Voters will get the chance to decide on two amendments to the Wyoming Constitution in the general election.

Amendment A allows cities, counties, towns, school districts and other political subdivisions to invest money in stocks and equities.

And Amendment B would increase the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 75.

The state has invested money in its permanent funds in equities since the 1990s. In 2016, voters approved an amendment that allowed Wyoming to invest its state agency pool, which includes hundreds of non-permanent funds, into stocks and equities.

If Amendment A passes, it would allow local governments to do the same thing, giving them an opportunity to increase revenue without increasing taxes.

For a constitutional amendment to get onto the ballot in Wyoming, it needs to get a two-thirds supermajority from both the House and the Senate.

Amendment A was introduced as House Joint Resolution 9 in the 2021 legislative session. The House approved it on a 43-16 vote and the Senate passed it with a vote of 25-5.

Right now, judges are required to retire when they turn 70 years old. If Amendment B passes, it would raise this age to 75.

A Gillette judge had to retire due to this rule. In 2020, District Judge Michael N. “Nick” Deegan retired because he turned 70.

Thirty-one states have mandatory retirement ages for judges. Vermont has the highest, at 90 years old.

Montana, Idaho, Nebraska and North Dakota don’t have mandatory retirement. In Utah, the age is 75 years old. Colorado’s is 72 and South Dakota’s is 70.

This was introduced as House Joint Resolution 1 in the 2022 legislative session. The House passed it on a 54-5 vote, while the Senate approved it on a 20-10 vote.

For an amendment to pass, it needs a majority of all voters in the election to support it. This means that if a voter leaves this part of the ballot blank, that is essentially the same as a vote against the amendment.