News Briefs

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Wyoming lawmakers have shot down a bill that would have allowed same-sex couples to create domestic partnerships carrying most of the legal rights of conventional marriage. The House voted 35-to-24 against the bill. It was the first time at least in recent decades that pro-gay legislation reached a full floor debate...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Gov. Matt Mead has signed into law the most drastic changes to the duties and powers of a statewide elected official in decades. The new law replaces the superintendent of public instruction as head of the state Department of Education with a director appointed by the governor...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A bill that would restrict access to abortion services in Wyoming has died in a legislative committee. The House Labor Health and Social Services voted 5-to-3 yesterday against a bill that would have banned abortions after fetuses have a detectable heartbeat...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Democratic lawmakers in Wyoming seem to have gained some support among Republican colleagues for legislation preventing discrimination against gays and lesbians. Nine of the legislature's 78 Republicans have signed on as co-sponsors of various bills involving civil unions and even gay marriage...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Senate has given preliminary approval to a bill that would allow the use of silencers for hunting. Some have suggested the practice is unsporting, since it would give hunters who miss a second shot. To that, Republican sponsor Sen...

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP) — The general in charge of the military response to civilian emergencies says officials are weighing whether to make it easier to call in military planes to help fight wildfires. Under current rules, they can't be called up unless all the civilian and commercial firefighting aircraft are in use or unavailable...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A House committee has unanimously endorsed a bill that would change who's in charge of the state Department of Education. The House Appropriations Committee sent the measure to the chamber's floor yesterday evening after hearing nearly two hours of testimony...

RIVERTON, Wyo. (AP) — Students, staffers and board members at Central Wyoming College have been watching a video about how to respond to a shooting. The video was created by the city of Houston and was released in the days after a gunman opened fire at a midnight "Batman" movie screening in Aurora, Colo...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Cheyenne city officials are considering new regulations on carrying weapons into city buildings. Mayor Rick Kaysen tells the Associated Press that new regulations could clarify gray areas in state laws, which prohibit concealed weapons at government meetings but not open-carry weapons...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A federal grand jury in Wyoming has indicted a second New Mexico man on arson charges in a 2010 fire that destroyed a landmark Wyoming hotel. Fifty-one-year-old Ajay Jariwala, of Albuquerque, appeared in court yesterday in Albuquerque...