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24LSO-0504
2024
STATE OF WYOMING
24LSO-0504
Numbered
2.0
HOUSE BILL NO. HB0168
Foreign ownership of Wyoming agricultural lands.
Sponsored by: Representative(s) Banks, Allred, Conrad, Crago, Western and Winter and Senator(s) Barlow, Cooper and French
A BILL
for
AN ACT relating to property, conveyances and security transactions; prohibiting ownership of agricultural land by nonresident aliens, foreign businesses and foreign governments as specified; providing exceptions; requiring registration of agricultural lands; requiring reports; providing a penalty; providing for the escheat of agricultural lands as specified; providing definitions; requiring rulemaking; specifying applicability; and providing for effective dates.
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
Section 1.
W.S. 34
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201 through 34
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206 are created to read:
ARTICLE 2
NONRESIDENT ALIEN AGRICULTURAL LAND OWNERSHIP
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201.
Definitions.
(a)
As used in this article:
(i)
"Agricultural land" means land suitable for an agricultural purpose as defined in W.S. 39
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101(a)(viii) and any interest in land suitable for an agricultural purpose as defined in W.S. 39
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101(a)(viii);
(ii)
"Farming" means the cultivation of land for the production of agricultural crops, the raising of poultry, the production of eggs, the production of milk, the production of fruit or other horticultural crops, grazing or the production of livestock. "Farming" includes the production of timber, forest products, nursery products or sod. As used in this article, "farming" does not include a contract where a processor or distributor of farm products or supplies provides spraying, harvesting or other farm services;
(iii)
"Foreign business" means a corporation incorporated under the laws of a foreign country, or a business entity whether or not incorporated, in which a majority interest is owned directly or indirectly by nonresident aliens. Legal entities, including but not limited to trusts, holding companies, multiple corporations and other business arrangements, shall not affect the determination of ownership or control of a foreign business;
(iv)
"Foreign government" means a government other than the government of the United States, its states, territories or possessions;
(v)
"Lessee" means a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or an agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof acting on behalf of the nonresident alien, foreign business foreign government, or any other trade or business, that is under the lessee's common control as provided in 26 U.S.C. § 414;
(vi)
"Nonresident alien" means any person who is not either:
(A)
A citizen of the United States;
(B)
A person lawfully admitted into the United States for permanent residence. A person is lawfully admitted for permanent residence regardless of whether the person's lawful permanent resident status is conditional.
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202.
Alien rights in real property;
restriction on agricultural land holdings; exceptions.
(a)
A nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government:
(i)
May acquire, by grant, purchase, devise or descent, real property, except as otherwise specified in this section;
(ii)
Shall not acquire agricultural land in Wyoming;
(iii)
May own, hold, devise or alienate real property the nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government is entitled to hold;
(iv)
Shall incur the same duties and liabilities associated with the ownership of real property as a citizen and resident of the United States would incur.
(b)
Except as otherwise provided in this article, no nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or an agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, shall purchase or otherwise acquire agricultural land in this state. A nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof that owns or holds agricultural land in this state on July 1, 2024, may continue to own or hold the agricultural land, but shall not purchase or otherwise acquire additional agricultural land in this state.
(c)
A person who acquires agricultural land in violation of this article or who fails to convert any land to the purpose other than farming within five (5) years, as provided for in this article, remains in violation of this article for as long as the person holds an interest in the agricultural land.
(d)
The restriction on the purchase or acquisition of agricultural land by a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof pursuant to subsection (b) of this section shall not apply to the following:
(i)
Agricultural land acquired by devise or descent;
(ii)
A bona fide encumbrance on agricultural land taken for purposes of security;
(iii)
Agricultural land acquired by a process of law in the collection of debts, by a deed in lieu of foreclosure, pursuant to a forfeiture of a contract for deed or by any procedure for the enforcement of a lien or claim on the agricultural land. Agricultural land acquired under this paragraph shall be sold or otherwise disposed of not later than two (2) years after title is transferred. Pending the sale or disposition of the agricultural land, the agricultural land shall not be used for any purpose other than farming except under lease to a person, trust, corporation, partnership or other business entity not subject to the restriction on agricultural land holdings pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. Agricultural land that has been acquired pursuant to this paragraph shall not be acquired or utilized by the nonresident alien, foreign business, foreign government or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof under paragraphs (iv) or (v) of this subsection;
(iv)
Agricultural land acquired for research or experimental purposes. Agricultural land is used for research or experimental purposes if one (1) or more of the following conditions apply:
(A)
Research or experimental activities are undertaken on the agricultural land, and commercial sales of products produced from farming the agricultural land do not occur or are incidental to the research or experimental purposes. Commercial sales shall be considered incidental to the research or experimental purposes when the sales are less than twenty
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five percent (25%) of the gross sales of the primary product of the research or experimental purposes;
(B)
The agricultural land is used for the primary purpose of testing, developing or producing seeds or plants for sale or resale to farmers as seed stock. Grain or seeds that are not sold as seed stock is an incidental sale and shall be less than twenty
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five percent (25%) of the gross sales of the primary product of the research or experimental activities;
(C)
The agricultural land is used for the primary purpose of testing, developing or producing animals for sale or resale to farmers as breeding stock when the following conditions are satisfied:
(I)
The nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government or any agent, trustee or fiduciary of the alien, business or government shall not hold the agricultural land other than under a lease contract and the term of the lease shall be for not more than ten (10) years and the lease shall not be renewed;
(II)
No term or condition of sale, including resale, of seed stock or breeding stock shall relate to the direct or indirect control by the lessee of the breeding stock or breeding stock progeny subsequent to the sale;
(III)
The lessee shall hold not more than six hundred forty (640) acres of agricultural land;
(IV)
The lessee shall deliver a copy of the lease to the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall notify the lessee of receipt of the copy of the lease.
(D)
The agricultural land is used to sell test animals. For a three (3) year period beginning on the date that the lease takes effect, the gross sales for any year shall not be greater than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00). After the three (3) year period ends, the gross sales for any year shall not be greater than twenty
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five percent (25%) of the gross sales for that year of the breeding stock or five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00), whichever is less.
(e)
A nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, that lawfully owns more than three hundred twenty (320) acres may continue to own or hold the agricultural land but shall not purchase or otherwise acquire additional agricultural land in this state except by devise or descent from a nonresident alien. Pending the development of agricultural land for a purpose other than farming, the land shall not be used for farming except under lease to a person, trust, corporation, partnership or other business entity not subject to the restriction on agricultural land holdings imposed by subsection (b) of this section.
(f)
No nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof shall transfer title to or interest in agricultural land to a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof except by devise or descent.
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203.
Development of agricultural land acquired for nonfarming purposes; agricultural land acquired by devise or descent; change of status; divestment.
(a)
A nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof that acquires agricultural land for an immediate or pending purpose other than farming pursuant to W.S. 34
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202(e) shall convert the agricultural land to any purpose other than farming not later than five (5) years after date of the acquisition of the agricultural land.
(b)
Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof that acquires agricultural land by devise or descent shall divest itself of all rights, title and interest in the agricultural land not later than two (2) years from the date the agricultural land was acquired. This section shall not require divestment of agricultural land that was acquired by devise or descent from a nonresident alien if the agricultural land was acquired by any nonresident alien before July 1, 2024.
(c)
A business or person that purchases or otherwise acquires agricultural land in this state except by devise or descent and whose status changes so that it becomes a foreign business or nonresident alien subject to this article shall divest itself of all right, title and interest in the agricultural land not later than two (2) years from the date that the business or person's status changed.
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204.
Registration.
(a)
A nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof that owns agricultural land within this state shall annually register the agricultural land with the secretary of state in accordance with this section.
(b)
The registration shall be made not later than sixty (60) days after any agricultural land was acquired or September 1 of each year, whichever is later. The registration shall be in the form and manner prescribed by rule of the secretary of state and shall contain the following:
(i)
The name of the owner of the agricultural land;
(ii)
The location and number of acres of the agricultural land;
(iii)
The name of any principal for whom the agricultural land was purchased, if the owner of the agricultural land or owner of the interest in agricultural land is an agent, trustee or fiduciary of a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government.
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205.
Reports.
(a)
A nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof that owns or holds agricultural land not subject to the restrictions of W.S. 34
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202(b) because the land was acquired for a purpose other than farming, shall file a report with the secretary of state no later than March 31 of each year that the nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government holds or owns the agricultural land. The report shall be in the form and manner prescribed by the secretary of state and shall contain the following:
(i)
The name of the owner of the agricultural land;
(ii)
The name of any principal for whom the agricultural land was purchased if the owner of the agricultural land is an agent, trustee or fiduciary of a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government;
(iii)
The location and number of acres of the agricultural land;
(iv)
The date the agricultural land was acquired;
(v)
The immediate or pending purpose other than farming for which the agricultural land was acquired and the status of the land's development for the purpose other than farming;
(vi)
The present use of the agricultural land.
(b)
A lessee of agricultural land under W.S. 34
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202(d)(iv)(C) for research or experimental purposes shall file a report with the secretary of state not later than March 31 of each year on a form prescribed by the secretary of state. The report shall contain the following information for the previous year:
(i)
The name and principal place of business of the lessee;
(ii)
The location and number of acres of the agricultural land used for research or experimental purposes;
(iii)
The date that the lease became effective;
(iv)
The name and address of each person purchasing breeding stock produced on the agricultural land;
(v)
The number or volume of breeding stock purchased by each person purchasing breeding stock produced on the agricultural land.
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206.
Enforcement; escheat; penalties.
(a)
If the secretary of state finds that a nonresident alien, foreign business, foreign government or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof has acquired or holds agricultural land in violation of this article or has failed to timely register as required under W.S. 34
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206, the secretary shall report the suspected violation to the attorney general.
(b)
Upon receipt of the report from the secretary of state, the attorney general may initiate an action in the district court of the county in which the agricultural land is located.
(c)
The attorney general shall file a notice of the pendency of any action filed under this section with the clerk of each county in which any of the agricultural land is located. If the court finds that the agricultural land in question has been acquired or held in violation of this article or the required registration has not been timely filed, it shall enter an order so declaring and shall file a copy of the order with the clerk of each county in which any portion of the agricultural land is located.
(d)
If the court finds that the agricultural land in question has been acquired in violation of this article or that the agricultural land has not been converted to any purpose other than farming within five (5) years pursuant to W.S. 34
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203(a), the court shall declare the agricultural land escheated to the state. When escheat is decreed by the court, the clerk of court shall notify the board of land commissioners that the title to the agricultural land is vested in the state by decree of the court. Any agricultural land acquired under this article shall be sold by the board of land commissioners in accordance with title 36, chapter 9 of Wyoming statutes. The proceeds of the sale shall be used to pay court costs and the remaining proceeds, if any, shall be paid to the person divested of the property but only in an amount not exceeding the actual cost paid by the person for the agricultural land. Proceeds remaining after the payment of court costs and the payment to the person divested of the agricultural land shall be credited to the general fund of the county or counties in which the agricultural land is located in proportion to the part of the agricultural land in each county.
(e)
A civil penalty of not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) shall be imposed, for each violation, upon a nonresident alien, foreign business or foreign government, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof who fails to timely file a report as required by W.S. 34
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205.
Section 2.
This act shall apply to acquisitions of agricultural land by nonresident aliens, foreign businesses, foreign governments, or any agents, trustees or fiduciaries on and after July 1, 2024.
Section 3.
The secretary of state shall promulgate all rules necessary to implement the provisions of this act not later than July 1, 2024.
Section 4
.
(a)
Except as otherwise provided by subsection (b) of this section, this act is effective July 1, 2024.
(b)
Sections 3 and 4 of this act are effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.
(END)
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HB0168