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2003 General Session
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In 1991, the Legislature enacted a severance tax break that exempted uranium production from all severance taxes as long as the price (figured by averaging three international commodity indexes) remains below $17/pound.
This tax break was modified in 1995 (HB 118B) to a "sliding scale" exemption. Severance taxes are levied when the spot market price of a pound of uranium stays at $14 for at least six consecutive months.
At that point, a 4% tax is phased in at a rate of 1% for each $2 increment in price - i.e., from $14.00 to $15.99, a 1% severance tax is imposed; from $16.00 to $17.99, a 2% tax - until at $20.00 or more, the full 4% is imposed.
The 1998 Legislature extended the sliding scale exemption until March 31, 2003. HB 15 would further extend the exemption to March 31, 2009.
According to the "Joint Report of Operations" published annually by the Department of Revenue - Mineral Tax Division and the Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, the State of Wyoming lost the following amounts in severance tax revenues on uranium due to the severance tax exemption:
- July 1, 2001 - June 30, 2002: $422,067
- July 1, 2000 - June 30, 2001: $317,586
- July 1, 1999 - June 30, 2000: $527,113
- July 1, 2000 - June 30, 2001: $317,586
The bill passed the House Revenue Committee 7-2. Committee members Roy Cohee (R-H35, Casper) and Lorna Johnson (D-H45, Laramie) voted against the bill. Committee members Pete Anderson (R-H10, Pine Bluffs), Kurt Bucholz (R-H 47, Saratoga), Pat Childers (R-H50, Cody), Tom Lockhart (R-H57, Casper), Saundra Meyer (D-H49, Evanston), Bill Thompson (D-H60, Green River) and Jane Wostenberg (R-H27, Worland) all voted in favor of the bill.
HB 15 passed the House, 50-10.
The Senate amended the bill to add uranium to the econometric model to evaluate mineral tax incentives, and appropriated $35,000 for that purpose.
The Senate then passed HB 15, 25-5.
The House did not concur with the change the Senate made to HB 15, but the conference committee chose to leave the Senate provision to add uranium to the econometric model in the bill, and the House and Senate both accepted the conference committee's final version of the bill.
The votes listed below are Third Reading (final passage) votes in the House and Senate.
A YES vote means the legislator supported extending the existing severance tax break on uranium until 2009.
A NO vote means the legislator did not support the severance tax break extension.
| Bighorn Basin Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 18 | Hank Coe (R) | Yes | |
| H 24 | Colin Simpson (R) | Yes | |
| H 50 | Pat Childers (R) | Yes | |
| S 19 | Laness D. Northrup (R) | Yes | |
| H 25 | Alan Jones (R) | Yes | |
| H 26 | Elaine Harvey (R) | Yes | |
| S 20 | Gerald E. Geis (R) | Yes | |
| H 27 | Jane Wostenberg (R) | Yes | |
| H 28 | Micheal Baker (R) | Yes | |
| Casper-Area Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 27 | John Barrasso (R) | Yes | |
| H 35 | Roy Cohee (R) | No | |
| H 36 | Liz Gentile (D) | No | |
| S 28 | Keith Goodenough (D) | Yes | |
| H 56 | Tom Walsh (R) | Yes | |
| H 57 | Thomas A. Lockhart (R) | Yes | |
| S 29 | Bill Hawks (R) | Yes | |
| H 37 | Steve Harshman (R) | Yes | |
| H 59 | Mary Gilmore (D) | Yes | |
| S 30 | Charles K. Scott (R) | No | |
| H 38 | Bob Brechtel (R) | Yes | |
| H 58 | Ann Robinson (D) | Yes | |
| Cheyenne-Area Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 4 | April Brimmer Kunz (R) | Yes | |
| H 7 | Tony Ross (R) | Yes | |
| H 41 | Becket Hinckley (R) | Yes | |
| S 5 | John Hanes (R) | Yes | |
| H 8 | Larry Meuli (R) | Yes | |
| H 42 | Pete Illoway (R) | Yes | |
| S 6 | Rich Cathcart (D) | No | |
| H 9 | Wayne Johnson (R) | Yes | |
| H 10 | Rodney "Pete" Anderson (R) | Yes | |
| S 7 | Kathryn Sessions (D) | Yes | |
| H 11 | Wayne Reese (D) | Yes | |
| H 43 | Ed Prosser (R) | Yes | |
| S 8 | E. Jayne Mockler (D) | No | |
| H 12 | Layton Morgan (D) | Yes | |
| H 44 | Floyd Esquibel (D) | Yes | |
| Gillette-Area Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 23 | John Hines (R) | Yes | |
| H 31 | Jene Jansen (R) | Yes | |
| H 52 | George McMurtrey (R) | Yes | |
| S 24 | Richard A. Erb (R) | Yes | |
| H 32 | Jeff Wasserburger (R) | Yes | |
| H 53 | Frank Latta (R) | Yes | |
| Lander/Riverton-Area Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 25 | Cale Case (R) | No | |
| H 33 | Harry Tipton (R) | Yes | |
| H 54 | Del McOmie (R) | Yes | |
| S 26 | Robert A. Peck (R) | Yes | |
| H 34 | Frank Philp (R) | Yes | |
| H 55 | David Miller (R) | Yes | |
| Northeast/East Central WY Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 1 | Bill Barton (R) | Yes | |
| H 1 | Mark Semlek (R) | Yes | |
| H 2 | Ross Diercks (D) | Yes | |
| S 2 | Jim Anderson (R) | Yes | |
| H 5 | James C. Hageman (R) | Yes | |
| H 6 | Dave Edwards (R) | Yes | |
| S 3 | Curt Meier (R) | Yes | |
| H 3 | Deborah Alden (R) | Yes | |
| H 4 | Edward A. Buchanan (R) | Yes | |
| Sheridan-Area Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 21 | Bruce Burns (R) | Yes | |
| H 29 | Jerry Iekel (R) | No | |
| H 51 | Rosie Berger (R) | Yes | |
| S 22 | John Schiffer (R) | Yes | |
| H 30 | Jack Landon (R) | Yes | |
| H 40 | Doug Osborn (R) | Yes | |
| South Central WY Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 9 | Mike Massie (D) | No | |
| H 13 | Jane Warren (D) | Yes | |
| H 45 | Lorna Johnson (D) | No | |
| S 10 | Irene Devin (R) | Yes | |
| H 14 | Phil Nicholas (R) | Conflict | |
| H 46 | James Slater (R) | Yes | |
| S 11 | Bill Vasey (D) | Yes | |
| H 15 | George Bagby (D) | Yes | |
| H 47 | Kurt Bucholz (R) | Yes | |
| Southwest WY Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
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| S 12 | Rae Lynn Job (D) | Yes | |
| H 48 | Marty Martin (D) | Yes | |
| H 16 | Pete Jorgensen (D) | Yes | |
| S 13 | Tex Boggs (D) | Yes | |
| H 17 | Fred Parady (R) | Yes | |
| H 60 | Bill Thompson (D) | Yes | |
| S 14 | Larry Caller (D) | Yes | |
| H 18 | Mick Powers (R) | Yes | |
| H 39 | Chris Boswell (D) | Yes | |
| S 15 | Ken Decaria (D) | Yes | |
| H 19 | Owen Petersen (R) | Yes | |
| H 49 | Saundra Meyer (D) | Yes | |
| West Central WY Legislators | House 3rd 2/3/03 | Senate 3rd 2/14/03 |
|
| S 16 | Delaine Roberts (R) | Yes | |
| H 20 | Stan Cooper (R) | Yes | |
| H 21 | Randall Luthi (R) | Yes | |
| S 17 | Grant Larson (R) | Yes | |
| H 22 | Monte Olsen (R) | Yes | |
| H 23 | Clarene Law (R) | Yes | |
See Southwest Region for H 16 and S 12 | |||