Wyoming Sound Money Act.

WORKING DRAFT
2012
STATE OF
WYOMING
12LSO-0219

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0100

Wyoming Sound Money Act
.

Sponsored by:
(s)
Representative(s) Kroeker

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
administration of the government; authorizing gold and silver for payment of debts in Wyoming intrastate commerce; authorizing the formation of
gold and silver
legal
tender
depositories;
and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.

W.S. 9
‑
4
‑
1301
through 9
‑
4
‑
130
4
are
created to read:

ARTICLE 13
THE WYOMING SOUND MONEY ACT

9
‑
4
‑
1301.

Short title.

This article shall be
known and may be cited as "The
Wyoming
Sound Money Act."

9
‑
4
‑
1302.

Authorization of
gold and silver as legal tender
.

(a)

Gold and silver, as specified in this act
,
is
authorized legal tender for payment of debts within the course and scope of
Wyoming
intrastate commerce
.

(b)

Gold and silver legal tender
shall be denominated in troy ounce and grain monetary units, there being
four hundred eighty (
480
)
troy grai
ns contained in one (1) troy ounce.

(c)

As legal tender money,
gold and silver
shall not be characterized as personal property for t
axation or regulatory purposes.

(d)

Gold and silver legal tender
shall only be issued or reissued into intrastate circulation by an authorized
gold and silver
depository which, prior to such issuance, shall have inspected, assayed and approved each
gold and
silver legal tender for weight and millesimal gold or silver fineness
.

(
e
)

Gold and silver legal tender
shall have a millesimal gold or silver fineness of no
t
less than
eight hundred fifty (
850
)
.

(
f
)

T
he
gold and silver legal tender's
precious metal content in troy ounces shall be clearly written and the corresponding number of troy grains shall be promi
nently displayed as an integer
on the gold and silver legal tender
.

(
g
)

No
gold or silver legal tender
shall bear any dollar denomination nor any resemblance whatsoever to
a
current or prior coin
issued by the United States.

(
h
)

No person shall have the right to compel any other person to tender or to accept
gold or silver legal tender

i
n lieu of United States dollars unless such person has previously agreed in writing to
do
so
.

9
‑
4
‑
1303
.

Authorization and organization of
gold and
silver
legal tender
.

(a)

Subject to s
ubse
ction (
f
)
of this section
, the
state banking
commissioner may a
uthorize a person described in subsection (b
)
of this section
to conduct
business as a
gold and silver legal tender depository
.

(b)

Each person authorized to conduct the business of a
gold and silver legal tender
depository in this state shall be organized under and governed pursuant to the provisions of
title 17, c
hapter
29 of the Wyoming statutes.

(c)

Each
gold and silver legal tender
depository shall
annually
file
a report of
condition in
accordance with W.S. 13
‑
7
‑
603.

(d)

Every
gold and silver legal tender
depository authorized under this
article

is subject to the supervision and examination provisions of Title 13 as a Wyoming financial
institution
.

(e)

Every
gold and silver legal tender
depository authorized under this
article
shall at all times maintain
gold and silver
reserves in an amount equal to or exceeding
the aggregate of all
gold and silver legal tender
deposits e
xisting at the gold and silver legal tender depository.

(f)

N
o
gold and silver legal tender
depository
shall
conduct business under this
article
unless all deposits held by such coin depository are insured against theft and loss.

9
‑
4
‑
1304.

Deposit a
ccounts.

(
a
)

No
gold or silver tender
depository shall commingle in the same account gold
legal tender
specie currency deposits with silver
legal tender
deposits.

(
b
)

In order to facilitate currency exchanges, a deposit account at a
gold and
silver
legal tender
depository may be linked to a dollar-denominated deposit account established at any
Wyoming
bank or cre
dit union chartered u
nder the laws of the state.

(
c
)

Currency exchanges effected between any
gold and silver legal tender
depository, bank or credit union organized and authorized under the
laws of this state
shall be entirely tax free and treated for all purposes as
transactions wholly within the course and scope of
Wyoming intrastate commerce.

(
d
)

No currency exchanges between United States dollars and
gold and silver legal tender
shall be deemed or construed to result in any ordinary o
r capital gain, profit or loss
.

(
e
)

All withdrawals from deposit accounts
at a gold and silver depository
, other than those effectuated by currency exchanges or by electronic transfers pursuant to express depositor instructions, shall be paid out in
Wyoming
gold and silver legal tender
.

(
f
)

Gold and silver legal tender
depositories shall employ all appropriate and necessary measures for the physical security of
gold and silver legal tender
deposits, as well as for safeguarding all information regarding each depositor's identity an
d the extent of their deposits.

(
g
)

A d
epositor's
gold and silver legal tender
deposits, together with any
identifying information shall only be subject to disclosure, search or seizure upon issuance of a lawful warrant or writ by a judicial officer
of this state pursuant to an adequate showing of probable cause with respect to the particular depositor in q
uestion.

Section 2.

This act is effective July 1, 2012.

(END)

1
HB0100