Wyoming News Briefs

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Senate has given preliminary approval to an education reform bill that would drastically reduce the role of Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill. The bill would remove her as head of the state Department of Education and create a new director of the agency who would be appointed by the governor.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A Wyoming legislative committee is recommending that the state increase the gasoline tax The House Revenue Committee bill would increase the tax on a gallon of gas from 14 cents to 24 cents. Gov. Matt Mead says the tax would mostly be paid by out-of-state motorists and raise more than $70 million a year for road construction.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming House Judiciary committee has defeated a bill that would have restricted where sex offenders can live. The bill would have barred them from living with 1,000 feet of a child care facility. The American Civil Liberties Union in Wyoming said it threatened to leave offenders with nowhere to live in many communities.

LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — Wyoming basketball coach Larry Shyatt has suspended one of the team's top scorers indefinitely after a bar fight. University of Wyoming athletics officials say charges were filed against Luke Martinez over the weekend due to an off-campus incident Dec. 30. University officials are not saying more about what led to the suspension.