Wyoming's HB 25 amends vehicle accident reporting requirements to clarify when drivers and police must report incidents. It specifies that drivers must notify authorities if an accident causes injury/death, $1,000+ property damage, or if a vehicle becomes disabled (preventing normal operation). Police officers must submit written accident reports to the highway department within 10 days for qualifying incidents, including those with injuries, deaths, or $1,000+ property damage/disabled vehicles. The bill directly affects drivers involved in qualifying accidents and law enforcement officers handling such cases. It takes effect July 1, 2025.
This bill exempts all property owned by the State of Wyoming from property taxes. It directly affects the state government by removing tax obligations on its own real estate holdings. The exemption takes effect January 1, 2025, and will expire on December 31, 2026, as specified by the sunset provision. This is a procedural tax change with no direct impact on private property owners or residents.
This bill modifies Wyoming's water rights abandonment rules. It allows water right holders (like farmers or ranchers) who haven't used their rights for five consecutive years to apply for up to five-year extensions if they demonstrate "due diligence" and reasonable cause for nonuse - such as legal delays, project planning, or repairs. The state engineer can still initiate forfeiture proceedings for unused rights, but extensions prevent abandonment actions during the approved period. The changes apply to reservoirs and dam systems under specific conditions, with rulemaking required by the state engineer. The bill takes effect July 1, 2025.
Wyoming's HJ 1 is a joint resolution requesting Congress to amend the state's 1890 Act of Admission. It seeks to update specific sections to replace outdated terms like "interest" and "income" with "earnings" in provisions governing the permanent school fund. This change would allow Wyoming to use all investment returns - including capital gains - from the fund, which now exceeds $4 billion, directly for public schools. The resolution does not create new funding but aligns legal language with current investment practices to better apply existing resources.
Wyoming's HB 69 adds foreign adversary ownership or control as a specific reason for state action against businesses. It directly affects corporations, LLCs, and foreign entities owned or controlled by individuals or entities designated as "foreign adversaries" under U.S. Commerce Department regulations (15 C.F.R. 791.4(a)), unless approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS). The bill amends state laws to allow the Secretary of State to administratively dissolve or revoke a business's authority to operate if it meets this definition, without requiring a court order. This applies to businesses that fail to correct false information or cannot be served, but includes an exception for entities with CFIUS approval.
SF 78 (Wyoming) prohibits most people from sending unsolicited absentee ballot request forms to voters. It specifically bans distribution by anyone except county clerks, the secretary of state, or their authorized staff - unless a voter directly asks for the form. The bill defines "absentee ballot request form" broadly to include any deceptive-looking election documents sent by mail, email, or other means. This directly affects voters who may receive unsolicited forms and organizations attempting to distribute them, aiming to prevent misleading election materials. The bill takes effect immediately upon becoming law.
This bill requires Wyoming's Department of Revenue to establish specific valuation indexes and depreciation schedules for calculating ad valorem taxes on tangible personal property (such as business equipment, vehicles, or furniture). It mandates that property be valued using these rules, with a key provision preventing depreciation methods from increasing the value of fully depreciated property above 20% of its original acquisition cost (the "depreciation floor"). The policy directly affects businesses and organizations owning tangible property subject to state property taxes by changing how their taxable value is determined. The Department must create implementing rules, and the changes take effect January 1, 2026.
HB 73 adds "rock climbing" to the list of recreation activities covered under Wyoming's Recreation Safety Act. This change directly affects landowners who allow rock climbing on their property, clarifying that liability protections for landowners apply to this activity. The bill amends existing definitions in two statutes to include rock climbing within the scope of "sport or recreational opportunity" and "recreational purpose." It takes effect July 1, 2025, and does not create new safety requirements - only updates the legal definition.
This bill allows district and circuit court judges to assign certain civil cases to chancery court judges when the case value exceeds $50,000, requiring consent from all parties involved. It also authorizes retired chancery court judges to be called back to serve on assigned cases, receiving full salary during assignments without affecting their retirement benefits. The law updates Wyoming court procedures by clarifying assignment rules and funding for judicial service, effective July 1, 2025. It directly affects chancery court judges, retired judges, and parties in high-value civil cases.
This bill requires developers seeking industrial siting permits in Wyoming to notify specific tribal governments (the Eastern Shoshone Tribe and Northern Arapaho Tribe of the Wind River Indian Reservation) when applying for permits. It mandates that state officials serve notice to these tribes within 7 days of a waiver request and within 10 days of a permit application, particularly for projects in the same or adjacent counties. The bill applies to all permit applications filed on or after July 1, 2025, and directs the Industrial Siting Council to create implementing rules. It directly affects developers and tribal governments by ensuring tribes are formally informed about potential industrial projects on or near tribal lands.
HB 40 revises Wyoming's sales and use tax laws to align use tax rules with sales tax provisions. It clarifies key definitions (like "vendor," now including remote sellers and digital marketing activities), extends the manufacturing machinery tax exemption until December 2027, and updates licensing requirements for businesses. The bill also introduces a new credit for businesses reporting taxes - allowing up to 1.95% of the first $6,250 in tax owed for reporting costs. These changes primarily affect businesses selling tangible goods in Wyoming, streamlining compliance and tax collection.
HB 38 amends Wyoming's ad valorem tax penalty rules, directing that penalties collected from taxpayers who fail to file specific tax statements must be paid to and credited to the State School Foundation Program account. The bill specifically changes how these penalty payments are handled under Wyoming Statute 39-13-108(c)(ii)(B), ensuring funds go directly to the school foundation program rather than other general state funds. This procedural change affects taxpayers who miss filing deadlines and ensures penalty revenue supports public education funding as specified by law.
