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25LSO-0052
2025
STATE OF WYOMING
25LSO-0052
Numbered
2.0
HOUSE BILL NO. HB0138
Wyoming gaming commission amendments.
Sponsored by: Joint Appropriations Committee
A BILL
for
AN ACT relating to the Wyoming gaming commission; amending the composition, qualifications, salaries, officers, duties and powers of the Wyoming gaming commission; continuing the liaisons to the commission; making conforming amendments; repealing provisions; providing for appointments and terminating terms of existing appointments; providing an appropriation; and providing for an effective date.
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
Section 1.
W.S. 11
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101, 11
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104(a) and (b) and 11
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201(d) are amended to read:
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101.
Wyoming gaming commission created; composition; qualifications; personal or private interest; salaries; officers; terms; vacancies; liaisons.
(a)
The Wyoming gaming commission is created
.
to be composed of nine (9) persons who have resided in the state for four (4) years and are qualified electors of Wyoming.
The commission shall consist of five (5) members appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate in accordance with W.S. 28
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101 through 28
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103.
(b)
Each member of the commission shall have not less than five (5) years of professional experience. At least (1) member shall be an enrolled member of the Northern Arapaho or Eastern Shoshone Indian tribe.
(c)
Each member of the commission shall receive an annual salary to be paid in equal monthly installments in the same manner that other state salaries are paid.
(d)
Biennially the members shall elect from among their number a chairman and a deputy chairman who shall serve in these offices for a period of two (2) years.
(e)
Upon the expiration of the term of any member, the member may be reappointed or a successor shall be appointed for a term of six (6) years, except in case of a vacancy. Each member shall hold office until a successor is appointed and qualified. The governor may remove any member as provided in W.S. 9
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202.
(f)
Any vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the governor in accordance with W.S. 28
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101.
(g)
Each member, within thirty (30) days after notice of appointment and before commencement of the member's duties, shall take, subscribe and file with the secretary of state the oath of office prescribed by the constitution of this state.
(h)
No member of the commission or family member of a member, as defined in W.S. 9
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102(a)(v), shall own or have any personal or private interest in any activity regulated by the commission or in any animal participating in a pari
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mutuel event.
(j)
One (1) senator appointed by the president of the senate, one (1) representative appointed by the speaker of the house and one (1) person appointed by the governor shall serve as ex officio nonvoting liaisons to the commission.
The legislative liaisons shall serve two (2) year terms but are eligible for reappointment and may be removed by the officer appointing the member. The gubernatorial liaison shall serve for the term of office of the governor and may be removed by the governor.
Legislative liaisons shall be paid salary, per diem and mileage as provided in W.S. 28
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101 when attending meetings of the commission.
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104.
Gaming commission; director; employees; meetings; quorum; records; licenses generally.
(a)
The commission
shall annually elect from its membership a president and vice
‑
president, and
may employ a director who has a working knowledge of
pari
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mutuel
betting, horse racing and other
the
forms of gaming regulated by the commission
to oversee the administrative duties of the commission,
or an executive secretary, or both. The director may be retained on a yearly basis or for the racing season only as determined by the commission. Salary for the director or executive secretary shall be determined by the commission with the consent of the personnel division. The commission
may also
is authorized to
employ other
personnel required to carry out
persons as may be necessary to enable it to perform the duties imposed upon it by
this act
and to designate the duties of employees
.
The state shall provide the commission with offices, equipment and facilities as may be necessary for the performance of its duties.
(b)
The commission shall
hold an annual fall meeting in Wyoming and shall hold special
be subject to all of the following:
(i)
The commission shall hold
meetings at
such
times and places within Wyoming as the majority of the members determine
;
.
(ii)
A majority of the commission constitutes a quorum and a majority vote of a quorum may act for the commission
;
.
(iii)
Any investigation, inquiry or hearing that the commission has power to hold may be held by or before any commissioner, or an employee of the commission acting in the capacity of a hearing officer, when an order authorizing that action is entered in the records of the commission, and any such investigation, inquiry or hearing when approved and confirmed by the commission shall be the investigation, inquiry or hearing of the commission. No finding or order of the commission shall be effective without the concurrence of a majority of the commission;
(iv)
The secretary
or director
of the commission shall keep a record of the proceedings of the commission which is open at all times for public inspection
;
.
(v)
Legislative liaisons shall be considered members of the governing body of the commission for purposes of attending executive sessions held pursuant to W.S. 16
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405(a) only.
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201.
Pari
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mutuel permits; fees and reports; disposition of funds; enforcement of provisions.
(d)
All sums paid to the commission under this act except contributions from permittees to the breeder award fund, amounts paid under paragraphs (b)(iii) and (iv) of this section, fines and penalties shall be credited to the pari
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mutuel account which shall be used by the commission for the payment of all expenses incurred in enforcing this act. On a quarterly basis, the commission shall transfer amounts within the account in excess of one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000.00) to the state treasurer for credit to the legislative stabilization reserve account. All fines and penalties collected under this act shall be paid to the state treasurer and credited as provided in W.S. 8
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109. The state treasurer shall pay out of the account all warrants drawn by the state auditor, upon vouchers issued and signed by the
president, vice
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president
chairman, vice chairman, director
or
executive
secretary of the commission. The commission shall keep an accurate and true account of all funds received and all vouchers issued by the commission. All funds received and all vouchers issued by the commission shall be audited at least biennially by the director of the state department of audit or his designee and a copy of the audit shall be delivered within thirty (30) days after completion to the governor and the commission. The costs of the audit shall be borne by the commission.
The members of the commission shall receive per diem and mileage as provided in W.S. 33
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302(a)(vii), and compensation of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each day during which they are actually engaged in the discharge of their duties. The total expenses incurred by the commission shall not exceed the total amount in the pari
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mutuel account.
Section 2.
W.S. 11
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103 and 11
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104(c) and (d) are repealed.
Section 3.
(a)
The president of the Wyoming gaming commission and four (4) other members of the Wyoming gaming commission designated by the governor on or before the effective date of this act, or their successors in the event of a vacancy or the expiration of a member's term, shall comprise the Wyoming gaming commission until February 28, 2026.
(b)
Except as provided for the members specified in subsection (a) of this section, the terms of the Wyoming gaming commission members appointed under W.S. 11
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103 prior to the effective date of this act shall terminate on the effective date of this act.
(c)
The governor shall submit appointments or reappointments to the Wyoming gaming commission by the date specified in W.S. 28
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101(a)(ii) during the 2026 budget session.
(d)
Notwithstanding W.S. 11
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101(e), as created in section 1 of this act, the terms of appointments to the Wyoming gaming commission specified by subsection (c) of this section shall commence on March 1, 2026, with one (1) of the appointments appointed to a term of two (2) years, two (2) of the appointments appointed to a term of four (4) years, and two (2) appointed to a term of six (6) years, as designated by the governor.
Section 4.
There is authorized five (5) full
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time positions for the members of the Wyoming gaming commission under W.S. 11
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101, as amended by section 1 of this act.
There is appropriated nine hundred sixty
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five thousand dollars ($965,000.00) from the pari
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mutuel account to the Wyoming gaming commission for purposes of providing salaries and benefits to the members of the Wyoming gaming commission under W.S. 11
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101, as amended by section 1 of this act. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2026. This appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2026. It is the intent of the legislature that this appropriation be doubled and included in the Wyoming gaming commission's standard budget for the immediately succeeding fiscal biennium.
Section 5
.
This act is effective July 1, 2025
.
(END)
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HB0138