Okay...I was shocked to see this post as I have vacationed a couple weeks a year in Wyoming for ten years and have always open carried. Actually one of the reasons for going to Wyoming so often(besides it being so beautiful) is the fact it is so gun friendly.
I, too, had assumed that the State preemption law covered me so I don't understand where the AG is coming from. The State law doesn't mention doing anything more or less restrictive(actually, the whole intent of any preemption law is to prevent localities from passing laws more restrictive).
It actually says clearly that a locality can't make ANY law concerning firerams...period.
Except as authorized by W.S. 15-1-103(a)(xviii), no city, town or county shall authorize, regulate or prohibit the sale, transfer, purchase, delivery, taxation, manufacture, ownership, transportation, storage, use or possession of firearms, weapons and ammunition except as specifically provided by this chapter.
The only exceptions mentioned in the law regarding zoning of firearm businesses.
However, the real troubling section that says: "Except as authorized by Section W.S. 15-1-103(a)(xviii)"
This can be found at : http://legisweb.state.wy.us/statutes/titles/Title15/T15CH1AR1.htm and gives local govt bodies the right to:
(xviii) Regulate, prevent or suppress riots, disturbances, disorderly assemblies or parades, or any other conduct which disturbs or jeopardizes the public health, safety, peace or morality, in any public or private place;
I guess one could argue that this gives a locality the right to regulate open AND concealed carry of firearms(regardless of the state CCW law) since one might argue(I think wrongly) that carrying of firearms disturbs the peace. What is scary about this part is that one could use it to pass laws even covering people in PRIVATE RESIDENCES just by the city council deciding any guns in any homes threaten public safety or the peace.
Now I think that this would be overturned( I hope) on appeal as the intent of this is more likely to specific instances of riots, etc and limiting things such as open carry and private gun ownership would be a reach. BUT you'd get to be arrested and be a test case for this.
So, on the strict reading of the law, I am shocked to find that even with the preemption law in effect the AG seems to be correct that local govt bodies can ban open carry under section xviii (home rule) if they consider open carry to jeopardize the public peace .(since that section is so vaguely written.)
Seriously, all you people in Wyoming...I know you're a gun friendly state and probably wouldn't tolerate any politicians who would pass such laws but with all the California and Colorado hippies moving into places like Jackson Hole it's only a matter of time before it happens.
You need to get organized and get a hold of your state reps and get this section of the law rewritten so that section xviii clearly exempts legal use and carry of firearms.
NOW....to what the AG said about almost all cities having ordinances limiting open carrying I found this:
http://municipalcodes.lexisnexis.com/#WY
I didn't find ONE SINGLE law against Open Carry in the biggest cities in Wyoming: Casper, Cheyenne, Douglas, Sheridan, Laramie, and Riverton.
I did find a couple of laws that were more restrictive than the State laws....
One concerning carrying in ANY place that even carried alcohol like supermarkets and I even found one town that outlawed concealed carry and had NO EXCEPTION was given for State issued CCW permits!
The City of Laramie has a law that states:
9.28.010 Concealed weapons--Carrying.
No person, other than the officers of the United States, the state or the city, shall keep or bear concealed upon the person, within the city, a pistol, revolver, knife with a blade over five inches long, slingshot, slug shot, bludgeon, brass knuckles of lead or other metal or other deadly weapon. (Prior code § 26-4).
Now it is scary but by strict reading of the law Laramie can backup that code and say that your Wyoming CCW is invalid as they on the council think concealed weapons are a threat to public safety so they wrote this law with the support of section xviii.
THIS JUST ISN"T RIGHT FOR YOU PEOPLE IN WYOMING!
I think you should followup with the AG and see what examples of cities in Wyoming he knows of that actually outlaw concealed carry.