Provenza, Rothfuss off education committee as Andrew takes helm
Committee appointments for the 2025 General Session of the Wyoming Legislature shook up Albany County’s representation in the state’s most important legislative huddles.
When Albany County’s two senators and four representatives arrive in Cheyenne this month, some of the delegation will be sliding into new roles.
The state’s right-wing Freedom Caucus will hold an outright majority in the Wyoming House while its allies dominate leadership positions in the Wyoming Senate. This powerful new faction has big plans for Wyoming and has already started flexing its majority with the selection of committee assignments last month.
Committees are where much of the legislature’s actual work gets done. Committees get the first crack at new legislation — receiving testimony from experts and members of the public as they dig into a proposed law’s nitty-gritty details.
Committees endorse or reject most of the bills that are sent their way, stamping each with a seal of either approval or rejection. The committee’s endorsement, or lack thereof, influences that bill’s chances of surviving its subsequent date with the full chamber.
This session, Albany County Democrats will lose prominent positions on the Joint Education Committee as well as a prominent seat on the Joint Judiciary Committee. But they will keep a seat on the legislature’s most powerful committee, the Joint Appropriations Committee, and also gain a seat on the committee that handles election-related bills.
Meanwhile, an Albany County Republican has ascended to a leadership role on the now Democrat-free education committee, and Senate District 10’s new Republican senator will take up an important post on the judiciary and labor committees.
Education and experience
This session’s committee assignments removed Rep. Karlee Provenza (HD-45) and Sen. Chris Rothfuss (SD-9) from the Joint Education Committee, while elevating Rep. Ocean Andrew (HD-46) to serve as the committee’s House chair.
As Albany County’s only elected Freedom Caucus member, Andrew was also named House Majority Whip, meaning he will serve as the chamber’s fourth highest ranking Republican.
With the removal of Provenza and Rothfuss, there will be no Democrats on the Joint Education Committee during the 2025 General Session.
Provenza said she’s disappointed because “historically” public education was viewed as something “so important to the people that it is beyond politics.”
“So despite being a super minority, we have continued to have a spot on that committee, because we have experience, because we are invested in those schools,” she said. “It's less about the party and more about: there should be people on those committees that understand the nuance of education funding, that understand the importance of education.”
Provenza said she (as a University of Wyoming Ph.D. graduate) and Rothfuss (as a UW instructor) both have ample experience with and knowledge of the state’s educational institutions.
“You’ve got a handful of people that made sense to stay on that committee who were removed because leadership seems to be more concerned with political ideology,” Provenza said. “Rather than who can help ensure that our kids have the best education possible to set them up for success, and therefore set up success for our communities.”
Provenza, Rothfuss and the rest of Albany County’s current delegation plan to bring legislation regarding the UW Lab School in the upcoming session. That legislation aims to keep the on-campus K-8 school running — despite UW’s recent decision to evict it and the local school district’s recent decision to close it.
“It certainly would be helpful to have us on that committee to get it through,” Provenza said. “There's a lot of new members that we're going to have to have conversations with and build relationships with. We're going to have to lean on other co-sponsors of the bill.”
But Provenza said the expulsion of Democrats from the education committee is unlikely to sink the lab school legislation; the bill’s other co-sponsors include Andrew, who will serve as the committee’s House chair.
Appropriations, judiciary and new appointments
The new committee assignments were not all bad news for Albany County Democrats.
Notably, Rep. Trey Sherwood (HD-14) will continue to serve on the Joint Appropriations Committee, which has sway over the budgets of every state agency and is perhaps the most powerful panel in Cheyenne.
Rep. Ken Chestek (HD-13), meanwhile, will remain on the House Judiciary Committee — even as Provenza is removed from this committee as she was from education.
This additional removal represents a major change for Provenza, who first rose to local prominence as a police accountability activist and organizer. From her seat on the judiciary committee, Provenza pushed back on bills aiming to expand or enhance criminal punishments — a stance that has put her at odds with both Republicans and Democrats.
“I don’t know how many still hold the philosophy that people that end up tangled in our justice system are people that made mistakes,” Provenza said. “I came to criminal justice reform because I care deeply about the issue, and so part of me is heartbroken to leave that committee. I dedicated my life to that work, and I don’t see an avenue for it.”
During the last session, Provenza advocated for a police oversight bill that won unanimous votes in both chambers and is now state law. But she has more frequently been a dissenting voice on judiciary.
“Most of the good work that I've done on that committee has been through amendments,” Provenza said. “I don't know if there are many people in the legislature that think the way I do. I mean even Ken [Chestek] and I vote very differently on that committee.”
Without a seat on the panel, Provenza can still sponsor her own bills and even advocate for them in judiciary committee hearings. But she’ll have to work harder to build the relationships that lawmaking requires.
“My committee trusted me to know what a good idea was,” she said. “When you're not on a committee, it's harder to build relationships with the people of that committee to a point where they’re like, ‘Okay, Provenza’s bringing a bill, that means it’s probably good.’”
The House 45 Democrat was added to the Agriculture, State and Public Lands & Water Resources Committee (commonly called the “Ag Committee”) and the House Travel, Recreation, Wildlife & Cultural Resources Committee (commonly called the “Travel Committee.”)
The ag and travel committees will be a change of pace for Provenza, but she said she can still serve her constituents on these new panels.
“We are going to have a fight for public lands on our hands in the state, and I think, in this country,” Provenza said. “We need people that understand the importance of public land access, that can talk to hunters and anglers and also understand the impacts of climate change, and how the current situation we're in with our climate is hurting all of these industries.”
Provenza added she’s “got a lot to learn” and will “remain humbled” as she does that learning.
“But, you know, wildlife and our natural resources — Wyoming's heritage — is near and dear to my heart,” she said. “It’s why I live here. So I’m excited by the opportunity to fight for it.”
Albany County in the Senate
Sen. Dan Furphy, a one-term senator for Albany County’s Senate District 10, declined to stand for reelection last year. Fellow Republican Gary Crum won the seat with the outgoing senator’s endorsement.
Furphy held seats on the judiciary and transportation committees.
Crum was appointed to the judiciary and labor committees, meaning Albany County will keep a seat on judiciary, lose a seat on transportation and gain a seat on the Labor, Health and Social Services Committee.
While Sen. Rothfuss was removed from the Education Committee, he will retain his seat on the Minerals, Business & Economic Development Committee and gain a seat on the Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivisions Committee.
Here’s how joint and standing committee assignments changed for Albany County’s entire delegation (new assignments in bold):
Sen. Chris Rothfuss (SD-9)
2024: Education; Minerals, Business & Economic Development; Rules
2025: Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivisions; Minerals, Business & Economic Development
Sen. Dan Furphy (SD-10)
2024: Judiciary; Transportation, Highways & Military Affairs
2025: Did not run for reelection
Sen.-elect Gary Crum (SD-10)
2024: Not yet elected
2025: Judiciary; Labor, Health & Social Services
Rep. Ken Chestek (HD-13)
2024: Judiciary; Journal
2025: Judiciary
Rep. Trey Sherwood (HD-14)
2024: Appropriations
2025: Appropriations
Rep. Karlee Provenza (HD-45)
2024: Education; Judiciary
2025: Agriculture, State and Public Lands & Water Resources; Travel, Recreation, Wildlife & Cultural Resources
Rep. Ocean Andrew (HD-46)
2024: Education
2025: Education
Freeloader caucus clearly afraid of smart, capable individuals - especially women.