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January 29, 2007Day 15 – Monday INDEX OF BILLS COVERED IN TODAY’S REPORT HB 11: Subdivisions - Exemptions TODAY’S ACTION ON BILLS HB 11: Subdivisions - Exemptions HB 11 would require a landowner to own the property for at least five years before the family exemption to subdivision law could be applied. The bill would also create a new exemption to county subdivision laws, to allow parcels of five acres or less to be created to establish unmanned communication facilities, compressor stations, metering stations, fiber optic booster stations, or other similar unmanned facilities. The House Committee of the Whole passed HB 11 on Monday, and the bill will move on to second reading on Tuesday. HB 28: Elections – Payroll
Deductions HB 28 would repeal a state statute that restricts automatic payroll deductions for campaign contributions. Under current statutes, campaign contributions by automatic payroll deduction are only permitted with annual affirmative consent of the individual, in writing. HB 28 would strike the requirement for annual sign-up. Individuals would still have to sign up for these automatic payroll deductions, but would no longer have to reaffirm their participation every year. The House passed HB 28, and the bill will move to the Senate. HB 31: Charter School Amendments As introduced, HB 31 would amend Wyoming’s charter school law to restrict the frequency with which charter school applications could be filed. HB 31 would increase the time the applicant had to appeal a denial from 30 days to 45 days, and would not otherwise change the appeal process. HB 31 would allow for successive periods of renewal of a school’s charter. The House removed the restriction on frequency of application before passing HB 31. The Senate Education Committee unanimously (with Senator Jim Anderson (R-S2, Glenrock) excused) passed HB 31 on Monday, and the bill has been placed on general file in the Senate. HB 54: Hazing Prohibition HB 54 would specifically prohibit hazing as any part of a membership ritual for any organization in any educational institution in Wyoming. Hazing was defined as subjecting a person to bodily danger or injury, or likely danger or injury. Anyone who intentionally hazes someone else would be guilty of a misdemeanor if the hazed person was injured, and would be punished by up to six months in jail or fined up to $750, or both. If a hazed person was seriously injured or killed, the person who hazed them would be guilty of a felony, and would be punished by up to ten years in prison or fined up to $10,000, or both. Proponents of HB 54 noted that Wyoming is one of only six states that do not statutorily prohibit hazing, and felt the bill would set a standard and expectation that it is not acceptable to engage in hazing activities. The House passed HB 54, and the bill will now move to the Senate. HB 70: Game and Fish – License
Fees HB 70 would increase hunting and fishing license fees by 20%, effective in 2008. It would also increase application, conservation stamp and permit fees, selling agent fees and landowner coupon payments by 20%, and would generate about $5.6 million in additional revenue for the Game and Fish Department annually. The Senate Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee will hear HB 70 on Tuesday morning at 8:00 a.m. HB
71: Game and Fish – License Fees 2 HB 71 would automatically adjust all fees charged by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and landowner coupon payments to account for inflation, using the implicit price deflator as published by the United States Department of Commerce as the index to determine the annual rate of increase or decrease. The Senate Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee will hear HB 71 on Tuesday morning at 8:00 a.m. HB 95: Quality Child Care HB 95 would continue implementation of the quality child care program that was started by the 2006 Legislature, which authorized first year spending on the program to set up the program, develop rules for the quality rating system and devise the scholarship component of the program. HB 95 would create a quality child care system to encourage the availability of high quality care for children in licensed facilities. The system would consist of a quality rating system; scholarships for families for higher levels of quality care; educational grants for child care providers; technical assistance, quality assessment and business management services; and capacity enhancement grants. Appropriations totaling $12.3 million to fund HB 95 were contained in a separate bill, HB 96 (Quality Child Care Appropriations). The House Labor, Health and Social Services Committee unanimously passed a substitute HB 95 on Monday. The substitute bill has been pared down to a size that will use up the remaining appropriation set aside by last year’s legislature, about 6.8 million. The House Appropriations Committee will still hear HB 95, since the legislature must vote to release the remaining appropriation for the program. HB 104: Harassment, Intimidation or Bullying Prohibition HB 104 would require school districts in Wyoming to establish policies to prohibit harassment, intimidation or bullying of any student on school property or at school sponsored events. The policy would have to include a procedure for reporting incidents, and a requirement that school personnel report any incidents of which they are aware. Schools would have to develop procedures for documentation of and response to reported incidents, and for notification of parents or guardians of involved students. Schools would also have to develop strategies for protecting victims from additional harassment or retaliation, and for disciplining perpetrators. Information related to reported incidents would be kept confidential. The House passed HB 104, and the bill will now move to the Senate. HB 138: Wyoming Workforce Housing Infrastructure Program HB 138 would set up a new state program to offer grants and low- or no-interest loans to cities, towns, counties, special improvement districts and joint powers boards to pay for workforce housing infrastructure and community land trusts. The stated purpose of HB 138 would be to facilitate the provision of adequate housing, the supply of which is considered inadequate in some areas of the state as a result of the expansion of extractive mineral industries and other economic development. HB 138 would appropriate $30 million to fund the grants and loans, and would cost about an additional $900,000 for program administration annually. The House passed HB 138 on second reading on Monday, and the bill move on to third reading on Tuesday. HB 157: Sex Offender Penalties HB 157 would increase penalties for sex offenses committed against children and minors, including a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole upon a second conviction for sexual assault, or immoral or indecent acts against a minor. As with other bills that contained mandatory sentencing provisions, concern was raised about inappropriately reducing judicial power and discretion. Opponents argued that judges should retain the ability to evaluate cases, especially those involving younger perpetrators, on a case-by-case basis. The House Judiciary Committee unanimously passed HB 157, and the bill has been placed on general file. HB 169: Clean Coal Technology HB 169 would create a sales tax exemption for equipment used to construct “clean coal” power plants that would have reduced pollution impacts compared to traditional coal-fired power plants. Pollution control equipment that would be tax exempt would include circulating fluidized bed combustion, low nitrogen oxide burners, supercritical boilers, electrostatic precipitators, scrubbers, flue gas desulphurization, selective catalytic reduction and mercury filtration, and carbon dioxide sequestration equipment. Coal gasification facilities that convert coal into energy without combustion would likely also qualify for the tax exemption. The House Committee of the Whole passed HB 169, after amending the bill to remove the laundry list of equipment that would be exempt and replacing it with language that would require genuinely clean coal technology. Interestingly, the House also passed an amendment that would extend the tax break to any equipment that lowers emissions from current levels. HB 169 will move on to second reading on Tuesday. HB 213: Game and
Fish – Wolf
Management HB 213 would authorize the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission to use what the bill referred to as “aggressive” management techniques for gray wolves in Wyoming. Such techniques would include liberal hunting seasons and limits, aerial hunting and hazing, and waiver of license fees for landowners. HB 213 was drafted, as was SF 135, to act as a placeholder in case the state and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service arrived at some compromise on Wyoming’s wolf management plan during this legislative session. The House Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee initially defeated HB 213, 5-4. Reps. Kermit Brown (R-H14, Laramie), Bernadine Craft (D-H17, Rock Springs), Kathy Davison (R-H20, Kemmerer), Patrick Goggles (D-H33, Ethete) and Jim Slater (R-H46, Laramie) voted against the bill, while Reps. Allen Jaggi (R-H18, Lyman), Pat Childers (R-H50, Cody), Jerry Iekel (R-H29, Sheridan) and Bill Thompson (D-H60, Green River) voted in favor. The committee chair, Rep. Pat Childers (R-H50, Cody), clearly wanted HB 213 to stay alive in the House as a vehicle for potential compromise with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and scheduled a noon hearing to reconsider HB 213. Upon reconsideration, the committee passed the bill, 6-3. Reps. Craft, Davison, and Goggles maintained their stance against the bill, while Reps. Brown and Slater switched their votes to YES. HB 239: DUI - Penalties HB 239 would increase the penalties against persons convicted of driving while under the influence of alcohol. The penalty for a first conviction would be increased to imprisonment up to one year (from the current six months) and/or a fine up to $1,000 (from the current $750). A second conviction within five years would lead to imprisonment of at least 60 days, with a maximum of one year. In addition, a fine of at least $750 but not more than $3,000 would be assessed. The penalty for a third or fourth conviction within seven years, or a fifth or subsequent conviction in a lifetime, would be a felony conviction with a fine up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment up to ten years. The House Judiciary Committee passed HB 239, 8-1. Representative Monte Olsen (R-H22, Daniel) cast the single NO vote. HB 239 has been placed on general file in the House. SF 13: Same Sex Marriages SF 13 would specify that marriages between persons of the same sex would not be recognized is valid in Wyoming. Currently, all marriages that are legally contracted outside of the state are recognized as legal and valid in Wyoming, but SF 13 would create an exception to that statute for same-sex marriages. The Senate Committee of the Whole passed SF 13 on Monday, after spirited debate. The bill will move on to second reading on Tuesday. SF 52: Outdoor Lighting SF 52 would allow municipalities to adopt ordinances to regulate outdoor electrical lighting to reduce light pollution and light trespass. The Senate Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee will consider SF 52 on Tuesday after 7:00 a.m. SF 135: Wolf Management SF 135 would amend current state statutes on how wolves would be classified when they are removed from the federal endangered species list. The bill would direct the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission to designate areas in the state where gray wolves would be classified as trophy game animals, and to set annually hunting seasons and regulations within those areas. SF 135 was drafted, as was HB 213 in the House, to act essentially as a placeholder in case the state and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service arrive at some compromise on Wyoming’s wolf management plan during this legislative session. Because the details of any agreement between the parties were still pending as the 2007 legislature began, either bill would likely change significantly before final passage, and both would be allowed to die by their sponsors if no compromise is reached during the session. The Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously passed SF 135 without amending the bill’s appropriation on Monday, and the bill has been placed on general file in the Senate. Please Visit The Following Links:
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