Catch Title: HB0060 Attorney General – Statewide Elected Official

Category: Social Issues

Sponsor: Representative(s) Heiner, Hoeft, Lucas, Webb; Senator(s) Biteman, Boner, Laursen, Salazar

Effective Date: Immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law, with conforming amendments (Section 2) effective January 4, 2027

Bill URL: https://wyoleg.gov/2026/Introduced/HB0060.pdf

Overview:

HB0060 fundamentally alters the structure of Wyoming’s executive branch by transitioning the office of the Attorney General from a gubernatorial appointee to a statewide elected official . Starting with the 2026 general election, the Attorney General will serve a four-year term and operate with significant independence from the Governor . The bill removes the Governor’s authority to approve or direct the Attorney General’s litigation choices, hiring decisions, and criminal investigations, effectively establishing the Attorney General as an autonomous “sixth” state elected official .

Key Provisions:

• Transition to Elective Office: Mandates that the Attorney General be elected in a statewide election for a four-year term beginning in 2026 .
• Removal of Gubernatorial Oversight: Systematically deletes requirements for the Governor to approve the Attorney General’s actions, including:
  • Hiring assistant and special assistant attorneys general .
  • Initiating investigations into contract violations or misconduct of county officials.
  • Intervening in lawsuits related to the Second Amendment or federal agency actions .
• Expansion of “The Big Six”: Adds the Attorney General to various boards and commissions currently composed of the five state elected officials (e.g., State Building Commission and prison contracting) .
• Gubernatorial Succession: Inserts the Attorney General into the line of succession for the office of Governor, placing the position sixth on the list .
• Vacancy Procedures: Establishes that vacancies will be filled via the standard process for statewide officials (party nomination), but uniquely requires Senate confirmation for the temporary appointee .
• Salary and Qualifications: Sets the salary at $175,000 and maintains the requirement that the official be a practicing attorney for at least four years .
• Ethics and Disclosure: Subjects the Attorney General to the same annual financial disclosure requirements as other statewide elected officials and legislators .

Implications:

• Politicization of the Office: The transition from an appointed professional to a statewide elected politician introduces the risk of increased politicization of the state’s chief legal office, as the Attorney General will now be beholden to an electoral base rather than administrative standards.
• Adversarial Executive Branch Relationship: By removing the requirement for gubernatorial “direction” or “approval,” the bill creates a platform for an independent Attorney General to pursue a legal or political agenda that may directly conflict with the Governor’s policies, potentially leading to intra-branch litigation and gridlock .
• Procedural Bottleneck for Vacancies: The requirement for Senate confirmation of a temporary appointee to a vacancy may create significant delays if an Attorney General leaves office while the legislature is not in session .
• Loss of Mandatory Investigative Tools: The bill changes several duties from “shall” to “may,” meaning the Governor can no longer mandate that the Attorney General investigate specific matters of state interest, reducing the Governor’s ability to oversee executive agency or county-level integrity .
• Negligible Fiscal Impact: Although a new statewide election is created, the administrative costs to the Secretary of State are expected to be negligible as the office will be added to existing standard election cycles