Update: This story was updated at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday to include comments from Sen. Barlow.
CHEYENNE–The Wyoming Senate voted Tuesday to stand by its newly appointed leadership, rejecting a move by Sen. Larry Hicks to rescind a committee chairmanship assigned to Sen. Eric Barlow over a concern that Barlow wasn’t sufficiently opposed to abortion.
“I will be making a motion, and I want everybody in this body to know that the motion that I’m going to make is not based on malice,” Hicks, (R-Baggs), told his colleagues. “But rather, it’s based on my own moral convictions, my sincere belief in fulfilling my oath of office as a senator in the state of Wyoming.”
Tuesday was the opening day of the 2025 general session. As such, initial affairs for both chambers included approving presiding officer nominations as well as committee chairmanship assignments.
As incoming president of the Senate, Bo Biteman (R-Sheridan) selected Barlow, (R-Gillette), to chair the Senate Labor, Health and Social Services Committee, which typically considers abortion legislation. But that assignment did not sit well with Hicks, who lost to Biteman in a bid for the Senate’s top leadership post.
For a bill to become law in Wyoming, it must pass through both a House and a Senate committee hearing. And a committee chair has the power to decide whether a bill will be heard by deadline, or whether it will wither on the vine.
“The Labor and Health Committee is the committee where bills dealing with the question of life of the unborn are assigned,” Hicks said, before accusing Barlow of having “a long voting record of supporting abortion.”
Furthermore, Hicks said that was “antithetical to the moral laws of our country.”
“There’s no other declaration or constitution [in the world] that recognizes the fact that there is a higher law than man’s law, and that law comes from God,” Hicks said, echoing remarks made by House leadership Tuesday that espoused Christian values.
In his own comments on the Senate floor, Barlow defended his voting record on abortion.
“I’m not going to go back through 12 years of service,” Barlow said. “Maybe there was a bill, maybe there was something along those lines.”
In 2023, Barlow supported a near-total abortion ban and a medication abortion ban, according to Legislative Service Office records. A state judge in November struck down both laws.
Barlow also said he’d be glad to speak with anyone about his “faith and deep, abiding faith in the Lord.”
But that was all beside the point, according to Sen. Charles Scott (R-Casper), a self-described “pro-choice” lawmaker.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate for us to deny a chairmanship based on an individual’s beliefs on this particular issue, which are often founded on religion,” Scott said.
Sen. Jim Anderson (R-Casper), meanwhile, had more pointed comments.
“I find this motion to be frivolous and politically motivated,” Anderson said. “It does not build goodwill and is divisive and does not show civility in this body.”
The motion was familiar territory for the upper chamber. On day one of last year’s session, Sen. Cheri Steinmetz (R-Torrington) successfully brought a motion to challenge then-Senate President Ogden Driskill (R-Devils Tower) on his committee chairmanship assignments. The Senate ultimately voted 17-14 to defy Driskill.
Tuesday, Hicks was only able to convince two of his colleagues — Sens. Laura Pearson (R-Kemmerer) and Steinmetz. The 28 others voted to support their new president and his assignments.
“The process worked,” Hicks told WyoFile after the vote. “And the body spoke.”
“I’ve always focused on doing the work that matters to Wyoming families, not divisive rhetoric, or political theater,” Barlow said in a Wednesday statement. “I plan to continue to work towards making sure Wyoming remains a palace that values life and family.”
“As part of that work — just as I have always done — I will ensure my work as committee chairman is done respectfully, with dignity toward the institution and the public that presents and towards my colleagues who bring bills regardless of topic,” Barlow said.
The vote suggests the upper chamber is much more unified in support of its leadership than last year. And it comes on the heels of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus taking aim at the Senate, specifically Biteman’s selection for committee chair assignments.
“We are troubled by the committee assignments in the Senate, where an overwhelming majority of committees are controlled by Liz Cheney Republicans,” the Freedom Caucus said in a December Facebook post.
“The elections proved the power is with the people, they have cleaned the House. Now they will be watching the Senate to see which game players to purge next,” the post read.
Abortion legislation
The Wyoming Supreme Court is expected to decide the legality of the two abortion bans passed by the Legislature in 2023. But Republican lawmakers aren’t waiting for that ruling to pursue further restrictions.
As of press time, three abortion-related bills had hit the Wyoming Legislature’s docket. All three focus on restricting abortion access as opposed to outright banning it.
House Bill 42, “Regulation of surgical abortions,” would regulate clinics that provide procedural abortions, while House Bill 64, “Chemical abortions-ultrasound requirement,” would require ultrasounds for abortion medication.
A third piece of legislation, House Bill 159, “Protecting water from chemical abortion waste,” would require patients who undergo a medication abortion to return “medical waste” in a neon orange bag marked biohazard to their health care provider.
WyoFile staff writer Mike Koshmrl contributed to this reporting.
The sheer lack of biological processes as well as their own sacred texts is appalling. They are like crusaders, willing to slaughter all who disagree with their religious beliefs. I hope Wyoming voters get involved and vote these zealots out ASAP!
What constituency does Sen. Hicks think he is supporting when the majority of Wyoming folks support legal access to abortion. The young folks are right. We need to get rid of these old misogynist white guys and get some legislators that are interested in supporting their constituents. This is from an old white guy that hopes our young folks will hurry up.
Keep up the good work. day one behinds now.
Hey Hicks, you don’t even insure healthcare in your own district. By the way, our own state constitution says to keep your hands off of our health decisions. The only law is the law that ‘man’ has made. Beware the christian taliban.