Guest Columns
Guest opinion pieces and submissions from Wyoming voices published by The Open Range Record.
- The Wyoming Power and Data Center Tipping Point?
The Corporations Committee meets in Casper next week on election integrity, business-formation fraud, and a proposed $10 million to $14 million upgrade for the Secretary of State’s office. Half of the committee's legislators that were most inclined to scrutini... - Bien: Western Governors' Neglect Imperils the Nation
The crisis the WGA governors created is REAL. The Wyoming Legislature and our Governor share equal responsibility for not preparing. We are next. Protecting people, water security, food security and national resilience above corporate welfare is the first prio... - Wyoming Doesn’t Need More Mud Slinging
Let’s elect people for who they are and what they will do, not for what some mysterious, never-heard-of-them-before organization ginned up to make voters mad. Let’s elect people to represent our interests, not puppets who parrot consultants’ talking points. - Neiman: Facts Aren't Getting in the Way of Ogden Driskill's Campaign
The only thing more impressive than Ogden's selective memory is his willingness to campaign against bills he voted for. I am amazed how he continues to gnaw the leg off that is not caught in the trap. - Steinmetz: Data Centers are a Sales Pitch Wrapped in a Flag
Too many of these decisions are being made before the public has a meaningful voice. Meetings are held behind closed doors. Nondisclosure agreements keep citizens from knowing who promised what, to whom, and at what cost. Projects placed in business parks or a... - Williams: I Will Never Stop Fighting for the Unborn
Under Wyoming law, the intentional destruction of an eagle egg is criminalized. At the same time, ending the life of an unborn child has been deemed by activist judges to be a constitutional right – depending on the circumstances. - Bear: When WIll Wyoming Elect a Socialist?
Add to the 250th anniversary celebration of our Declaration of Independence that Lander parade-goers – including kids – were handed free condoms by the local LGBT advocacy group. Since when are free condoms protected by the Constitution while Bibles are not? - Brown: High Fees for Public Records Undermine Cheyenne’s Right to Know
The Wyoming Public Records Act is built on the principle that government records belong to the people. On issues involving public health, environmental quality, and the expenditure of ratepayer dollars, that principle should be upheld in practice, not just in... - Pendergraft: AFP, The Kind of BS You Need to be Aware Of
In short, ask the people if they want to be asked before we become a dumping ground for nuclear waste. Rather than make such a decision for the people, I wanted to ask their opinion first. Plain and simple. I urge you to read the resolution for yourself. - Strock: The Freedom Caucus Agenda?
The Wyoming Freedom Caucus is a group of legislators who share a common ideology of limited government, individual liberty, and American exceptionalism. We are committed to upholding and defending the U.S. and Wyoming Constitutions. - Robinson: Wyoming Can Show America How to Reform Higher Education
Enrollment at UW has fallen from 13,717 in 2015 to 10,800 in 2024, a decrease of 21 percent. Without concomitant reductions in administrative staff, the University of Wyoming’s per-student spending has increased significantly. This administrative bloat, endemi... - Utah Raised the Bar on Data Centers. Wyoming Did Not. The Legislature Must Act.
At what point does a project that consumes large amounts of water, power, land, and public infrastructure, while providing relatively few permanent jobs, cease to be economic development and become extraction? - Why I'm Running for Governor of Wyoming & Why the President Endorsed Me
We’ve seen it before. Republicans running for office who aren’t conservative but claim to be. People who campaign one way and then govern another. If someone has been in office for years (or even decades) and hasn’t done the things they are campaigning on now,... - Guggenmos: Why I Didn't File to Run for Re-Election
A Letter to my constituents explaining why I didn't file to run in the 2026 election: - Lucas: Election Integrity is Not a Waste of Time
Preventing problems before they spread is not a waste of time. It is responsible governance. Wyoming has a long tradition of leading on voting rights and election law. We did not wait for Congress or national consensus when we gave women the right to vote. - The Heavy Hand of Wyoming Bureaucracy is Threatening Food Freedom
Food freedom isn’t a slogan. It’s a huge piece of the puzzle to solve our food desert crisis and the chronic health epidemic in Wyoming. - Gordon: Hunger Doesn’t Take Vacations
SUN Bucks gives income-qualified families the flexibility to buy groceries close to home when distance, fuel costs, work schedules, weather, or lack of transportation make daily trips to meal sites unrealistic. It complements — not replaces — traditional summe... - Who Will Own Wyoming’s Future: Its People or the Government?
Wyoming is steadily removing productive land from use, creating an artificial scarcity that drives up costs and threatens the agricultural foundation that built this state. - Pendergraft: Why did I vote to let hungry kids starve?
No one voted to let kids starve. We did vote against money for administration that didn't have anything to do with food. - 375 Resolutions: Wyoming Conservatives are Right On-Target
Convention Resolutions Chairman Rep Pendergraft: "As I considered these resolutions, I was reminded of the often-parroted claim that the “extreme far right” are only concerned with national issues, and ignore the needs wants of Wyoming’s people. Looking back a... - Closing the Summer Gap: A Practical Case for SUN Bucks
Critics have raised concerns about expanding government programs or weakening personal responsibility. Those are valid concerns and should always be part of the conversation. Public programs should be limited, efficient, and focused on clearly defined needs. T... - Lucas: This Isn’t About Obscenity—It’s About Children
Every community draws lines when it comes to children. We do it in schools, in media, and in countless other areas of public life. Libraries should not be exempt from that conversation. Dismissing that conversation as a “misconception” does not resolve the iss... - 2026 Budget Session Recap: Key Legislation and Challenges for Wyoming
The Senate’s inability to manage the schedule in a way that allowed these bills to be heard fell short of the level of professionalism Wyoming citizens should expect from their Legislature. Responsibility for managing the daily floor schedule rests with Senate... - Lucas: A Tale of Two Cities
"The reason cited by the city planning department? The farmstand is a little too “rural” for Cheyenne’s tastes. Its processing of animals gets a little too “western.” - Are We Building Economic Development or Creating Wyoming's Next Crisis?
Sen. Cheri Steinmetz writes, "Private property rights are the cornerstone of American liberty, but they are not absolute. When private property use escalates into industrial operations that impose costs on neighbors and communities, it ceases to be a matter of... - Bratten: The Last Week of the 2026 Budget Session
On Wednesday, the legislature will review any vetoes for potential overrides. After that, the legislative session will be over for this year, and it will be time to work on interim committee topics for the rest of the year. - Mossburg: The Fast Track Permits Act could make housing more affordable and attainable in Wyoming
"Finding ways to increase the housing supply and make homes more attainable and affordable for all is a pressing problem in the Cowboy State and throughout the nation." - Steinmetz: The Hidden Price of Tax Relief: What Every Wyoming Citizen Should Know
“Before tearing down a fence, we should first understand why it was built.” - Guest Column: Wyoming education has come to a Y in the road
The Hathaway puts about $13 million into UW. The total budget for 2026 reported by UW is a staggering $533.7 million. Can you say more than half a billion? Surely UW could stand for a budget trim. - Gabe Saint: There's Still Something Wrong at UW
The environment that currently exists that is openly hostile towards conservatives, Christians, and white people shows that something is still wrong that the university must address. - Wyoming Is Not Washington, D.C. — That’s Why We Demand Accountability
Asking agencies to justify results is not an attack on Wyoming values. If someone’s telling you it is, they are misrepresenting the issue. - Democrat Math: What’s NOT Being Said About the Budget
If state spending continues to increase at this rate, our own projections put us $800 million in the red by 2029 – that’s three short years away. - It’s Open Season in Wyoming for preborn babies. What about Department of Health regulations?
This is the upside-down reality Wyoming is left with: fewer protections for women in abortion facilities than in birthing centers that deliver babies. Standards applied selectively are not standards at all. They are politics disguised as justice. - Sen Steinmetz: The Right to Life is Not "Health Care"
This ruling should now serve as a call to action for the people of Wyoming and their elected representatives. When judicial interpretation strays from constitutional intent, the citizens themselves must speak with clarity. - Mossburg: Legislators, not judges, should decide school funding
As the state argued in its appeal, “The suggestion that Wyoming is somehow shortchanging or harming students through inadequate funding is a premise detached from reality.” Federal statistics show that Wyoming spends more on K-12 education than regional neighb...