Wyoming
$10.8 Billion Budget, 205 Bills To Start 2024 Wyoming Legislature Session On Monday
The 2024 legislative budget session will begin Monday, and with it consideration of 205 bills that have already been introduced.
Even with all those bills, the focus of the session will be the consideration of the 2025/2026 biennial budget, a weighty $10.8 billion proposal that will take up a significant portion of the three-week session.
To get any legislation introduced that isn’t the budget, a two-thirds majority vote is required, which means many of those 200-plus standalone bills will likely not advance.
Those that do will require at least some level of compromise and collaboration between the Wyoming Freedom Caucus and Wyoming Caucus, the two competing Republican factions of the state House. The five Democrats in the House could also play a role, swinging a balance to either side.
And Legislature leadership is telling legislators they’re expected to be professional in those debates.
Senate President Ogden Driskill, R-Devils Tower, said he’s already told his members they’ll have to find a way to work together to get their bills considered.
“It all depends on how we handle the splits between the bodies,” he said. “The friction is so high that if people drag their feet, it will end up just killing bills. If we all work together there will be a good chance we get to hear their bills.”
And if decorum slips, Driskill said he won’t hold back getting legislators back in line. Keeping the session civil has been a high priority for Driskill since becoming Senate president.
“I’ll have absolutely zero tolerance for anyone who talks about someone personally or goes after someone personally,” he said. “I’m fine with very hearty debates on policy, but once it gets personal, I’ll have some pretty harsh things to say to people.”
The Numbers
There have been 144 bills proposed so far in the House and 81 in the Senate.
Of these bills, 122 are sponsored by a committee, or roughly 59% of the total. The rest are being brought by individual legislators.
The number of bills introduced has slightly increased over the last seven years in the Legislature.
Driskill said he expects the grand total of bills to reach 400 by the Wednesday deadline, which would decrease the overall percentage of committee bills. If Driskill’s projection is correct, it would be the most bills proposed during a budget session in the history of the Legislature. The current mark is 399 in 2020.
In the last budget session of 2022, 279 bills were introduced — 122 sponsored by committee.
Legislators will have until noon Wednesday to submit their draft bills to the Legislative Service Office. Any bill that hasn’t been introduced on the floor of either chamber by Friday won’t be considered during the 2024 session.
There were 497 bills introduced during the 2023 session, but this is not an apples-to-apples comparison as non-budget sessions are much longer and do not require the same two-thirds hurdle.
Look At The First Few Days
Both chambers will gavel in separately at 10 a.m. Monday. This will be followed shortly after by Gov. Mark Gordon’s annual State of the State speech, delivered from the floor of the House.
After that, some committee meetings will be held, then the Management Council will meet at 5 p.m. Monday to discuss rules for the upcoming session.
This will involve a discussion on ethics complaints and a proposal by Rep. Mike Yin, D-Jackson, giving the council authority to pause the implementation of an administrative rule if it believes it is unlawful, which would then be considered by the Legislature.
Current law only allows the Management Council to give a recommendation to the governor on a particular rule, which the governor can then choose whether or not to accept.
On Tuesday, Sen. Cheri Steinmetz, R-Lingle, will host a Senate Agriculture State and Public Lands & Water Resources Committee meeting that will serve as an oversight hearing on the environmental impacts of Gordon’s net-zero and “carbon-negative” policies.
“It’s an issue that is very serious and needs to have a solid debate,” Driskill said. “It needs a good, honest debate on the policy.”
Around the same time that day, Driskill and House Speaker Rep. Albert Sommers, R-Pinedale, will host a forest health briefing with input from members of the U.S. Forest Service, BLM and Wyoming State Forester.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at Leo@CowboyStateDaily.com.
The first weekend of high school volleyball in Wyoming is here. There are tournaments galore in the state. Cheyenne, Cokeville, Cowley, Douglas, Lander, and Lingle are all hosting tournaments. There are all but two teams in action, Jackson and Wind River. They will start play next week. There is only one individual contest this week, Ft. Washakie travels to Saratoga in Class 1A Southwest action. Two conference matches are also part of the schedule.
The schedule for Week 1 is below. All schedules are subject to change. For any updates, please reach out to david@wyopreps.com.
Class 1A
Ft. Washakie at Saratoga (conference match) – MISSING SCORE
Tournaments
Cheyenne Invitational
Final Score: #3 Thunder Basin 2 #5 Star Valley 0 = 25-22, 25-18
Final Score: 4A Cheyenne East 2 3A Rawlins 0 = 25-14, 25-9
Final Score: Natrona County 2 Cheyenne Central 1 = 25-12, 14-25, 25-16
Final Score: Riverton 2 Cheyenne South 0 = 25-21, 25-16
Final Score: #1 Laramie 2 #2 Kelly Walsh 0 = 25-17, 25-19
Final Score: Green River 2 #4 Campbell County 1 = 25-21, 25-11
Sheridan vs Rock Springs – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: #3 Thunder Basin 2 Riverton 0 = 25-21, 25-17
#4 Campbell County vs Natrona County – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: #5 Star Valley 2 Cheyenne South 0 = 25-12, 25-23
Final Score: #2 Kelly Walsh 2 Cheyenne East 0 = 25-14, 25-21
Final Score: Cheyenne Central 2 Rock Springs 0 = 25-16, 25-15
4A Sheridan vs 3A Rawlins – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: #1 Laramie 2 Green River 1 = 21-25, 25-23, 25-20
Final Score: #5 Star Valley 2 Sheridan 1 = 25-14, 22-25, 27-26
#3 Thunder Basin vs Rock Springs – MISSING SCORE
Natrona County at Cheyenne South – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: Cheyenne Central 2 Green River 0 = 26-24, 25-19
Final Score: 4A #1 Laramie 2 3A Rawlins 0 = 25-10, 25-6
Cokeville Invitational (3 courts – JV before Varsity)
2A Kemmerer at 1A #1 Cokeville – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: Bear Lake, ID 3 1A #2 Little Snake River 0 = 25-12, 25-20, 25-20
1A Riverside vs Preston, ID – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 3A #1 Mountain View 3 Grace, ID 1 = 19-25, 25-18, 25-23, 25-13
Final Score: 4A Evanston 3 West Side, ID 0 = 25-13, 25-11, 25-23
Final Score: 3A #1 Mountain View 3 1A #1 Cokeville 1 = 26-24, 20-25, 25-18, 25-21
Final Score: 1A #2 Little Snake River 3 Rich, UT 2 = 24-26, 25-23, 25-21, 20-25, 15-8
Final Score: 4A Evanston 3 1A Riverside 0 = 25-19, 25-14, 25-22
2A Kemmerer vs Grace, ID – MISSING SCORE
2A Kemmerer vs 3A #1 Mountain View – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 4A Evanston 3 Preston, ID 0 = 25-23, 25-20, 27-25
Final Score: 1A #1 Cokeville 3 Grace, ID 2 = 23-25, 25-14, 16-25, 26-24, 15-7
1A #2 Little Snake River vs Star Valley JV – MISSING SCORE
1A Riverside vs West Side, ID – MISSING SCORE
Dogger Invitational in Lingle (rolling times in the High School & Middle School Gyms on the next available court)
Final Score: #5 Lingle-Ft. Laramie 2 Rock River 0 = 25-8, 25-8 (conference game)
Final Score: 2A #3 Pine Bluffs 2 Guernsey-Sunrise 0 = 25-19, 25-9
Final Score: #3 Upton 2 Lusk 0 = 25-23, 25-19
Final Score: Kaycee 2 H.E.M. 1 = 17-25, 25-11, 15-7
Final Score: #5 Lingle-Ft. Laramie 2 Arvada-Clearmont 0 = 25-7, 25-5
Final Score: 2A #3 Pine Bluffs 2 1A Hulett 0 = 25-17, 25-20
Final Score: Guernsey-Sunrise 2 Kaycee 1 = 25-22, 18-25, 15-6
Final Score: #3 Upton 2 Rock River 0 = 25-14, 25-12
Final Score: Arvada-Clearmont 2 H.E.M. 0 = 25-18, 25-23
Final Score: Lusk 2 Hulett 0 = 25-12, 25-20
Final Score: #3 Upton 2 #5 Lingle-Ft. Laramie 0 = 25-17, 25-20
Final Score: 2A #3 Pine Bluffs 2 1A Kaycee 0 = 25-10, 25-11
Final Score: Rock River 2 Arvada-Clearmont 0 = 25-16, 25-17
Final Score: Guernsey-Sunrise 2 Hulett 0 = 25-17, 25-16
Final Score: Lusk 2 H.E.M. 1 = 25-19, 19-25, 15-9
Final Score: 2A #3 Pine Bluffs 2 1A #3 Upton 0 = 25-15, 23-25, 15-9
Final Score: #5 Lingle-Ft. Laramie 2 Kaycee 0 = 25-20, 25-17
Final Score: Hulett 2 Rock River 0 = 25-17, 25-22
Final Score: Guernsey-Sunrise 2 H.E.M. 1 = 25-23, 20-25, 15-9
Final Score: Lusk 2 Arvada-Clearmont 0 = 25-17, 25-11
Douglas Bearcat Invitational (rolling times – JV plays 1st)
Pool A – Rec Center
Final Score: 3A #3 Douglas 2 2A #5 Wright 0 = 25-11, 25-16
Final Score: 2A Moorcroft 2 3A Burns 0 = 25-17, 25-16
Final Score: 3A #3 Douglas 2 2A Moorcroft 0 = 25-5, 25-6
2A #5 Wright vs 3A Burns – MISSING SCORE
Moorcroft vs #5 Wright – MISSING SCORE
Burns at #3 Douglas – MISSING SCORE
Pool B – Bearcat Den
Final Score: Torrington 2 Glenrock 0 = 25-16, 25-13
Final Score: 1A #4 Southeast 2 3A Buffalo 0 = 25-20, 25-16
3A Torrington vs 1A #4 Southeast – MISSING SCORE
Buffalo vs Glenrock – MISSING SCORE
1A #4 Southeast vs 3A Glenrock – MISSING SCORE
Buffalo vs Torrington – MISSING SCORE
Pool C – Middle School
Final Score: 3A Wheatland 2 2A #1 Big Horn 0 = 28-26, 28-26
Final Score: Alliance, NE 2 3A Newcastle 0 = 25-23, 25-22
Final Score: 2A #1 Big Horn 2 Alliance, NE 0 = 25-13, 25-19
Wheatland vs Newcastle – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 3A Wheatland 2 Alliance, NE 1 = 25-20, 23-25, 15-7
2A #1 Big Horn vs 3A Newcastle – MISSING SCORE
Lander Invitational (Fieldhouse 1 & 2 and Aux Gym are used for courts – JV plays 1st)
3A Lovell vs 2A Wyoming Indian – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 3A #4 Lyman 3 2A Big Piney 0 = 25-13, 25-19, 25-15
Final Score: #2 Cody 3 Pinedale 1 = 19-25, 25-16, 25-14, 28-26
3A #5 Powell vs 2A Shoshoni – MISSING SCORE
1A Farson-Eden vs 3A Worland – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 3A Lander 3 2A Thermopolis 2 = 23-25, 19-25, 25-12, 25-17, 15-13
Final Score: Lovell 3 #4 Lyman 2 = 22-25, 25-21, 15-25, 25-22, 16-14
Final Score: Pinedale 3 Worland 1 = 25-22, 17-25, 25-14, 25-23
Final Score: 3A #2 Cody 3 2A Big Piney 0 = 25-9, 25-16, 25-14
1A Farson-Eden vs 2A Thermopolis – MISSING SCORE
Shoshoni vs Wyoming Indian – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: #5 Powell 3 Lander 0 = 25-21, 25-17, 25-14
North Big Horn County Tournament in Cowley (Main and Aux Gyms – JV plays 1st)
Final Score: 2A Rocky Mountain 2 1A Meeteetse 0 = 25-11, 25-6
2A #4 Greybull vs 1A Burlington – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: Dubois 2 Meeteetse 0 = 25-7, 25-11
2A #2 Tongue River vs 1A St. Stephens – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 2A Rocky Mountain 2 1A Dubois 0 = 25-22, 25-17
1A St. Stephens vs 2A #4 Greybull – MISSING SCORE
Final Score: 2A Sundance 2 1A Meeteetse 0 = 25-6, 25-9
Final Score: 2A #2 Tongue River 2 1A Burlington 0 = 25-22, 25-10
Final Score: 2A Sundance 2 1A Dubois 0 = 25-11, 25-20
Final Score: #4 Greybull 1 #2 Tongue River 1 = 25-22, 16-25
Final Score: Sundance 1 Rocky Mountain 1 = 25-18, 20-25
Burlington vs St. Stephens – MISSING SCORE
Tournaments
Cheyenne Invitational
#4 Campbell County vs #2 Kelly Walsh, 9 a.m. (East HS)
#1 Laramie vs Riverton, 9 a.m. (Central HS)
4A #3 Thunder Basin vs 3A Rawlins, 9 a.m. (South HS)
#5 Star Valley at Cheyenne East, 10 a.m.
Sheridan vs Green River, 10 a.m. (Central HS)
Rock Springs at Cheyenne South, 10 a.m.
4A #4 Campbell County vs 3A Rawlins, 11 a.m.
Riverton at Cheyenne Central, 11 a.m.
#3 Thunder Basin vs Natrona County, 11 a.m. (South HS)
Rock Springs at Cheyenne East, noon
Sheridan vs #2 Kelly Walsh, noon (Central HS)
Green River at Cheyenne South, noon
#1 Laramie vs #5 Star Valley, 1 p.m. (East HS)
#4 Campbell County vs Riverton, 1 p.m. (Central HS)
Natrona County at Cheyenne East, 2 p.m.
#2 Kelly Walsh at Cheyenne Central, 2 p.m.
Cokeville Invitaional
Gold Bracket – Courts 1 & 2
1A #1 Cokeville vs Preston, ID, 8 am (Court 1)
4A Evaston vs Star Valley JV, 10:30 am (Court 1)
3A #1 Mountain View vs 1A #2 Little Snake River, 10:30 am (Court 2)
Consolation match, 1 pm
Consolation match, 1 pm
Semifinal match, 3:30 pm
Semifinal match, 3:30 pm
5th place match, 6 pm
3rd place match, 6 pm
Championship match, 8:30 pm
Silver Bracket – Court 3
1A Riverside vs Rich, UT, 8 am
2A Kemmerer vs West Side, ID, 10:30 am
Consolation match, 1 pm
Championship match, 3:30 pm
Douglas Bearcat Invitational (rolling times – JV plays 1st)
The top 8 teams will be in the Gold bracket, split between the Rec Center & Bearcat Den
The other 4 will play round-robin games in the Silver bracket, at the Middle School
Lander Invitational (Fieldhouse 1 & 2 and Aux Gym are used for courts – JV plays 1st)
Wyoming Indian vs Big Piney, 8 a.m. (FH 1)
Lovell vs Pinedale, 8 a.m. (FH 2)
#4 Lyman vs #2 Cody, 8 a.m. (Aux)
3A Worland vs 2A Thermoplois, 10:30 a.m. (FH 1)
1A Farson-Eden vs 3A #5 Powell, 10:30 a.m. (FH 2)
2A Shonshoni at 3A Lander, 10:30 a.m. (Aux)
2A Big Piney vs 3A Lovell, 1 p.m. (FH 1)
3A #2 Cody vs 2A Wyoming Indian, 1 p.m. (FH 2)
#4 Lyman vs #5 Powell, 1 p.m. (Aux)
3A Pinedale vs 2A Thermopolis, 3:30 p.m. (FH 1)
2A Shoshoni vs 1A Farson-Eden, 3:30 p.m. (FH 2)
Worland at Lander, 3:30 p.m. (Aux)
North Big Horn County Tournament in Cowley
Gold Bracket in the Main Gym
Brown Bracket in the Aux Gym
WyoPreps Preseason Football Tour 2024
Photos from practices of teams preparing for the 2024 Wyoming High School football season.
Gallery Credit: David Settle, WyoPreps.com
When it comes to Sheridan County residents, most of them are older than 25 years of age, have a high school diploma, have better ACT scores compared to the state average, and have a higher home value.
Earlier this month the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division released its latest state and county profile report, which measures demographic, social, economic, housing and revenue conditions.
The report says Sheridan County has a population of a little more than 32,000 residents, but for the county and for the state, less than 10% of them are between the ages of 18 and 24.
About 96% of Sheridan County residents have at least a high diploma or equivalent, and 32% have at least a bachelor’s degree or better.
For the 2022-2023 school year, the average ACT score for high school juniors was 19.9, which is better than the statewide average of 18.8.
Johnson County had an average score of 18.6.
The graduate rate for the county was 88.2% and was 81.4% in the Cowboy State.
The median household income in Sheridan County was almost $69,000, and the income of about 8.7% of residents is below the poverty level, compared to 10.7% for the state.
Average full-time earnings in 2022 for men was about $66,000 per year, and about $43,500 for women, which for the latter, is about $1,400 a year below the state average.
The average home value in Sheridan County is more than $342,000, which is $70,000 more compared to all of Wyoming.
Click here for more information.
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