[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6671320,"mediaKeyId","2168398-7ed2ad652a2bf4e3117ebcebb81d478a","parentId",2168398,"title","Wyoming Senate committee approves bill to restrict DEI offices and mandates at state entities","audioSeconds",4189,"startMs",104000,"endMs",4293000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2168398-7ed2ad652a2bf4e3117ebcebb81d478a&start=104&end=4293","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2168398-7ed2ad652a2bf4e3117ebcebb81d478a/thumbnail_104000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6671320/Wyoming/Wyoming-Senate-committee-approves-bill-to-restrict-DEI-offices-and-mandates-at-state-entities","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6671320-89cfbb8d6e6137f1af81080ca2f538f2/orig.mp4?Expires=1773562872&Signature=pAfo-7ieN90ruTrx13n9O2f-wciVvJCwb1yA~-hZD4CIFGOQOcUER0bHQoeS5W0M3JN8TEHAMqivryJAefi4Rk9immYFRvf5MHk27Te219twQ96t1uWEia2rJ-9GTDN5X1P~m2joc4wJJLTWXqQud1DJIJeUFMzhYwQ2dpQnvsiJETsXnSX3MlNrfNMOVkZH-yOUauBKi5U7MTyaXAd5s4RJgKYLNf9D7EfTE-q6Q0XiBihfV5JXlNB8Ld~xzeCQMU4BJMcA52Z~oB9K0JH373AJiH5YW6Eg2NHZ~WEm-uCNxq3mWDbEu-lEBmvopnhoblIcXAHPgZ-0pEA4Lv4zww__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Wyoming Legislature","date","2025-01-30T17:00:03.117Z","article","Senator Sherry Steinmetz, sponsor of Senate File 103, told the Agriculture, State & Public Lands & Water Resources Committee that she brought the bill to “terminate and defund diversity, equity and inclusion” at state entities and educational institutions.

The measure, as described by Steinmetz at the committee hearing, would prohibit state agencies, higher-education institutions and other entities that receive state appropriations from establishing DEI offices, requiring DEI statements, or promoting programs “designed or implemented in reference to race, color or ethnicity,” with repeated carve-outs in the text for activities necessary to comply with state or federal law or an applicable court order.

Supporters said the bill protects students and taxpayers from mandatory coursework and training they regard as ideological. “When children are coming home from school and saying that they wish that they weren’t white based on what they are learning in the education system, that’s a problem for me,” Senator Paul Pearson told the committee during public comment in support of the bill. Advocates from statewide groups also urged the committee to restrict use of state money on DEI programming.

Higher-education leaders and tribal counsel raised practical and legal concerns. Erin Taylor, who said she was appearing with Dr. Brandon Cossing, interim president of Casper College, asked how the bill would affect use of private donations, federal grants and basic classroom instruction such as concepts taught in psychology and sociology. Dr. Cossing asked that “human services” be explicitly eligible for the exemption for academic programs with accreditation-driven content. Claire Johnson, in-house counsel for the Northern Arapaho Tribe, asked for clarification whether the bill’s categories (race, color, ethnicity) would affect Native American political or cultural programs; the sponsor said she did not intend to impede tribal programs and would meet with tribes to discuss language.

University of Wyoming representatives said much of the university’s work already responded to prior legislative direction. Mike Smith of the University of Wyoming told the committee that the university “closed the office by the deadline” required by last year’s budget footnote and has removed diversity statements from hiring practices while maintaining a temporary position to review programs and ensure grant compliance.

Committee members and the sponsor tightened some language during the hearing. The committee adopted a correction to fix the repeated typo “gender dysphonia” to “gender dysphoria.” A floor amendment the sponsor proposed for the committee of the whole was withdrawn so the sponsor could work with institutions and tribes to clarify exemptions for accreditation, federal grants, private donations and programs focused on serving underserved students.

On a roll-call vote, the committee approved Senate File 103 (as amended) by a 5-0 vote. The roll call recorded ayes from Senator Crago, Senator Eyde, Senator McEwen, Senator Pearson and Chairman French. The sponsor told the committee she will consult with colleges, the University of Wyoming and tribal representatives to propose clarifying language ahead of further consideration.

The bill’s text and the sponsor’s handout referred to a January 22, 2025, federal executive order cited as background, and the measure repeatedly states that nothing in the act shall prevent compliance with applicable state or federal law or an applicable court order.

Senate File 103 now moves toward the full Senate; the sponsor and several institutional representatives said they expect additional drafting and potential committee-of-the-whole changes before crossover.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Senate Agriculture, State and Public Lands & Water Resources Committee, January 30, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Senator Sherry Steinmetz, sponsor of Senate File 103, told the Agriculture, State & Public Lands & Water Resources Committee that she brought the bill to “terminate and defund diversity, equity and inclusion” at state entities and educational institutions.","taxTitle","Agriculture, State & Public Lands & Water Resources Committee, Senate, Committees, Legislative, Wyoming","taxId",61176,"location","Wyoming","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6671315,"Committee approves joint resolution urging Congress to dispose federal public lands to Wyoming",2787,4388000,7175000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2168398-7ed2ad652a2bf4e3117ebcebb81d478a&start=4388&end=7175","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2168398-7ed2ad652a2bf4e3117ebcebb81d478a/thumbnail_4388000.jpg","/articles/6671315/Wyoming/Committee-approves-joint-resolution-urging-Congress-to-dispose-federal-public-lands-to-Wyoming","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6671315-2269403f2ea43f39df56cc03f14449c2/orig.mp4?Expires=1773562872&Signature=m7C7W9tY--ckIdEqDWj-vgvEC9PbeuyYdGW403WjDe~TniX8qLh9gSafpERs9mT~fKo8T~h1A0tPkcqBHCHSeuJXLRu6ToZvVMmqBadc2WhEXqcRfEQr-W713-JlXZY6v8T9WhgGtdu8rbL4EI2pt6NeK~7FtaEA-3I38AngPaT9TrM2J1R4PAq9an0Z2HduZNvSkkSUyEbp1Q~6XpnJ8awim~WtrjiaHFEY9QeKUqkbyH6qgG9~FxViepvBMC93iX3FFkfghFF8AfooVs7Ou0QLEUVycGgAzYCh42YBQbhyzO4SzVdgM4FSW4YC-gFpnhgVpTJ1oq8uVNCpv3jJnw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Senator Eyde told the Agriculture, State & Public Lands & Water Resources Committee that Senate Joint Resolution 2 seeks congressional action to “dispose of the federal title in those public lands and subsurface resources in this state,” invoking Article IV, Section 3, Clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution and Wyoming’s act of admission.

The resolution directs the Wyoming legislature to ask Congress, by Oct. 1, 2025, to confirm an intent to transfer federal title to lands and resources it holds within Wyoming so the state may “obtain full admission into the Union . . . upon an equal footing” with the original states. The resolution explicitly contemplates negotiations that would preserve lands of national interest; the sponsor said that national parks and monuments could be the subject of separate disposition discussions.

Testimony showed a wide range of views and detailed fiscal concerns. Alec Underwood of the Wyoming Outdoor Council urged the committee to reject SJ2, citing economic and recreational values of federal public lands and data that in 2024 outdoor recreation accounted for $2.2 billion and about 15,000 jobs in Wyoming. Underwood also noted recent federal Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) totaling roughly $102 million from 2022–2024 and warned of the state’s potential fiscal and management obligations if it took on millions of additional acres.

Supporters, including representatives of the Wyoming Farm Bureau and several speakers at the hearing, said state control would give Wyoming residents and elected officials greater influence over land use decisions, grazing access and road and trail management. Testimony from Scott Brown of Bighorn County urged committee members to uphold their oath to the U.S. and Wyoming constitutions; several supporters emphasized perceived federal overreach in land-management decisions.

Committee discussion addressed practical and legal complications. Senator Crago asked about the scale of the transfer and whether subsurface mineral estates on private lands would follow the surface. Sponsor Eyde cited LSO research provided to the committee showing roughly 30,000,000 acres of federally held surface within Wyoming (about 47% of the state’s surface area) and that the federal government retains roughly 69% of the state’s subsurface mineral estate. Multiple commenters and committee members warned that mineral ownership is legally complex: some historic patents reserved minerals to the federal government in a checkerboard pattern, producing disparate mineral ownership that would require extensive title work if jurisdiction changed.

Other witnesses urged guardrails. Richard Garrett of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition and Josh Metten of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership highlighted risks that converting federal lands to state control could change access rules and management mandates; Metten noted that many state trust lands have distinct fiduciary rules and do not guarantee public access. Several witnesses advised more study and a cautious approach to avoid unintended consequences.

The committee voted to pass SJ2 on a roll-call vote, with Senator Crago recorded as voting no and Senators Eyde, McEwen, Pearson and Chairman French voting aye. The committee’s 4–1 vote advances the nonbinding joint resolution; if enacted and signed by the governor, the resolution directs the secretary of state to transmit copies to the president, congressional leaders and Wyoming’s congressional delegation and expresses the legislature’s readiness to negotiate with Congress over lands of mutual national interest.","Senate Joint Resolution 2, urging Congress to transfer former federal territorial public lands and subsurface resources to Wyoming, passed the Agriculture, State & Public Lands & Water Resources Committee 4-1 after extended public comment from ranchers, conservation groups, tribal representatives and state officials.","actionData","errors"]

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Wyoming Senate committee approves bill to restrict DEI offices and mandates at state entities

Committee approves joint resolution urging Congress to dispose federal public lands to Wyoming