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HB0183 • 2024

Prohibiting foreign property ownership in Wyoming.

AN ACT relating to property; restricting foreign ownership of land and other interests in Wyoming as specified; providing definitions; requiring foreign owners to divest of land; requiring registration as specified; authorizing enforcement of ownership restrictions as specified; providing a civil penalty; requiring the inclusion of notices of foreign ownership in assessment schedules and tax statements; specifying applicability; requiring rulemaking; and providing for an effective date.

Taxes
Did Not Pass

The latest official action shows that this bill did not move forward in that session.

Sponsor
Representative Allemand
Last action
2024-02-16
Official status
inactive
Effective date
3/1/2024

Plain English Breakdown

The bill did not pass in the session it was introduced.

Prohibiting Foreign Property Ownership in Wyoming

This act restricts foreign individuals and entities from owning land or property interests in Wyoming, with exceptions for personal residences up to one acre.

What This Bill Does

  • Defines 'foreign business', 'foreign government', and 'foreign person' as those from specific countries including Russia, China, state sponsors of terrorism, and those subject to international arms regulations.
  • Prohibits foreign entities from buying land or property interests in Wyoming except for a personal residence on up to one acre.
  • Requires existing foreign owners to sell their properties by July 1, 2026, unless it's a personal residence under the allowed limit.
  • Necessitates annual registration of any foreign-owned property with the Secretary of State starting from July 1, 2024.
  • Imposes a $5,000 daily penalty for failing to register or update registration as required.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Foreign individuals and entities owning land in Wyoming
  • County clerks who must report violations to the Secretary of State

Terms To Know

foreign business
A corporation or entity incorporated under foreign laws, where a majority interest is owned by foreign persons or governments.
foreign government
The government of Russia, China, countries designated as state sponsors of terrorism, and those subject to international arms regulations.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This bill did not pass in the session it was introduced.
  • It does not specify how existing foreign-owned properties will be handled if they are not sold by the deadline.
  • The exact process for enforcement and penalties is not detailed beyond a $5,000 daily penalty.

Bill History

  1. 2024-02-16 House

    H Did not Consider for Introduction

  2. 2024-02-13 House

    H Received for Introduction

  3. 2024-02-13 LSO

    Bill Number Assigned

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
24LSO-0447
2024
STATE OF WYOMING
24LSO-0447
Numbered
2.0

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0183

Prohibiting foreign property ownership in Wyoming.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Allemand, Allred, Angelos, Banks, Bear, Berger, Conrad, Eklund, Haroldson, Harshman, Heiner, Jennings, Knapp, Locke, Neiman, Northrup, O'Hearn, Ottman, Pendergraft, Penn, Slagle, Smith, Strock, Styvar, Tarver, Trujillo, Ward, Washut and Winter and Senator(s) Bouchard, French, Hutchings, Ide, Laursen, D, McKeown and Salazar

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to property; restricting foreign ownership of land and other interests in Wyoming as specified; providing definitions; requiring foreign owners to divest of land; requiring registration as specified; authorizing enforcement of ownership restrictions as specified; providing a civil penalty; requiring the inclusion of notices of foreign ownership in assessment schedules and tax statements; specifying applicability; requiring rulemaking; and providing for an effective date.

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

Section 1
.

W.S. 34
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104 is created to read:

34
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104.

Restriction on foreign ownership of land; registration; penalty; enforcement.

(a)

As used in this section:

(i)

"Foreign business" means a corporation incorporated under the laws of a foreign government or a business entity, whether or not incorporated, in which a majority interest is owned or controlled directly or indirectly by foreign persons or by a foreign government. Legal entities engaged in other business arrangements, including trusts, holding companies, multiple corporations or other entities shall not affect the determination of ownership or control of a foreign business;

(ii)

"Foreign government" means a government of:

(A)

Russia;

(B)

China;

(C)

Any country that has been designated as a state sponsor of terrorism under federal law;

(D)

Any country subject to international traffic in arms regulations that is identified or named in 22 C.F.R. § 126.1(d).

(iii)

"Foreign person" means a person who is a nonresident alien and who is a citizen of:

(A)

Russia;

(B)

China;

(C)

A country that has been designated as a state sponsor of terrorism under federal law;

(D)

A country subject to international traffic in arms regulations that is identified or named in 22 C.F.R. § 126.1(d).

(iv)

"Land" means any interest in real property or real estate and any surface, subsurface, airspace or mineral interest in Wyoming.

(b)

No foreign government, foreign business or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, shall purchase or otherwise acquire any interest in land in Wyoming except for a personal residence for personal use that is on not more than one (1) acre.

(c)

A foreign government, foreign business or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, that owns or holds any interest in land in Wyoming on July 1, 2024 shall divest their right, title and interest in the land not later than two (2) years after July 1, 2024, unless the holding or ownership is for a personal residence for personal use that is on not more than one (1) acre.

(d)

A foreign business, foreign government or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, that owns any interest in land in Wyoming on or after July 1, 2024, including a personal residence for personal use that is on not more than one (1) acre, shall register the ownership with the secretary of state in accordance with the following:

(i)

The registration shall be in a form and manner prescribed by the secretary of state;

(ii)

The registration shall contain the name of the owner, the location of the land, the number of acres of the land or the nature of the interest in the land and, if the owner is an agent, trustee or fiduciary of a foreign business, foreign government or foreign person, the name of any principal;

(iii)

The initial registration shall be made not later than sixty (60) days after July 1, 2024 or within sixty (60) days of acquisition of the interest in land, whichever is later;

(iv)

The registration shall be updated annually on or before March 31 of each year.

(e)

A foreign business, foreign government or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, who fails to register, timely register or update registration annually as required by subsection (d) of this section shall be liable for a civil penalty of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) for each day that the foreign business, foreign government or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, is not in compliance with subsection (d) of this section.

(f)

Each county clerk shall report to the secretary of state if a foreign entity, foreign government or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, purchases or acquires any interest in land in the county in violation of this section or if the clerk suspects that any interest in land was purchased or acquired in the county in violation of this section.

(g)

The secretary of state shall report any violation of this section to the attorney general if the secretary of state finds that a foreign business, foreign government or foreign person, or any agent, trustee or fiduciary thereof, has acquired or holds title to or any interest in land in Wyoming in violation of this section or has failed to register or update registration as required by subsection (d) of this section.

(h)

The attorney general may take any action necessary to enforce the provisions of this section, including initiating an action in the district court of any county in which the interest in land is located for a court order forfeiting the interest in land to the state. If the court orders the interest in land to be forfeited to the state, the state shall advertise and sell the interest in land at auction within six (6) months of the issuance of the court order and all proceeds from the sale shall be credited to the general fund.

Section 2.

W.S. 39
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103(b)(viii) and 39
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107(b)(i)(C) are amended to read:

39
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103.

Imposition.

(b)

Basis of tax. The following shall apply:

(viii)

Every assessment schedule sent to a taxpayer shall contain the property's estimated fair market value for the current and previous year, or, productive value in the case of agricultural property. The schedule shall also contain the assessment ratio as provided by paragraph (b)(iii) of this section for the taxable property, the amount of taxes assessed on the taxable property from the previous year, and an estimate of the taxes which will be due and payable for the current year based on the previous year's mill levies.
The schedule shall also contain information stating that foreign ownership of land in Wyoming is prohibited as provided by W.S. 34
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104 and describing the requirement to register foreign ownership of any interest in land, including a personal residence for personal use that is on not more than

one (1) acre, with the secretary of state as provided by W.S. 34
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104.
The schedule shall contain a statement of the process to contest assessments as prescribed by W.S. 39
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109(b)(i);

39
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107.

Compliance; collection procedures.

(b)

The following provisions shall apply to the payment of taxes, distraint of property and deferral:

(i)

The following shall apply to the payment of taxes due:

(C)

Annually, on or before October 10 the county treasurer shall send a written statement to each taxpayer by mail at his last known address or, if offered by the county and upon request of the taxpayer, by electronic transmission of the total tax due, itemized as to property description, assessed value and mill levies. The notice shall contain information, including contact information, of any property tax relief program authorized by state law.
The notice shall contain information stating that foreign ownership of land in Wyoming is prohibited as provided by W.S. 34
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104 and describing the requirement to register foreign ownership of any interest in land, including a personal residence for personal use that is on not more than one (1) acre, with the secretary of state as provided by W.S. 34
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104.
Failure to send notice, or to demand payment of taxes, does not invalidate any taxes due;

Section 3.

Except as provided in W.S. 34
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104(b), (c) and (h), as created by section 1 of this act, nothing in this act shall be construed to divest, extinguish or sever any interest in or claim to real property or real estate, surface, subsurface, airspace or mineral interests in Wyoming.

Section 4.

The secretary of state shall promulgate all rules necessary to implement the provisions of this act.

Section 5.

This act is 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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HB0183