Lawmakers failed to override Gov. Mark Gordon’s veto of controversial changes to a Wyoming gun law that restricts enforcement of federal gun orders.
The override of Senate File 101, “Second amendment protection act amendments,” failed Wednesday in a 12 to 18 Senate vote. The Senate needed 21 votes to override the governor’s veto. There was no further debate on the bill itself.
Gordon vetoed Tuesday amendments to Wyoming’s Second Amendment Protection Act that would have added a possible $50,000 penalty and civil option for challenging alleged violations of the law. The governor framed the changes to SAPA as a hindrance to the Trump administration’s enforcement initiatives on immigration, drug smuggling and human trafficking because it could limit cooperation with federal agencies.
Gordon also rejected a similar bill last year. The governor lamented in this year’s veto letter that the “litany of troubling language, problematic consequences, and irreconcilable issues” that he had pointed to in the 2025 legislation “were completely ignored by the legislators advancing this newest iteration and still stand today.”
Wyoming’s SAPA became law in 2022. The measure bars Wyoming from using state money or personnel to enforce any “unconstitutional” federal government directive that infringes on people’s right to bear arms. Public officers who violate this would face a misdemeanor. The law has not yet been used, law enforcement officials told lawmakers.
The law is not as stringent as some would like. “That legislation had a few gaps in it,” Senate President Bo Biteman, the Ranchester Republican who sponsored SF 101, said of Wyoming’s SAPA at a committee meeting this session. “We knew that when we passed it.”
Senate File 101 proposed adding a $50,000 civil penalty per violation against agencies, including agencies that hire officers who enforced federal firearms directives under previous federal employment. Those civil fines would add to existing criminal penalties for individual officers. The measure also specified that individuals, and not just the state, could pursue legal action for alleged SAPA violations.
Wyoming law enforcement strongly opposed SF 101. All 23 Wyoming sheriffs signed a letter to lawmakers cautioning that the measure would create legal ambiguity that could put officers and agencies at risk of litigation, while threatening federal partnerships and ultimately hampering efforts to address crime. In his veto message, Gordon linked to a letter from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Todd Lyons that echoed those concerns.
Those who supported SF 101, including Second Amendment advocacy groups like Wyoming Gun Owners and Gun Owners of America, argued the measure would protect citizens against a too-powerful federal government. They pointed to carveouts in the bill that they said would allow Wyoming law enforcement officers to work with federal partners to address crime, even when firearms are potentially involved.
In a Wednesday letter to lawmakers, Gun Owners of America National Director Mark Jones argued that Gordon’s veto message “relies on a fundamental misreading” of the bill’s text, which specifies that the restrictions only apply to federal orders “solely regarding firearms, accessories or ammunition against any law abiding citizen.”
Since cartel members, traffickers and people in the country without legal permission aren’t included in the bill’s definition of “law abiding citizen,” the measure “places zero restrictions on the ability of state and federal authorities to collaborate in their apprehension,” Jones argued.
“The opposition to this bill is rooted in a desire by federal agencies to maintain unfettered access to Wyoming’s local police power,” the letter states.
Lawmakers, however, pushed through two other gun laws this year. Gordon signed House Bill 96, “Carrying of concealed weapons-age requirement,” and House Bill 98, “Prohibit Red Flag Gun Seizure Act-penalty amendments,” into law on Saturday.
House Bill 96 lowers the legal age for acquiring a concealed carry permit from 21 to 18. House Bill 98 adds a misdemeanor penalty to Wyoming’s “Prohibit Red Flag Gun Seizure Act.” That measure banned red flag gun laws in Wyoming, which typically enable police and sometimes others to ask a judge to temporarily remove someone’s access to guns if they are believed to be a risk to themselves or others.
Both laws go into effect in July.
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