Votes at a glance: Joint Education Committee interim directives, May 29, 2025

The Joint Education Committee took multiple formal actions during its May 29 interim meeting. Below are each directive or drafting instruction recorded by the committee, with the committee outcome and the relevant meeting context.

1) School-discipline bill draft and working group (passed) Motion: Direct LSO to draft a school-discipline bill based on the committee’s conceptual draft (replace corporal-punishment immunity with a different framework; formalize classroom removal process; include parental-notification timing; require districts to adopt cell-phone policies unless exempted). Mover: Senator Brennan (concept originator) Second: Senator Rothfuss Outcome: Passed (voice vote and recorded amendments). Key amendments adopted: (a) removal of language preserving corporal-punishment immunity; (b) requirement that parents be notified in a timely manner (committee discussed "within the school day"); (c) removal of numeric penalties for teacher removals and instead leaving teacher remediation/evaluation to principals/PD processes. Notes: Co-chairs to convene an informal working group to refine the draft before the next meeting. LSO to circulate draft for stakeholder review.

2) Teacher bill-of-rights concept and working group (passed) Motion: Draft a teacher bill-of-rights concept and convene an informal working group to examine protections and statutory alignment with the discipline draft. Mover: Senator Brennan Outcome: Passed. Co-chairs to coordinate stakeholder review; the committee agreed the final output may be incorporated into a single bill depending on drafting results.

3) K–3 literacy statutory amendments (draft instructed) Motion: Direct LSO and Department of Education to draft statutory clarifications for K–3 literacy: unify terminology; require screening opportunities through grade 12 (amendment adopted); report requirements; superintendent authority to order evidence-based dyslexia protocols and to support regional service arrangements for districts lacking capacity. Mover: Senator Scott Outcome: Passed (LSO to prepare draft language; the committee also requested PTSB and UW provide information on teacher-preparation alignment).

4) Charter-application preliminary review (passed) Motion: Amend the state-authorized charter application pathway to require initial submission to the State Department of Education for a completeness/quality check within an x-day review window before the State Authorizing Board’s full evaluation. Department review may provide corrective feedback but may not block an application from proceeding. Mover: Representative Lawley Outcome: Passed (committee asked LSO to draft and to include a placeholder deadline to be refined in rule or statute). Committee also asked recalibration staff to examine ADM treatment for state-authorized charter enrollments.

5) Hathaway fungibility bill draft (passed) Motion: Instruct LSO to prepare a bill draft to permit greater fungibility of Hathaway scholarship dollars so students may use award dollars more flexibly across institutions and time (concept includes options such as paying per-credit or per-dollar and removing restrictive continuity constraints); also requested LSO/treasurer analysis of Hathaway fund earnings and cash-flow implications. Mover: Representative Straka Outcome: Passed. Committee asked for financial analysis of Hathaway earnings, payout percentages and transitional cash-flow impacts before substantive decisions.

6) Wyoming Works programmatic funding letter to JAC (passed) Motion: Draft a letter from the Joint Education Committee urging the Joint Appropriations Committee to consider additional appropriations or reauthorization of program-start funds for the Wyoming Works program (programmatic startup funds exhausted; colleges requested replenishment). Mover: Senator Office Outcome: Passed (committee vote by division; co-chairs to finalize letter text with staff).

7) Apprenticeship/internship follow-ups (instructed) Motion: Committee requested Workforce Services provide additional financials and usage data for apprenticeship training grants, SAFE expansion funds and the internship program; asked for clearer accounting of funding sources (UI trust interest, UI tax receipts, general funds, WIP funding). Outcome: Department to provide requested data and confirm funding posture for program-start and apprenticeship-support funds.

Notes on votes: Several amendments were adopted by voice vote or division. When a division was called the committee counted hands (final counts recorded in transcript where noted). Where the transcript did not record full roll-call tallies the committee used normal voice or division procedures and recorded outcomes as adopted at the meeting.

Ending: The committee instructed LSO to circulate draft language for review, asked agencies to provide specified supplemental data, and requested the co-chairs convene working-group sessions as bills are drafted.