KLS Keeping Law Simple Legislation in plain English

Straight-ahead summaries built from the official bill text. We keep the source links front and center and leave the decision up to you.

Back to Wyoming

HB0022 • 2026

Recall of elected municipal officers.

AN ACT relating to cities and towns; establishing recall provisions for municipal elected officers as specified; repealing a duplicative provision; and providing for an effective date.

Elections
Did Not Pass

The latest official action shows that this bill did not move forward in that session.

Sponsor
Representative Heiner
Last action
2026-03-03
Official status
inactive
Effective date
3/1/2026

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material confirms the candidate explanation's content but notes that the bill did not pass and therefore its provisions are not in effect.

Recall of Elected Municipal Officers

The bill establishes rules for recalling municipal elected officers through a petition process and sets limits on when and how often recall elections can be held.

What This Bill Does

  • Creates new rules allowing citizens to remove an elected city official by collecting signatures on a petition.
  • Requires the petition to have at least 40% of registered voters' support who were eligible to vote for that officer in their last election.
  • Limits when and how often recall elections can be held, such as not less than nine months after the officer was elected and no more than six months before the next regular election.
  • Specifies that if a majority votes to remove an official, they are removed from office and a new election is held to fill the vacancy.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Elected municipal officers in cities and towns
  • Citizens who want to recall elected officials

Terms To Know

Recall petition
A document signed by voters asking for a special election to remove an elected official from office.
Qualified electors
Voters who are registered and eligible to vote in the next election.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill did not pass, so these rules would not have taken effect.
  • It does not specify what happens if a recall petition is rejected or insufficient.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HB0022HW001

Committee of the Whole • Representative Larson, JT

Corrected, Adopted

Plain English: 1 HB0022HW001 (CORRECTED COPY) 1 Page 2-after line 18 Insert and renumber as necessary: 2 3 "(v) No person shall be paid to collect signatures for 4 a petition under this section." LARSON, JT, YIN

  • 1 HB0022HW001 (CORRECTED COPY) 1 Page 2-after line 18 Insert and renumber as necessary: 2 3 "(v) No person shall be paid to collect signatures for 4 a petition under this section." LARSON, JT, YIN
HB0022HW002

Committee of the Whole • Representative Larson, JT

Corrected, Adopted

Plain English: 1 HB0022HW002 (CORRECTED COPY) 1 Page 2-line 4 After "clerk" insert ".

  • 1 HB0022HW002 (CORRECTED COPY) 1 Page 2-line 4 After "clerk" insert ".
  • Each petition shall 2 pertain to the recall of only one (1) elected 3 official".
  • LARSON, JT, YIN
HB0022HW003

Committee of the Whole • Representative Heiner

Adopted

Plain English: 1 HB0022HW003 1 Page 3-line 2 After "purpose" insert ".

  • 1 HB0022HW003 1 Page 3-line 2 After "purpose" insert ".
  • The county clerk 2 shall verify signatures under this paragraph 3 upon the request of the governing body.
  • The 4 governing body shall reimburse the county 5 clerk for the costs of verifying signatures 6 under this paragraph".
  • 7 8 Page 3-line 14 After "election" delete "," and insert "in 9 accordance with the election provisions in the 10 Wyoming Election Code of 1973 as amended.
HB0022HS001

Standing Committee • House Minerals, Business and Economic Development

Adopted

Plain English: 1 HB0022HS001 1 Page 2-line 2 Delete "twenty-five percent (25%)" and insert 2 "forty percent (40%)"; after "electors" insert 3 "who were entitled to vote for the officer 4 sought to be removed at the officer's most 5 recent election".

  • 1 HB0022HS001 1 Page 2-line 2 Delete "twenty-five percent (25%)" and insert 2 "forty percent (40%)"; after "electors" insert 3 "who were entitled to vote for the officer 4 sought to be removed at the officer's most 5 recent election".
  • 6 7 Page 2-line 3 Delete "an election of a successor" and insert 8 "the removal".
  • 9 10 Page 3-line 13 After "holding" delete "the" and insert "a 11 recall".
  • 12 13 Page 3-line 16 After "sufficiency" insert ".
HB0022SS001

Standing Committee • Senate Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivi

Adopted

Plain English: 1 HB0022SS001 (TO ENGROSSED COPY) 1 Page 1-line 3 After "provision;" insert "authorizing 2 rulemaking;".

  • 1 HB0022SS001 (TO ENGROSSED COPY) 1 Page 1-line 3 After "provision;" insert "authorizing 2 rulemaking;".
  • 3 4 Page 1-line 12 After "elected" insert "or appointed to an 5 office having a term of four (4) years".
  • 6 7 Page 2-line 1 Delete "at least".
  • 8 9 Page 2-line 2 Delete "forty percent (40%)" and insert "the 10 applicable percentage specified in this 11 paragraph".

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-03 Senate

    S COW:Failed 10-20-1-0-0

  2. 2026-02-27 Senate

    S Placed on General File

  3. 2026-02-27 Senate

    S07 - Corporations:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 5-0-0-0-0

  4. 2026-02-23 Senate

    S Introduced and Referred to S07 - Corporations

  5. 2026-02-19 Senate

    S Received for Introduction

  6. 2026-02-18 House

    H 3rd Reading:Passed 57-0-5-0-0

  7. 2026-02-17 House

    H 2nd Reading:Passed

  8. 2026-02-16 House

    H COW:Passed

  9. 2026-02-12 House

    H Placed on General File

  10. 2026-02-12 House

    H09 - Minerals:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 8-1-0-0-0

  11. 2026-02-10 House

    H Introduced and Referred to H09 - Minerals 61-0-1-0-0

  12. 2026-01-09 House

    H Received for Introduction

  13. 2025-12-17 LSO

    Bill Number Assigned

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
26LSO-0066
2026
STATE OF WYOMING
26LSO-0066
ENGROSSED
3.0

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0022

Recall of elected municipal officers.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Heiner, Allemand, Bear, Campbell, K and Neiman and Senator(s) Laursen, D and Pearson

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to cities and towns; establishing recall provisions for municipal elected officers as specified; repealing a duplicative provision; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.

W.S. 15
‑
11
‑
107 is created to read:

15
‑
11
‑
107.

Recall of officers.

(a)

Any municipal officer elected under this article may be removed at any time by the qualified electors through petition in the following manner:

(i)

The petition shall be signed by at least forty percent (40%) of all the registered electors who were entitled to vote for the officer sought to be removed at the officer's most recent election and demanding the removal of the person sought to be removed shall be filed with the city clerk. Each petition shall pertain to the recall of only one (1) elected official;

(ii)

The petition shall contain a general statement of the grounds for removal;

(iii)

The signatures to the petition need not all be appended to one (1) paper, but each signer shall add to his signature his place of residence, giving the street and number;

(iv)

One (1) of the signers of each paper shall make oath before a competent officer that the statements therein made are believed to be true, and that each signature is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be;

(v)

No person shall be paid to collect signatures for a petition under this section;

(vi)

Within ten (10) days from the date of filing the petition the clerk shall determine whether or not the petition is signed by the requisite number of qualified electors. If necessary, the governing body shall provide the clerk additional assistance for that purpose. The county clerk shall verify signatures under this paragraph upon the request of the governing body. The governing body shall reimburse the county clerk for the costs of verifying signatures under this paragraph;

(vii)

The clerk shall attach to the petition his certificate, showing the result of his examination;

(viii)

If the petition is insufficient, it shall be returned to the person who filed it, without prejudice to the filing of a new petition to the same effect;

(ix)

If the petition is sufficient, the clerk shall submit it to the governing body without delay. The governing body shall then fix a date for holding a recall election in accordance with the election provisions in the Wyoming Election Code of 1973 as amended. The recall election shall be not less than thirty (30) days and not more than forty (40) days from the date of the clerk's certificate of sufficiency. The ballot shall present the question of whether the officer should be removed from office;

(x)

A recall petition shall not be filed against an officer until the officer has served at least nine (9) months of the term for which the officer was elected and no less than six (6) months before the next election;

(xi)

No more than one (1) recall election may be held against the same officer during the same term of office.

(b)

If a majority of votes are in favor of removal, the officer is removed from office and the office shall be deemed vacant.

The vacancy shall be filled in accordance with W.S. 15
‑
1
‑
107 and any other applicable law governing vacancies for that office.

This method of removal is in addition to any other methods provided by law.

Section 2.

W.S. 15
‑
4
‑
110 is repealed.

Section 3
.

This act is effective July 1, 2026
.

(END)

1
HB0022