CHEYENNE — Late in a Wyoming legislative session, time becomes one of the most powerful tools lawmakers possess. On Tuesday afternoon, the Wyoming Senate recessed as the chamber continued moving through first readings of House bills. At first glance, it looked like routine end-of-session procedure.
But behind the scenes, a different conversation was unfolding. While House bills were being read slowly across the Senate calendar, a pacing that can quietly determine whether legislation lives or dies. The Senate leadership crossed the rotunda to the House chamber to advocate for a different priority: moving Senate File 123, the Wyoming Energy Dominance Fund, to the top of the House General File.
The contrast did not go unnoticed among lawmakers watching the clock. As I observed the Senate President and Vice President and Senate Majority leader in the house chamber, I would describe it as: “Two speeds, some bills are moving slowly. Others are being pushed forward.”
According to one legislator, they are disgusted with Senate leadership going into a 1.5-hour recess when they are ready to work. They are saying there are many very important bills that will go to their death because of the games the Senate Leadership is playing.
The Energy Dominance Fund
SF0123, sponsored by Senator Dennis “Bo” Biteman, and co-sponsored by members of Senate leadership, would create the Wyoming Energy Dominance Fund, administered by the Wyoming Energy Authority.
The proposal is designed to support development of Wyoming’s traditional energy industries and related infrastructure. Under the bill, the fund could issue grants and loans for projects involving coal innovation, natural gas development, enhanced oil recovery, pipeline infrastructure, uranium conversion and enrichment, rare earth and critical mineral processing, baseload energy development and grid innovation. Wind and solar projects would not be eligible.
Projects receiving grants must provide at least a one-to-one match in non-state funding, and loans would be required to be fully collateralized. The program is structured as a temporary initiative scheduled to sunset December 31, 2028, with any remaining funds reverting to the Permanent Wyoming Mineral Trust Fund reserve account.
During discussions surrounding the bill, lawmakers circulated a letter from the White House expressing support for the legislation, underscoring the national energy policy implications of Wyoming’s resource development.
Funny thing is the co-sponsor in the house Rep. Cody Wylie made a motion to move this bill up the list to the top to be heard. The body agreed and the bill was heard and passed…The senate did not go back into session until the bill passed. Rep. Wylie and Reps JT Larson and Andrew Byron left after that vote for rest of the evening and were reported as absent for rest of the day's session.
The Clock Is Ticking
Tuesday, March 3, 2026, marked one of the final deadlines for legislation to advance through the House and Senate. Under Wyoming legislative rules, bills must reach Committee of the Whole by a specific deadline to remain alive. If they do not reach that stage, they die automatically with no floor debate, no final vote.
Several lawmakers say the Senate has been moving House bills slowly through first reading, a procedural step that can effectively prevent them from advancing before the cutoff.
Among the House bills still awaiting movement on the Senate side are: HB0010, HB0016, HB0017, HB0022, HB0043, HB0052, HB0080, HB0084, HB0092, HB0095, HB0117, HB0120, HB0127, HB0147, HB0157, HB0159 and HB0178.
What May Die with the Clock
The bills caught in the Senate calendar represent a wide range of policy issues affecting Wyoming residents, including government operations, taxpayer oversight, firearms policy, and parental rights.
HB0127 would require voter approval for certain recreation district mill levies, giving taxpayers more direct control over local tax decisions. HB0095 involves firearm policy and Second Amendment protections, while other measures address administrative reforms and state regulatory authority.
A Case Study: HB0157
One of the most closely watched bills now facing the clock is HB0157 — Protection of Parental Rights; Cause of Action. The bill would create a civil cause of action for parents whose statutory rights are violated. As introduced, the legislation required courts to award attorney fees to a prevailing parent who successfully proved their rights had been infringed.
When the bill reached the Senate Judiciary Committee, that language changed. During the committee hearing, senators amended the bill so that attorney fees would go to the prevailing party, not specifically to the parent bringing the claim.
Supporters argued the change creates balance in litigation. Critics say it raises the financial risk for parents attempting to enforce their rights.
With legislative deadlines approaching, the bill may never receive a full debate before the Senate.
Two Speeds
Veteran lawmakers have long joked that the Senate is where House bills go to die. In most years, that phrase reflects the reality of legislative deadlines and competing priorities. But the events unfolding this week illustrate something more subtle about how legislative power operates in the final days of a session. Some bills inch forward one reading at a time. Others move quickly when leadership decides the moment is right.
In the Wyoming Legislature, deadlines are fixed. But the speed at which a bill moves toward them is not. And in the final hours of a session, the difference between survival and death is often measured not in votes, but in how fast the clock is allowed to run.
Editors Note: Here are results of the bills listed above that died in the Senate at cut off: HB0084-FALSIFYING ELECTION DOCUMENTS; HB0010-SEXUALLY EXPLICT MATERIALS IN LIBRARIES; HB0052-ELECTIONS-HAND COUNTING FOR RECOUNTS; HB00070-WYOMING GRANITE ACT; HB0095-CONCEALED CARRY-COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY; HB0117-STOP HARM-EMPOWER WOMEN WITH INFORMED NOTICES; HB0127-VOTER APPROVAL REC MILL LEVY; HB0147-PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS; HB0157-PROTECTION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS-CAUSE OF ACTION; HB0159-SAFEGUARDING PERSONAL EXPRESSION AT K-12 SCHOOLS.
The house cleaned their deck and heard all the bills left on general file. No bills died at cut off.