Wyoming Constitution

Wyoming Constitution
Preamble
Articles
1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21

The Wyoming Constitution is the state constitution of Wyoming.

• The current Wyoming Constitution was adopted on September 30, 1889, and ratified by voters on November 5, 1889.
• Wyoming has had one state constitution.
• The current state constitution has 21 articles.
• The current Wyoming Constitution has been amended 70 times.
• Voters last approved a new amendment to the Wyoming Constitution on November 8, 2022, when voters approved Amendment A.

The Wyoming Constitution can be amended with a legislative or covention-referred constitutional amendment, all of which require voter approval.

A state constitution is the fundamental document that outlines a state's framework for governance, including the powers, structure, and limitations of the state government, individual and civil rights, and other matters.

Background

Wyoming became the 44th state on July 10, 1890. In September 1889, 49 delegates met in Cheyenne, Wyoming to draft Wyoming's constitution. The Wyoming Constitution was ratified on November 5, 1889, by a vote of 6,272 to 1,923. Wyoming was admitted to the Union on July 10, 1890, by an Act of Congress.

Preamble

See also: Preamble, Wyoming Constitution]] and Preambles to state constitutions

The Preamble to the Wyoming Constitution states:

	We, the people of the State of Wyoming, grateful to God for our civil, political and religious liberties, and desiring to secure them to ourselves and perpetuate them to our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution.

Article 1: Declaration of Rights

See also: Article 1, Wyoming Constitution

Article 1 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Declaration of Rights" and consists of 39 sections. The Wyoming Declaration of Rights sets forth particular political and civil rights. In addition, Wyoming’s Declaration of Rights issues broader limitations on the role of government than the United States Constitution.

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Article 2: Distribution of powers

See also: Article 2, Wyoming Constitution

Article 2 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Distribution of Powers" and consists of one section. Articles 2 through 5 and 12 through 17 set up the structure of government, including the three distinct branches of legislative, executive and judicial departments.

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Article 3: Legislative Department

See also: Article 3, Wyoming Constitution

Article 3 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Legislative Department" and consists of 53 sections, one of which has been repealed.

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Article 4: Executive Department

See also: Article 4, Wyoming Constitution

Article 4 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Executive Department" and consists of 15 sections.

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Article 5: Judicial Department

See also: Article 5, Wyoming Constitution

Article 5 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Judicial Department" and consists of 29 sections, two of which have been repealed.

Article 6: Suffrage and Elections

See also: Article 6, Wyoming Constitution

Article 6 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Suffrage and Elections" and consists of 22 sections.

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Article 7: Education; State Institutions; Promotion of Health and Morals; Public Buildings

See also: Article 7, Wyoming Constitution

Article 7 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Education; State Institutions; Promotion of Health and Morals; Public Buildings" and consists of 23 sections, one of which has been superseded.

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Article 8: Irrigation and Water Rights

See also: Article 8, Wyoming Constitution

Article 8 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Irrigation and Water Rights" and consists of five sections.

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Article 9: Mines and Mining

See also: Article 9, Wyoming Constitution

Article 9 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Mines and Mining" and consists of six sections, two of which have been repealed.

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Article 10: Corporations

See also: Article 10, Wyoming Constitution

Article 10 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Corporations" and consists of 19 sections, one of which has been repealed.

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Article 11: Boundaries

See also: Article 11, Wyoming Constitution

Article 11 of the Wyoming Constitution entitled "Boundaries" and consists of one section.

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Article 12: County Organization

See also: Article 12, Wyoming Constitution

Article 12 of the Wyoming Constitution entitled "County Organization" and consists of five sections.

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Article 13: Municipal Corporations

See also: Article 13, Wyoming Constitution

Article 13 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Municipal Corporations" and consists of five sections.

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Article 14: Public Officers

See also: Article 14, Wyoming Constitution

Article 14 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Public Officers" and consists of six sections.

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Article 15: Taxation and Revenue

See also: Article 15, Wyoming Constitution

Article 15 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Taxation and Revenue" and consists of 20 sections.

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Article 16: Public Indebtedness

See also: Article 16, Wyoming Constitution

Article 16 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Public Indebtedness" and consists of 13 sections.

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Article 17: State Militia

See also: Article 17, Wyoming Constitution

Article 17 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "State Militia" and consists of five sections.

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Article 18: Public Lands and Donations

See also: Article 18, Wyoming Constitution

Article 18 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Public Lands and Donations" and consists of six sections.

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Article 19: Miscellaneous

See also: Article 19, Wyoming Constitution

Article 19 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Miscellaneous" and consists of 11 sections, one of which has been repealed.

Article 20: Amendments

See also: Article 20, Wyoming Constitution and Amending state constitutions

Article 20 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Amendments" and consists of four sections.

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Article 21: Schedule

See also: Article 21, Wyoming Constitution

Article 21 of the Wyoming Constitution is entitled "Schedule" and consists of 28 sections.

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Amending the Wyoming constitution

See also: Article 20, Wyoming Constitution and Amending state constitutions

The Wyoming Constitution provides two mechanisms for amending the state's constitution—a legislative process and a state constitutional convention. Wyoming requires a simple majority vote (50% plus 1) for voters to approve constitutional amendments.

Legislature

See also: Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

A two-thirds vote is required during one legislative session for the Wyoming State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 42 votes in the Wyoming House of Representatives and 21 votes in the Wyoming State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

Convention

See also: Convention-referred constitutional amendment

According to Section 3 of Article 20 of the Wyoming Constitution, a two-thirds (66.67%) vote is required during one legislative session for the Wyoming State Legislature to place a constitutional convention question on the ballot. If a simple majority of voters approve the question, then the legislature needs to call for a convention during its next session.

See also

• State constitution
• Constitutional article
• Constitutional amendment
• Constitutional revision
• Constitutional convention
• Amendments
  • Initiated constitutional amendment
  • Legislatively-referred constitutional amendment
  • Publication requirements for proposed state constitutional amendments
  • Rules about constitutional conventions in state constitutions
  • State constitutional articles governing state legislatures

External links

Suggest a link

• Wyoming State Legislature, "Wyoming Constitution"
• Wyoming History.org, "Wyoming Becomes a State: The Constitutional Convention and Statehood Debates of 1889 and 1890 — and Their Aftermath"
• History.com, "September 30, 1889: Wyoming legislators write the first state constitution to grant women the vote"
• Legal Genealogist, "State Constitutions: Wyoming"