NEWS


How viral votes, procedural gates and a growing ethics storm collided in Cheyenne 

 

On the first day of Wyoming’s 68th Budget Session, the House killed twenty-one bills. 
 
Not in committee. 
Not after extended debate. 
Not because time ran out. 
 
They failed to receive the required two‑thirds vote for introduction. 
 
Last year, thirteen bills met a similar fate early in the session and the reaction from the Wyoming News media was immediate. This year, the number was significantly higher, and the reaction from the mainstream Wyoming News was silence. 
 
Among the measures that failed introduction Monday were multiple election integrity bills, along with HB0110, the House’s vehicle for K‑12 public school finance recalibration. The session opened not with sweeping floor debate, but with a procedural gate. 

 

Monday Afternoon: HB0009 Goes Viral 

One bill did clear the threshold Monday afternoon: HB0009, aka, the Grooming Bill. The bill passed introduction in the House. 

By Monday evening, the roll call vote had gone viral after being amplified on Libs of TikTok, drawing national attention even from Elon Musk, and igniting online backlash. By Tuesday morning, the vote was the scuttlebutt around the Capitol — a routine procedural step turned into a national controversy within hours. 

Later Monday night, after adjournment, an after‑hours exchange of campaign checks occurred inside the House chamber — the incident that would soon become known as CheckGate. But by then, the week’s tone had already shifted. 


Tuesday: Viral Fallout and Bills That Never Reached Debate 

Tuesday brought more than social media chatter. House Joint Resolution 0003 — which would have required a statewide vote if Wyoming were ever considered for interim storage of spent nuclear fuel — failed to receive the required two‑thirds vote for introduction. The resolution would have placed the decision directly in the hands of voters. 

While sitting in the gallery Tuesday, I struck up a conversation with a young gentleman seated next to me. I asked what bills he was interested in, and he immediately said HJ0003. When I asked why, he said he believed the issue should be put to the people because it affects the whole state and the future of Wyoming — and he did not want to see Wyoming become a dumping ground for nuclear waste. 

Also failing introduction Tuesday was HB0013, a bill that would have allowed ivermectin to be dispensed without a prescription. Supporters framed it as expanding access and personal autonomy; opponents raised concerns about safety and medical oversight. Like HJ0003, it did not clear the two‑thirds threshold. 

By Tuesday afternoon, two themes had emerged: viral amplification could reshape the political environment instantly, and the introduction rule could quietly determine which debates Wyoming citizens would never hear. 


Wednesday: HB0141 and the Jackson Fault Line 

Wednesday shifted the focus to HB0141 — the Fifth Amendment Protection Act. The bill would prohibit cities and counties from imposing monetary fees, non‑monetary conditions, or other concessions tied to workforce or affordable housing on residential or commercial development. 

For Teton County, the implications were immediate. During limited debate, Rep. Mike Yin repeatedly referenced “my town” while discussing Jackson’s housing structure and the local reliance on mitigation policies. The back‑and‑forth was brief, but the stakes were clear: a state‑level bill potentially overriding a local housing model. 

The discussion shifted when Yin referenced the Monday evening check exchange and raised concerns about optics as HB0141 advanced. Whatever the intent, the effect was immediate: the conversation moved from housing policy to optics. 

HB0141 survived introduction. 


Thursday: Complaint and Overtime 

Thursday morning, Rep. Karlee Provenza filed a formal complaint regarding the Monday check exchange, triggering a House investigation. Because of that long debate the house was about to go into overtime. 

That evening, the session stretched past 11 p.m. as budget debates intensified. The pace of the week was accelerating. 


Friday: Procedural Maneuvering, SAPA, Protest and Escalation 

Friday unfolded on multiple fronts. In the House Appropriations Committee, HB0130 — the Second Amendment Protection Act (SAPA) — was heard. 

During testimony, Rep. Pendergraft asked the Laramie County sheriff whether incorporating thirteen amendments requested by county sheriffs would result in their support for the bill — or merely make it more palatable. The sheriff responded that the amendments would make the bill “more palatable.” 

HB0130 passed committee without amendment and was placed on General File. 

Meanwhile, on the House floor, procedural maneuvering during the reading of the budget consumed the afternoon. As debate stretched on, the 6:00 p.m. deadline for bill introductions loomed. Several measures slated for introduction did not make it to the floor in time and died at the cutoff. 

It was during this extended floor effort that Rep. Cody Wiley posted a photo of HJ0001 overlaid with lyrics from Talking Heads’ “Burning Down the House.” The imagery circulated as the House continued its prolonged budget reading. 

Outside the Capitol, students gathered on the front steps for an ICE‑related protest. Rep. Karlee Provenza and Sen. Chris Rothfuss addressed the crowd. The students had left school to participate. 

Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder issued a statement acknowledging students’ constitutional rights while reinforcing attendance policy and expressing support for law enforcement. 

Inside the Senate, recalibration also moved forward. Senate File 0081 — the Senate’s school finance recalibration bill — was introduced and passed introduction. 

The introduction vote drew strong reaction from education advocacy groups and generated significant constituent correspondence. By day’s end, the Senate president publicly called for investigation into CheckGate, elevating the controversy beyond the House chamber. 

Friday closed with gun policy, education recalibration, student protest, and ethics scrutiny unfolding simultaneously — all against the backdrop of procedural maneuvering that altered the fate of multiple bills. 


Saturday: Law Enforcement Steps In 

On Saturday, the Laramie County Sheriff announced an investigation into the Monday check exchange, examining whether any criminal conduct occurred. What began as an after‑hours optics issue had become a law enforcement matter. 


The Larger Pattern 

The first week of the 68th Budget Session revealed how quickly multiple fault lines can converge. Introduction thresholds determined which bills lived or died before debate. Viral amplification reshaped the political environment overnight. Procedural maneuvering during budget reading altered the introduction fate of additional measures. Local policy disputes spilled into statewide battles, and ethics scrutiny escalated from floor controversy to formal complaint and, ultimately, to law enforcement review. 

Twenty‑one bills failed introduction on Day One. More died throughout the rest of the week without much debate. A Jackson housing dispute became a statewide flashpoint. SAPA advanced without law enforcement support. Recalibration moved forward in the Senate amid organized pushback. Students protested on the Capitol steps. By week’s end, the sheriff’s office was investigating. 

Institutional rules, political strategy, public activism, and digital amplification are now operating simultaneously inside Wyoming’s Legislature. The question facing the weeks ahead is whether the body can manage those pressures — or whether escalation will continue to define the session more than deliberation.