Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Panel approves bill to give some statewide elected officials more hiring flexibility, adds HR staffing amendment
Summary
The Judiciary Committee moved House Bill 324, which would let four statewide elected officials exercise broader HR flexibility for future hires. Testimony focused on recruiting, retention and risks of converting permanent positions to at-will; the committee approved an amendment reducing the legislatively authorized HR positions from two to one.
Representative Andrew presented House Bill 324 to the Judiciary Committee, saying the bill aligns the human resources practices of four statewide elected offices with those used by other executive entities and would allow the elected officials to hire staff who align with their vision.
"Wyoming is an at-will employment state," Representative Andrew said. "Our legislative staff are at will. The judicial branch operates under at will employment as well. Yet our independently elected statewide officials . . . are still bound by bureaucratic structures that hinder their ability to govern efficiently and effectively." He said the bill applies language modeled on the statute governing the Legislative Service Office and would not alter preexisting contracts entered into before July 1, 2025.
Witnesses representing the impacted offices and executive-branch agencies gave mixed testimony. Treasurer Kurt…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
