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Wyoming State Legislature

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Wyoming State Legislature

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General Information
Type:   State legislature
Term limits:   None
2013 session start:   January 8, 2013
Website:   Official Legislature Page
Leadership
Senate President:   Jim Anderson (R)
House Speaker:  Edward Buchanan (R)
Majority Leader:   Tony Ross (R) (Senate),
Thomas E. Lubnau II (R) (House)
Minority leader:   John Hastert (D) (Senate),
W. Patrick Goggles (D) (House)
Structure
Members:  30 (Senate), 60 (House)
Length of term:   4 years (Senate), 2 years (House)
Authority:   Art 3, Wyoming Constitution
Salary:   $150/day + per diem
Elections
Last Election:  November 6, 2012
15 seats (Senate)
60 seats (House)
Next election:  November 4, 2014
Redistricting:  Wyoming Legislature has control

Contents

The Wyoming State Legislature is the state legislature of Wyoming. It is a bicameral legislature, consisting of a 60 member Wyoming House of Representatives, and a 30 member Wyoming State Senate. The legislature meets at the Wyoming State Capitol in Cheyenne.

As of May 2013, Wyoming is one of 24 Republican state government trifectas.

History

The Wyoming State Legislature began like other Western states as a territorial legislature, with nearly (though not all) the parliamentary regulations that guide other fully-fledged state legislatures.

Women's Suffrage

During its territorial era, the Wyoming Legislature played a crucial role in the Suffragette Movement in the United States. In 1869, only four years following the American Civil War and 35 years before women's suffrage became a highly visible political issue in the U.S., Britain and elsewhere, the Wyoming Legislature granted all women above the age of 21 the right to vote. The legislature's move made Wyoming the first portion of the U.S. where women were explicitly granted the voting franchise. News spread quickly to other neighboring territories and states. In 1870, the Utah Territorial Legislature similarly granted the voting franchise to women.

The move by the legislature was motivated by a number of factors, including bringing Eastern women to the territory to increase its population, to publicize the new territory, to bring more voters into the fold for existing political elites, and by genuine concerns that women should be allowed the vote.

Due to the territory's change of voting laws in 1869, the anti-suffrage U.S. Congress was hostile to Wyoming and its legislature. During proceedings to make Wyoming a U.S. state in 1889 and in writing a new constitution in 1980, Congress threatened to withhold statehood unless the law was changed. The Wyoming Legislature and territorial government sent a threatening telegram back to Washington, insisting that Wyoming would remain out of the United States 100 years rather than become a state without women's suffrage. The federal Congress withdrew its threat, and on July 10, 1890, President Benjamin Harrison signed into law Wyoming becoming the 44th U.S. state.

Wyoming's early entry into female politics continued into the 20th century. In 1925, Democrat Nellie Tayloe Ross became the first elected female governor of a U.S. state.

Sessions

Article III of the Wyoming Constitution establishes when the Legislature is to be in session. Sections 6 and 7 of Article III contain the relevant provisions. The Legislature is to convene in regular session for no more than sixty legislative working days every two years, and no more than forty legislative days in any year. In odd-numbered years, the Legislature meets for a general and budget session, beginning on the second Tuesday of January. In even-numbered years, the Legislature meets for a session devoted to budgetary matters.

Section 7 of Article III contains the provisions for convening special sessions of the Legislature. Special sessions can be convened by the proclamation of the Governor of Wyoming, or the Legislature can convene a special session of up to twenty legislative days if the session is requested by a majority of the members of each legislative house.

2013

See also: Dates of 2013 state legislative sessions

In 2013, the Legislature will be in session from January 8 through March 1.

Major issues

In what is expected to be a busy session, major issues include "opting out" of the Affordable Healthcare Act and Medicaid, a 10-cent fuel tax increase, infrastructure improvements, and reforms to sex crime laws.[1]

2012

See also: Dates of 2012 state legislative sessions

In 2012, the Legislature was in session from February 13 through March 9.

2011

See also: Dates of 2011 state legislative sessions

In 2011, the Legislature was in regular session from January 11 through March 3. [2] The 45 calendar days that the Wyoming Legislature was in session during 2011 is tied with Utah, New Mexico, and Arkansas for the shortest legislative session in the country.[3]

2010

See also: Dates of 2010 state legislative sessions

In 2010, the Legislature convened for its biennial budget session, which lasted from February 8 to March 5.[4]

Population

Wyoming remains the smallest state by population in the United States. However, the Wyoming Legislature is not the smallest. The Nebraska State Legislature, with only 49 members, is the smallest legislative body out of the 50 states.

Redistricting

See also: Redistricting in Wyoming

The Wyoming State Legislature is responsible for drafting the new, redistricted maps. The initial drafting usually occurs in the Joint Interim Committee on Corporations, Elections, and Political Subdivisions, and then must pass through both the House of Representatives and the State Senate. The Governor of Wyoming holds veto power over the map.

2010

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Wyoming's population increased from just under 494,000 to over 563,000.[5] This increase of 14.5 percent was higher than the national average, but Wyoming still had less people than the average size for one Congressional district.[6][7]

The Joint Interim Committee on Corporations, Elections, and Political Subdivisions decided to keep single-member districts and the current configuration of 30 members in the Senate and 60 members in the House.[8] Only 34 of the 90 old House and Senate districts were within the accepted five percent margin of error from the ideal population, suggesting that many districts would have to be reshuffled.[9] After having public hearings, the Committee adopted a complete map in December of 2011, and gave it final approval in January of 2012. The Senate and the House both passed the final map by very wide margins (28-2 in the Senate and 51-8 in the House) and Governor Matt Mead signed the map into law on March 6, 2012.[10][11]

Senate

The Wyoming Senate is the upper house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 30 Senators in the Senate, representing an equal amount of constituencies across the state. Each member represents an average of 18,788 residents, as of the 2010 Census.[12] After the 2000 Census, each member represented 16,459.[13]

Like other upper houses of state and territorial legislatures and the federal U.S. Senate, the Wyoming Senate can confirm or reject gubernatorial appointments to the state cabinet, commissions, boards, or justices to the Wyoming Supreme Court.

Partisan composition

Party As of May 2013
     Democratic Party 4
     Republican Party 26
Total 30


The chart below shows the partisan composition of the Wyoming State Senate from 1992-2013.

Partisan composition of the Wyoming State Senate.PNG

House of Representatives

The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal amount of constituencies across the state. Each member represents an average of 9,394 residents, as of the 2010 Census.[14] After the 2000 Census, each member represented 8,230.[15]

Partisan composition

Party As of May 2013
     Democratic Party 8
     Republican Party 52
Total 60


The chart below shows the partisan composition of the Wyoming State House from 1992-2013.

Partisan composition of the Wyoming State House.PNG

Legislators

Term limits

Members of the Senate and House of Representatives have served without term limits since the Wyoming Supreme Court declared term limits unconstitutional in 2004, overturning a decade old law that restricted Senators and Representatives to serving no more than twelve years.

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

As of 2013, members of the Wyoming Legislature are paid $150/day. Legislators receive $109/day per diem, set by the legislature.[16]

Pension

Wyoming does not provide pensions for legislators.[17]

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Wyoming legislators assume office the first Monday in January following the election.

Joint Committees

The Wyoming Legislature has 12 standing committees.

History

Partisan balance 1992-2013

Who Runs the States Project
See also: Ballotpedia:Who Runs the States and Ballotpedia:Who Runs the States, Wyoming
Partisan breakdown of the Wyoming legislature from 1992-2013

Wyoming Senate: Throughout every year from 1992-2013, the Republican Party was the majority in the Wyoming State Senate. The Wyoming State Senate is one of 13 state senates that was Republican for more than 80 percent of the years between 1992-2013. Wyoming was under Republican trifectas for the final three years of the study period.

Across the country, there were 544 Democratic and 517 Republican State Senates from 1992-2013.

Wyoming House of Representatives: Throughout every year from 1992-2013, the Republican Party was the majority in the Wyoming State House of Representatives. The Wyoming House of Representatives is one of nine state Houses that was Republican for more than 80 percent of the years between 1992-2013. Wyoming was under Republican trifectas for the final three years of the study period.

Across the country, there were 579 Democratic and 482 Republican State Houses of Representatives from 1992-2013.

Over the course of the 22-year study, state governments became increasingly more partisan. At the outset of the study period (1992), 18 of the 49 states with partisan legislatures had single-party trifectas and 31 states had divided governments. In 2013, only 13 states have divided governments, while single-party trifectas held sway in 36 states, the most in the 22 years studied.

The chart below shows the partisan composition of the Office of the Governor of Wyoming, the Wyoming State Senate and the Wyoming House of Representatives from 1992-2013. Partisan composition of Wyoming state government(1992-2013).PNG

External links

References

  1. ↑ Cody Enterprise, "Wyoming Legislature set for ‘wild ride’," January 2, 2013
  2. ↑ 2011 Legislative Sessions Calendar, NCSL
  3. ↑ South Carolina Policy Council "50 State Legislative Session Interactive Map," February 2011
  4. ↑ 2010 session dates for Wyoming Legislature
  5. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "2010 Census: Wyoming Profile," 2011
  6. ↑ Star Tribune, "Committee sticks with current Wyoming Legislature configuration," April 13, 2011
  7. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Congressional Apportionment," November 2011
  8. ↑ Star Tribune, "Committee sticks with current Wyoming Legislature configuration," April 13, 2011
  9. ↑ Wyoming Tribune Eagle "Redistricting process gaining momentum," May 22, 2011
  10. ↑ Wyoming Tribune Eagle, "Redistricting plan clears both House and Senate," March 10, 2012
  11. ↑ Pinedale Roundup, "Gov. Mead signs redistricting plan into law," March 8, 2012
  12. ↑ Population in 2010 of the American states
  13. ↑ Population in 2000 of the American states
  14. ↑ Population in 2010 of the American states
  15. ↑ Population in 2000 of the American states
  16. ↑ NCSL.org, "2012 State Legislator Compensation and Per Diem Table," accessed March 18, 2013
  17. ↑ USA Today, "State-by-state: Benefits available to state legislators," September 23, 2011
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