AARP Wyoming’s GRT Examines Gaming in Wyoming

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AARP Wyoming’s Government Relations Team (GRT) will host an online presentation by Wyoming-based gaming attorney Traci Lacock at noon on Thursday, April 17. This free presentation will offer a basic understanding of gaming in Wyoming as well what types of gaming are legal and illegal in the State.

There is no need to be an AARP Wyoming member or to take part. Simply click here to register for the Zoom meeting and a link will be sent to you ahead of April 17.

AARP Wyoming’s GRT is a group of AARP members in the Cowboy State who enjoy learning and advocating for policy that helps older adults in Wyoming. The GRT meets monthly during the legislative interim to do a deep dive into a policy topic, and weekly during the Legislative Session. During a planning meeting in March, the GRT overwhelmingly requested more information on gaming in Wyoming and its impacts to the state’s coffers in light of property tax cuts.

“It was a little surprising to hear from our GRT that it had strong interest in better understanding the gaming industry in Wyoming,” said Sam Shumway, AARP Wyoming State Director. “After last year’s property tax discussion, our GRT wondered if state revenues benefited financially from gaming and asked us to find an expert in the field. Traci is just that.”

Gaming in Wyoming has grown to a $2 billion per year industry, according to testimony offered during a June 2024 Joint Appropriations Committee. Lacock is the general counsel for gaming companies 307 Horse Racing, LLC (known as Derby Club), and Wyoming Downs, LLC. She will offer a historical background on horse racing in Wyoming, the legalization of gaming parlors in the state, where the money from gaming goes, and who regulates gaming in Wyoming. The presentation will also have time for questions.

AARP Wyoming’s GRT meetings are held in-person in Cheyenne each month, but do have online availability, and can be joined anywhere in Wyoming. There is no cost to join. The GRT plans to take on a number of subjects this interim including the state’s difficulty in recruiting health care providers, retail theft, the rising cost of homeowners insurance, and more. To join the GRT, simply email Tom Lacock at tlacock@aarp.org.