CHEYENNE, Wyo.– A bill that would allow concealed carry of firearms in schools and government meetings will head to Wyoming’s governor after passing the state Legislature by a wide margin on Thursday.
What happens next is somewhat uncertain because Wyoming governors traditionally do not say whether they plan to sign or veto bills. Gov. Mark Gordon has not spoken publicly about the bill, but he is a Republican supporter of gun rights.
Wyoming is one of the most gun-friendly states, and the bill passed the Senate on a 22-8 vote after supporters dismissed fears about allowing guns where they are currently banned.
People carry concealed weapons in Wyoming all the time without arousing fear, said Sen. Anthony Bouchard, a Republican from Cheyenne.
“If people were afraid, they wouldn’t be going into all the stores around us. They wouldn’t be going into the businesses around us. They would have to roll up the cities and close down Wyoming,” Bouchard said in a floor debate.
In Wyoming, gun owners do not need a permit to openly carry weapons or, as of 2021, to carry a concealed firearm.
Under the latest weapons law, open carry would still be banned in schools and government meetings, and primary and secondary school students would not be allowed to have weapons at school. Guns would still be banned in prisons, courts, police stations and hospitals, and on private property if the owner so chooses.
But concealed firearms would be allowed with a permit at the University of Wyoming and community colleges in areas where alcohol is not served. They would also be allowed into government meetings, including those of the legislature, without a permit.
As in previous gun debates in Wyoming, lawmakers interpreted the Second Amendment right to bear arms permissively.
“If we let school superintendents decide this constitutional right, it won’t be long before they decide First Amendment rights,” said Senator Troy McKeown, a Republican from Gillette.
A handful of districts in Wyoming have allowed school officials to carry guns in schools since the state allowed it in 2017. States that allow permit holders to carry guns concealed in schools include Alabama, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oregon and Utah, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
One of the two Wyoming Senate Democrats, Chris Rothfuss of Laramie, opposed the bill, saying he had not heard from teachers or students on the issue. He appealed to the Republican principle that the government closest to the people governs best.
“What this says to city councils and county commissioners is that your judgment here is not good enough,” Rothfuss said.
The chamber’s other Democrat, Mike Gierau of Jackson, also voted against the bill, changing his vote to no after initially voting for it.
The bill previously passed the state House 54-7, then failed in a Senate committee before being revived in a procedural vote to advance it to the full Senate.