Wyoming Legislature update – February 1, 2017
by Albert Sommers, House District #20 Representative
February 2, 2017
Hello Sublette County, this is Albert Sommers reporting to you from Cheyenne on Wednesday, Feb. 1.
In Committee of the Whole today we heard HB238, which seeks to provide some clarification on sexting between minors. Currently, in order for authorities to charge a minor/student for sexting another student they have to charge them with child pornography, a felony. Felonies can ruin a young person’s life, and counties are very reluctant to prosecute these cases. HB 238 will provide penalties for sexting that better reflect the age of the offender and the times we live in. Our local law enforcement contacted me before the session, with hopes of addressing this issue, so I became a co-sponsor and supporter of this bill. HB 238 passed.
Three abortion/fetal tissue bills came to Committee of the Whole today, and they all passed. I voted for the fetal tissue bill, as well as the bill that requires a doctor to provide the option to view an ultrasound of the fetus. An amendment on the ultrasound bill made it more acceptable to me, because it omitted the stringent timelines.
I do not support HB116, which adds a clause into the abortion statute that defines fetus viability when a fetus feels pain. This portion was stripped out in an amendment, which made the rest of the bill redundant, due to another bill we heard today.
HB197, which would partially decriminalized marihuana, passed 1st reading, but I didn’t support it. This bill has received a fair amount of support, but in my opinion still has some issues.
I would like to hear your feedback on these bills, before my final vote. I can be reached at albert@albertsommers.com
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