Wyoming: plan to subject judicial nominating commissioners to senate confirmation appears dead

A plan to require Wyoming judicial nominating commission members to be subject to senate confirmation appears to have died.

Wyoming’s top courts use a merit/commission based system of appointment. The commission membership is set by the state’s constitution as

-the chief justice (or designee)
-three bar members elected by the state bar
-three non-bar members chosen by the governor

Nowhere in the constitutional provision is the senate given a role. Nevertheless, this year SF 141 was filed to provide that the bar members and non-bar members were to be confirmed by the senate.

While the bill was originally directed to the Senate Judiciary committee it was later diverted to the Senate Transportation committee. It was approved by that committee and sent to the full Senate which appears to have passed the bill by and not sent it on to the House before the legislative deadline.