ROCK SPRINGS –– Wyoming legislators looking to cut education funding were handed a loss Wednesday after the Wyoming Supreme Court ruled the state’s funding model for schools is unconstitutional.

The lawsuit was initially filed in 2022 by the Wyoming Education Association, with both Sweetwater County school districts joining the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. The suit alleged cuts made by the legislature related to a downturn in revenue, however the WEA and six other districts argued the lack of funding didn’t address aging facilities, with the plaintiffs claiming some Wyoming schools were not fit to educate students, with security measures, teachers and staff being underfunded. They argued that lack of funding creates an equity issue for students across the state. 

“This ruling is a critical step in our state’s long road to support and maintain ‘a thorough and uniform education of a quality that is both visionary and unsurpassed,’ as our state Supreme Court has demanded,” Alex Ayers, superintendent of Campbell County School District No. 1 said in a statement. “It will prevent students from attending unequal and inadequate school facilities. It will ensure they get the mental health support, nutrition, and technology that are integral to their success. It will also mean our hardworking and dedicated personnel are fairly compensated for the difference they make every day.”

Judge Peter Froelicher agreed with the six points educators raised about why the funding model is unconstitutional, which were: 

1. The state has not properly funded the actual costs to provide quality educational goods and services.
2. The funding model has not been properly adjusted for inflation.
3. The state has not provided salaries adequate to recruit and retain personnel.
4. The state has not properly funded mental health counselors, school resource officers, nutritional programs, and computers.
5. The state has not adequately and evenly assessed school facilities for educational suitability.
6. The state has allowed unequal and inadequate school facilities to exist for too long.

The state was ordered to modify its funding model to correct the constitutional violations.