SF0085 • 2020

Uranium taxation rates.

AN ACT relating to uranium taxation; providing for uranium severance tax relief as specified; providing for imposition of a conditional uranium severance tax relative to specified spot market prices; and providing for an effective date.

Taxes

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Senator Boner
Last action: 2020-03-17
Official status: enrolled
Effective date: 7/1/2020

Plain English Breakdown

The exact wording and specifics of international indexes used for determining spot market prices are detailed in the bill text but not fully summarized in the plain language version.

Uranium Tax Relief Act

This law changes how uranium is taxed by reducing taxes for companies producing uranium between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2025 based on market prices.

What This Bill Does

Reduces the severance tax rate for uranium production from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2025.
Sets a new tax rate that ranges from 0% to 5%, depending on the spot market price of nonenriched uranium concentrate (U3O8) as determined by an average of specified international indexes like NUEXCO and Ux.
Requires companies to be up-to-date with their property taxes in the county where they extract uranium to qualify for tax relief.

Who It Names or Affects

Companies that produce uranium between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2025.
Counties in Wyoming where uranium is extracted.

Terms To Know

Severance tax: A tax on the extraction or removal of natural resources from land.
Spot market price: The current price at which a commodity, such as uranium, can be bought or sold for immediate delivery.

Limits and Unknowns

The tax relief only applies to uranium production between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2025.
Companies must not have any unpaid property taxes in the county where they extract uranium to qualify for lower rates.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

SF0085H2001

2nd reading • Representative Dayton-Selman

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes the date from which certain uranium taxation provisions will expire from December 31, 2031 to December 31, 2026.

Changes the expiration date of specific uranium taxation rules from December 31, 2031 to December 31, 2026.

SF0085H2002

2nd reading • Representative Connolly

Failed

Plain English: The amendment changes the uranium severance tax rate from 0% to 0.5%.

Changes the uranium severance tax rate from 0% to 0.5%.

SF0085H3001

3rd reading • Representative Barlow

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes how uranium severance taxes are calculated and adds a new requirement for taxpayers to be certified by the county treasurer before they can qualify for certain tax rates.

Changes the wording from 'through (d)' to 'through (e)' in several places, indicating an addition of a new subsection.
Modifies the phrase 'during each month' to 'for each month'.
Adds a new subsection (e) that requires taxpayers to be certified by the county treasurer annually before they can qualify for certain severance tax rates.

The exact impact of these changes on uranium taxation is not fully explained in the provided amendment text.
It's unclear how this certification process will affect the implementation and enforcement of the new tax rules.

SF0085H3002

3rd reading • Representative Burkhart

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes the uranium severance tax rate when the spot market price is $60.00 or more.

Removes the phrase 'or more' and replaces it with 'to $60.00', setting a specific threshold for the tax rate change.
Adds a new line stating that if the spot market price is $60.01 or more, the uranium severance tax rate will be 5%.

The amendment text does not provide details on how prices below $60.00 are taxed.
It's unclear what happens if the market price is exactly $60.00.

SF0085H3003

3rd reading • Representative Miller

Failed

Plain English: The amendment removes three previous amendments to a bill about uranium taxation.

Removes the House standing committee amendment that was previously added.
Removes the Dayton-Selman second reading amendment that was previously added.
Removes the Burkhart third reading amendment that was previously added.

SF0085HS001

Standing Committee • House Revenue Committee

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes the uranium severance tax rate from 4% to 5%.

Changes the uranium severance tax rate from 4% to 5%.

SF0085S2001

2nd reading • Senator Scott

Failed

Plain English: The amendment changes the wording of a bill about uranium taxes by removing certain phrases and adjusting percentages.

Removes text after 'extracted' on page 2, line 18.
Deletes lines 19 and 20 from page 2.
Changes '$30.00' to nothing (deletes it) on page 2, line 21.
Replaces '0%' with '0.5%' on page 3, line 19.

The exact impact of these changes is not fully explained in the provided amendment text.

SF0085SS001

Standing Committee • Senate Revenue Committee

Divided

Plain English: The amendment modifies the uranium taxation bill by changing specific dates and percentages, and it also adds a new provision to repeal certain sections.

Changes the year from 2035 to 2031 in several places.
Replaces 'Exchange Value' with 'from TradeTech'.
Deletes line 6 on page 3 entirely.
Inserts a new section that repeals subsections (b) through (d) of the bill effective December 31, 2031.

The amendment text does not provide context for all changes, making it hard to understand the full impact without reviewing the original bill.

SF0085SS001.01

Standing Committee • Senate Revenue Committee

Corrected, Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes the wording and dates in a bill about uranium taxation, removes some sections, and adds new text.

Removes the word 'and' on page 1, line 10.
Changes '(c)' to 'through (d)' on page 1, line 11.
Replaces '2035' with '2031' on page 2, line 14.
Removes the phrase 'Exchange Value' and replaces it with 'from TradeTech' on page 3, lines 4-6.

The amendment deletes text from page 3, line 6, but does not specify what was deleted.
It also removes subsections (b) through (d) of the section by December 31, 2031, but doesn't explain what these sections contained.

SF0085SS001.02

Standing Committee • Senate Revenue Committee

Corrected, Failed

Plain English: The amendment changes the uranium severance tax rate from 0% to 0.5%.

Changes the uranium severance tax rate from 0% to 0.5%.

Bill History

2020-03-17 LSO
Assigned Chapter Number 120
2020-03-17 Governor
Governor Signed SEA No. 0057
2020-03-12 House
H Speaker Signed SEA No. 0057
2020-03-12 Senate
S President Signed SEA No. 0057
2020-03-11 LSO
Assigned Number SEA No. 0057
2020-03-11 Senate
S Concur:Passed 22-4-4-0-0
2020-03-11 Senate
S Received for Concurrence
2020-03-11 House
H 3rd Reading:Passed 45-15-0-0-0
2020-03-10 House
H 2nd Reading:Passed
2020-03-09 House
H COW:Passed
2020-03-09 House
H Placed on General File
2020-03-09 House
H03 - Revenue:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 7-2-0-0-0
2020-03-04 House
H Introduced and Referred to H03 - Revenue
2020-02-26 House
H Received for Introduction
2020-02-26 Senate
S 3rd Reading:Passed 23-7-0-0-0
2020-02-25 Senate
S 2nd Reading:Passed
2020-02-24 Senate
S COW:Passed
2020-02-20 Senate
S Placed on General File
2020-02-20 Senate
S03 - Revenue:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 3-2-0-0-0
2020-02-11 Senate
S Introduced and Referred to S03 - Revenue 23-6-1-0-0
2020-02-10 Senate
S Received for Introduction
2020-02-06 LSO
Bill Number Assigned

Official Summary Text

Bill Summary - 20LSO-0502
Bill No.:

SF0085

Effective:

7/1/2020 12:00:00 AM

LSO No.:

20LSO-0502

Enrolled Act No.:

SEA No. 0057

Chapter No.:

120

Prime Sponsor:

Boner

Catch Title:

Uranium taxation rates.

Subject:

Temporary decrease in uranium severance tax rate.

Summary/Major Elements:

The bill decreases the severance tax imposed upon any uranium production occurring after December 31, 2020 and before January 1, 2026.

For the prescribed period of time, the severance tax imposed upon uranium will be based upon the value of the gross product extracted each month for which the spot market price per pound of nonenriched uranium concentrate (U3O8) is at least thirty dollars ($30.00). The severance tax imposed will vary from zero percent (0%) to five percent (5%) depending on the uranium spot market price as determined by an average of specified international price indexes.
The above summary is not an official publication of the Wyoming Legislature and is not an official statement of legislative intent. While the Legislative Service Office endeavored to provide accurate information in this summary, it should not be relied upon as a comprehensive abstract of the bill.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

20LSO-0502

ORIGINAL Senate

ENGROSSED
File No
.
SF0085

ENROLLED ACT NO. 57,

SENATE

SIXTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2020 Budget Session

AN ACT relating to uranium taxation; providing for uranium severance tax relief as specified; providing for imposition of a conditional uranium severance tax relative to specified spot market prices; and providing for an effective date.

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

Section 1
.

W.S. 39
‑
14
‑
503(b)(intro), 39
‑
14
‑
504(a)(intro), by creating new subsections (b) through (e) and 39
‑
14
‑
511(a) are amended to read:

39
‑
14
‑
503.

Imposition.

(b)

Basis of tax (valuation).
Except as provided in W.S. 39
‑
14
‑
504(b) and (c), t
he following shall apply:

39
‑
14
‑
504.

Tax rate.

(a)

Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, t
he total severance tax rate for uranium shall be four percent (4%). The tax shall be distributed as provided in W.S. 39
‑
14
‑
511 and is imposed as follows:

(b)

The severance tax imposed under subsection (a) of this section shall not apply to any uranium production occurring after December 31, 2020, and before January 1, 2026. For the period of time prescribed under this subsection, there is levied a severance tax at the rates specified in subsection (c) of this section. The severance tax shall be levied on the value of the gross product extracted each month for which the spot market price per pound of nonenriched uranium concentrate (U3O8) is at least thirty dollars ($30.00) as determined by an average of the following international indexes or their successors quoting
the monthly price of nonenriched uranium concentrate (U3O8):

(
i
)

NUEXCO from
TradeTech
;

(ii)

Ux
U3O8 spot price.

(c)

The uranium spot market price used in the table in this subsection is the price per pound of nonenriched uranium concentrate (U3O8). The value of uranium for purposes of the severance tax in subsection (b) of this section shall be determined in accordance with the following table:

Uranium Spot Market Price

Tax Applied

Less than $30.00

0%
$30.00 to $36.67

1%
$36.68 to $43.34

2%
$43.35 to $50.00

3%
$50.01 to $60.00

4%
$60.01 or more

5%

(d)

Subsections (b) through (e) of this section are repealed effective December 31, 2026.

(e)

No taxpayer shall qualify for the severance tax rate imposed under subsections (b) and (c) of this section unless the county treasurer annually certifies to the department that the taxpayer does not have any unpaid delinquent ad valorem tax in the county from within which the uranium was severed or extracted.

39
‑
14
‑
511.

Distribution.

(a)

As provided by W.S. 39
‑
14
‑
504(a), the total severance tax rate for uranium shall be four percent (4%).
The taxes imposed by W.S.
39
‑
14
‑
504(a)
39
‑
14
‑
504
shall be deposited into the severance tax distribution account.

Section 2
.

This act is effective July 1, 2020
.

(END)

Speaker of the House

President of the Senate

Governor

TIME APPROVED: _________

DATE APPROVED: _________

I hereby certify that this act originated in the Senate.

Chief Clerk

1