The 66th Wyoming Legislature is currently holding virtual standing committee meetings to consider and take public testimony on bills introduced and referred to committees on Jan. 12.

Click here to view the 2021 Committee Meeting Schedule. More information regarding each meeting can be found when clicking the "details" button.

The meetings will be held remotely due to the COVID-19 health emergency, meaning there will be no physical location for the committee meetings. All meetings will be livestreamed and archived on the Legislature’s YouTube channel.

The public can testify virtually via zoom or by providing written materials to all committee members. Those wishing to testify virtually can register to enter the Zoom meeting for each committee by clicking the “testify” button provided on the Legislature’s calendar page. Written testimony materials should be emailed to each member of the committee and to [email protected] prior to the committee meeting. Click here for a list of committee members with contact info.

The Wyoming Women's Foundation is providing you with information on legislative activity relating to economic self-sufficiency for women and opportunities for girls. More information will be provided as it becomes available. Please do not hesitate to let us know if you feel we have missed any bills related to women's economic self-sufficiency!

We encourage you to review the bill summaries below and consider contacting committee members with virtual or written testimony regarding the Senate Files under consideration. Remember, your voice matters!
Senate Files Under Consideration
Labor Committee Meeting TODAY Wednesday, January 20th at 1:30 pm
Sponsored by Joint Labor, Health & Social Services Interim Committee
AN ACT relating to public health and safety; authorizing grants to community health centers and rural health clinics as specified; repealing a sunset date; providing for rulemaking authority; providing an appropriation as specified; and providing for an effective date.
WHY IT MATTERS FOR WOMEN & GIRLS Grants to community health centers and rural health clinics help provide essential services for low-income women and families who may not otherwise receive needed healthcare. Maintaining good health is important to Wyoming’s workforce, and investing in healthcare for people of low-income in Wyoming provides support for their ability to work and maintain self-sufficiency. 
Latest Action S Introduced and Referred to S10 - Labor Committee

Labor Committee Meeting TODAY Wednesday, January 20th at 1:30 pm
Sponsored by Joint Labor, Health & Social Services Interim Committee
AN ACT relating to insurance; mandating equivalent benefits and reimbursement related to mental health and substance use services delivered remotely; specifying applicability; and providing for an effective date.
WHY IT MATTERS FOR WOMEN & GIRLS Data shows that COVID-19 has negatively affected the mental health of women in Wyoming.1 This bill would require insurance companies to cover telehealth (at home) services equally to in-person visits, helping to ensure access to affordable mental health care during the pandemic. Beyond the pandemic, this bill would help keep mental health services more accessible to women without the childcare or transportation necessary to receive in-person mental health care.
Latest Action S Introduced and Referred to S10 - Labor Committee

Education Committee Meeting TOMORROW Thursday, January 21th at 8:30 am
Sponsored by Joint Education Interim Committee
AN ACT relating to administration of the government; providing funding for the Wyoming investment in nursing program from CARES Act funds; providing appropriations; and providing for an effective date.
WHY IT MATTERS FOR WOMEN 90% of registered nurses in the U.S. are women.2In Wyoming, registered nurses earn self-sufficient wages, making nursing programs an effective path to self-sufficiency for women. This bill would provide support for those programs, which would primarily benefit women.
Latest Action S Introduced and Referred to S04 - Education Committee
  1. Wyoming Survey & Analysis Center (2020). The Impacts of COVID-19 on Wyoming Women. Retrieved from https://wywf.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Women-Covid-Fact-Sheet.pdf
  2. US Bureau of Labor Statistics (2019). Household Data Annual Averages: Employed persons by detailed occupation, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat11.pdf
Day 1 Tuesday, January 12 at Noon: One-day virtual session is convened remotely.

January 19, 20 & 21: Three days of virtual standing committee meetings to consider and take public testimony on the assigned bills. 

Day 2 Wednesday, January 27: Session reconvenes virtually via Zoom for eight days to consider the worked committee bills. 

Day 4 Friday, January 29: Cross-over Day in eight-day virtual session.
NOTE: If final action is not taken on a bill in house of origin, will be considered at reconvened session.

Day 5 Monday, February 1: Final Rules are adopted in both houses.

Day 9 Friday, February 5: Adjournment of eight-day virtual session. 

2021 Legislative activity will resume the week of February 22
Stay Engaged!
You have the power to influence positive change for women and girls in Wyoming right now. You can shape legislation that benefits those in your community by reaching out to your legislators about the issues you care about. Your voice matters!
Please complete the Power Advocate Poll so we can send you Legislative Action Alerts specific to your location. 
Would you like more frequent emails about when to make your voice heard in the legislature about women's economic self-sufficiency? Click here to be a power-advocate for women in Wyoming!
About the Wyoming Women's Foundation
The Wyoming Women’s Foundation is a priority fund of the Wyoming Community Foundation, which granted out over $11 million to nonprofits across the state in 2019, and over $85 million since its inception in 1989. The Women’s Foundation builds on a permanent endowment that will ensure funding to enhance the lives of women and girls in Wyoming for generations to come. It makes grants to organizations that help Wyoming women and girls attain economic self-sufficiency, creates statewide awareness of the barriers to economic self-sufficiency, and supports systems change to eliminate those barriers. Learn more at wywf.org.
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