lot of senators wanted to see it fully vetted through all three readings. That’s where the debate is, where the amendments are made. The heart of it is third reading and that’s the vote that counts,” Cooper said.

Cooper voted against the bill noting, “In our district so many still rely on print publication.” The bill would have required cities and counties to put their minutes on their website.

Another bill properly vetted was Senate File 3. The original intent of the bill was to put a monitoring camera at the port of entry on the west side of Teton Pass to monitor overweight trucks attempting to go over Teton Pass.

Cooper said, “It became a runaway in WYDOT (Wyoming Department of Transportation).” He said the bill got loaded up with monitoring cameras in a lot of places “that weren’t appropriate for Wyoming” including school zones, construction zones and overweight zones.

He said after amendments in committee and on first and second reading the bill on third reading had been pared back down to its original intent – to authorize use of the cameras at the port near Teton Pass for public safety to prevent the overweight trucks from going over Teton Pass.

He said “everyone was against the wider use of the cameras.”

The bill passed third reading earlier this week and now moves to the House.

Monday the House and Senate began work on the supplemental general fund budget with school funding coming later.