31-03-2025
Cheyenne town hall hosted by Reps. Lucas, Brown and Johnson gets a little heated
CHEYENNE – Conversation got tense during a town hall hosted by Cheyenne Republican state Reps. Ann Lucas, Gary Brown and Steve Johnson at the Laramie County Library Saturday afternoon, with a special appearance by Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray.
The three representatives had just finished serving in their first session with the Wyoming Legislature, which ended three weeks ago. Lucas livestreamed the event, which is available on her Facebook page, "Ann Lucas for Wyoming."
During the town hall, each representative took turns explaining some of the major bills that went into law.
A majority of the bills discussed Saturday were widely supported by the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, a group of hardline Republicans that recently gained majority control of the state's House of Representatives. None of the three representatives at the town hall are declared members of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus.
Legislation discussed during the town hall included major property tax relief, a statewide repeal of most gun-free zones, universal school choice and new anti-abortion policy, which is currently being challenged in court in Natrona County, according to
While most of the 60 attendees voiced their support during the town hall, a few spoke in heated opposition to some of the bills, and voices were raised more than once. The discussion on House Bill 172, "Wyoming Repeal Gun Free Zones Act," was particularly intense.
This bill allows Wyomingites with a concealed carry permit to walk into most places with a concealed firearm, including K-12 public schools, public college campuses, and governmental and legislative meetings.
'Where's the proof that (repealing) these gun free zones make children safer?' asked Cheyenne resident Joe Ramirez. 'This is not the Wild West.'
Suzie Meisner-Esquibel, wife of former Democratic Wyoming lawmaker and current Cheyenne City Councilman Ken Esquibel, said she was in a Starbucks 10 years ago when a woman dropped her purse with a gun in it. The firearm went off, Meisner-Esquibel said, but luckily no one was hurt.
'My question is this: Who is going to safeguard me from someone carrying the weapon?' she said.
Around this point, several people began speaking at once, and Meisner-Esquibel raised her voice to be heard over the rumblings before the room was called to order. After decorum was quickly restored, the representatives noted that this legislation already went into law and will be effective July 1.
During his presentation of HB 172, Brown also noted conditions and exemptions to where concealed carry is not allowed, which includes school and college events where alcohol is served and areas where firearms are federally prohibited.
'To get into the emotion of all this right now, I don't believe that's the thing we need to do,' Brown said. 'The bill is law, so let's keep it to that discussion.'
Property taxes
Senate File 69 provides a 25% property tax exemption on the first $1 million of a single-family home's fair market value. Critics of the bill have argued the resulting revenue loss could mean cuts in services provided by local governments and special districts across the state.
Officials previously told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle that Laramie County Fire Authority will likely face a $200,000 budget cut, and Laramie County Fire District 1 could face up to a $100,000 budget cut.
However, Lucas told people during the town hall that the government is 'inflation-proof' because it collects taxes.
'As clever as our government seems to be at getting money, we're going to recover OK from this 25% cut,' Lucas said. 'This is the time for our local governments and our state government to take a little bit of a hit for the people, because we've got people who are truly hurting.'
Cheyenne resident Deacon Maggard, who told the WTE that he lives in Brown's district, asked the representatives how they planned to retain young working professionals amid rising costs of child care, inflation and housing.
'What are you guys doing to, I guess, harness young professionals so that we can actually have people here?' Maggard said. 'We're bleeding people, and I know that from seeing and working with people.'
Lucas told Maggard she didn't 'have a great answer' for him about retaining a young workforce. She acknowledged that there aren't a lot of high-paying jobs in Wyoming.
'And I don't know the answer to that, necessarily,' Lucas said. 'I know that we cannot sell our souls to get big business here when we do not have housing for them and we do not have infrastructure for them.'
