Wyoming News

The House passed two bills that would give Wyoming landowners rights to the space below their property and implement regulations on how carbon emissions are to be stored below ground. via Casper Star-Tribune

Gov. Dave Freudenthal is expressing concern about a small exploratory drilling project south of Rock Springs. via Rapid City Journal

“Before long, I'm not going to be able to go to McDonald's and order a Quarter Pounder with Cheese”

The Wyoming House of Representatives on Thursday rejected a proposed statewide ban on smoking in public places, including bars and restaurants. via Rapid City Journal

“People are selling these 40-acre parcels without any regulation”

The Wyoming Senate gave preliminary approval Wednesday to allowing counties to step in with regulations whenever land is divided into lots smaller than 140 acres for the purpose of building homes. via Rapid City Journal

“Whether you believe in global warming or not, it's a political and economic reality”

The House Appropriations Committee unanimously approved a bill Wednesday that would regulate carbon capture and sequestration in Wyoming. via Rapid City Journal

“Whether we want to admit it or not, these illegal immigrants provide services in the agricultural industry, in the food industry, and in construction”

A bill that sought to make it a felony to harbor or transport illegal immigrants in Wyoming died Tuesday when it failed to receive the required two-thirds vote for introduction in the House of Representatives. via Canadian Business Magazine

“The responsibility is just so overwhelming”

Intensely stressful. Overwhelming. Simply miserable. The attorneys who've litigated death penalty cases in Wyoming don't mince words when describing the experience. via Casper Star Tribune

The Wyoming Department of Transportation has bolstered its snow removal operations in the Rawlins area. via KIFI Idaho Falls

“There are lots of great things that didn't get funded”

Wyoming has the right to be proud of the huge investments it's made in education, roads and other improvements over the past several years of the state's ongoing energy boom, Gov. via Casper Star-Tribune

“We've gotten used to spending a lot of money, because we've had a lot of money”

The mood in Cheyenne is somewhat subdued as Wyoming lawmakers gather for the legislative budget session that kicks off Monday. via Casper Star-Tribune

“This is the recommendation, but it could change up or down one or two (schools) based on those numbers”

The Wyoming High School Activities Association board of directors has given preliminary approval to proposals that would change the number of schools in each classification for nearly every sport and add ... via Rapid City Journal

“The doors wouldn't stay shut, which for a prison is not good”

The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality has approved the demolition and burial of an abandoned section of the Wyoming State Penitentiary. via Billings Gazette

“In any health care approach there needs to be some sort of effort by the consumer”

Mark Gordon is taking his first swing through Wyoming as a congressional candidate, bringing with him a message that the Republican Party needs to get back to its roots. via Billings Gazette

An inmate has died at the Wyoming Women's Center in Lusk. The state Department of Corrections says 44-year-old Katherine Kay Smith died Monday. via Rapid City Journal

The Wyoming Range is a popular hunting and recreation area within the Bridger-Teton National Forest near the Idaho border. via KIDK TV

“We had a very positive conversation discussing the various interests and needs of the two states”

Wyoming political leaders and California's top electrical utilities regulator expressed hope that the two states could work together on using Wyoming coal to help meet California's growing power demands. via Casper Star Tribune

“We have farmland, and it's just getting to the point that it's not worth keeping it. There's no money in farming, and property taxes are going up so much that after a while you don't have a choice except to get rid of your land”

A statewide poll shows broad support for easing property taxes. Forty-two percent of Wyoming residents surveyed said the state should lessen property taxes for all homeowners. via Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

“This is something we feel is obviously produced in our states and we need to maintain the benefit of it here”

The Bush administration has proposed extending a new law that transfers millions of dollars in mineral royalties from states to the federal government -- money that states say could go for roads, education and ... via The Morning Call

“I'm not on a white charger here, I just go for what makes sense”

Wyoming could crack down on some law-breaking drivers this year if the Legislature passes a series of traffic safety bills, including one that might force people to buckle up. via Casper Star Tribune