Wyoming Home Inspector Licensing Law
Wyoming Code · 5 sections
The following is the full text of Wyoming’s home inspector licensing law statutes as published in the Wyoming Code. For the official version, see the Wyoming Legislature.
Wyo. Stat. § 13-4-108
13-4-108. The application fee for an interim bank charter for which a public hearing is waived shall be established by rule and regulation of the commissioner. The fee shall be deposited by the state banking commissioner with the state treasurer and credited to the financial institutions administration account. Expenditures shall be made from the account by warrants drawn by the state auditor, upon vouchers issued and signed by the director or commissioner. Funds from the account shall be expended only to carry out the duties of the commissioner or the state banking board.
13-2-213. Certificate of authority to commence business
required; application; approval or denial; failure to commence business.
If the application is approved and a charter granted by the board, the financial institution shall not commence business before receiving a certificate of authority to operate from the state banking commissioner. The application for a certificate of authority shall be made to the state banking commissioner and shall certify that the capital and surplus have been paid in, the address at which the institution will operate and that all of the bylaws adopted have been attached as an exhibit to the application. The application shall state who the officers, directors and stockholders are at that time and have attached evidence that appropriate federal insurance of deposits has been obtained, where applicable. The state banking commissioner shall approve or deny an application for a certificate of authority within thirty (30) days after the application has been filed, but the authority of the state banking commissioner to disapprove any application is restricted solely to noncompliance with this section. If the state banking commissioner approves the application, he shall issue a certificate of authority to the organizers within twenty (20) days. If the state banking commissioner denies the application, he shall mail a notice of denial to the organizers within twenty (20) days, stating the reasons for denying the application, and grant to the organizers a maximum period of ninety (90) days to resubmit the application with the necessary corrections. If the applicant fails to comply with requirements of the notice of denial within ninety (90) days from the receipt of the notice, the approval of the application and articles of incorporation previously issued to the applying institution shall be revoked by the state banking commissioner. The failure of the state banking commissioner to act upon an application for a certificate of authority within thirty (30) days shall be deemed an approval. If the approved institution fails to commence business in good faith within one (1) year after the issuance of a certificate of authority by the state banking commissioner or any required federal approval, whichever is later, the charter and certificate of authority shall expire.
13-2-214. Decisions by board appealable; grounds.
Any decision of the board in approving or disapproving any charter or the issuance or denial of a certificate of authority is appealable to the district court of the county in which the institution is to be located in accordance with the provisions of the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act. In addition to the grounds for appeal contained in the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, the appellant may appeal if the board or the state banking commissioner fails to make any of the findings required.
13-2-215. Report of interests in financial institutions by
state banking commissioner and board members.
On or before January 10 of each calendar year the state banking commissioner and each member of the board shall submit to the governor a list of all assets and liabilities of any nature that he has in any financial institution in the state of Wyoming or elsewhere. The list shall be certified under oath and a copy shall be furnished to the chairman of the board.
ARTICLE 3 - CAPITAL REQUIREMENTS,
STOCK, NOTES AND DEBENTURES
13-2-301. Requirements as to capital.
(a) The capital stock of each bank organized under this
act shall be subscribed for as fully paid stock. No bank shall organize with a capital stock less than five million dollars ($5,000,000.00).
(b) No bank shall commence business until the full amount
of its authorized capital is subscribed and all capital stock is fully paid in. No bank may organize without a paid up surplus fund of at least twenty percent (20%) of its legally authorized capital stock, and undivided profits in sufficient amount for the expense of operation the first year as determined by the state banking commissioner.
13-2-302. Issue of stock.
(a) A bank shall not issue any share of stock until the
par value of the share has been actually paid in cash.
(b) Pursuant to appropriate authority granted in its
articles of incorporation, a bank may issue any type of capital stock, including nonvoting shares, authorized under title 17 of the Wyoming statutes. Consistent with subsection (c) of this section, the articles of incorporation of a bank may specify any form of shareholder voting rights.
(c) If the articles of incorporation of a bank provide
shareholder voting rights that are different than those provided under W.S. 13-2-307, 13-2-308(a), 13-2-309(a), 13-2-402(e), 13- 4-101(a) or 13-4-701(b) or (d), the articles of incorporation of the bank shall control, subject to any approval of the commissioner required under those sections.
13-2-303. Increase or reduction of capital stock.
Any bank may increase or reduce the capital stock of the bank after receiving the written approval of the state banking commissioner and by the vote of the shareholders owning two-thirds (2/3) of the stock in the bank at a stockholders' meeting called for that purpose.
13-2-304. Transfer of stock and other ownership interests.
(a) The shares of stock of banks are personal property and
shall be transferred on the books of the bank in such manner as the bylaws may provide. A transfer of stock in a bank is invalid until any impairment of its capital stock has been restored.
(b) Transfers of voting ownership interests of a bank or
of a bank holding company shall be reported to the commissioner not less than ten (10) days prior to being made if the transfer:
(i) Equals or exceeds ten percent (10%) of the bank's
or the bank holding company's voting ownership interests; or (ii) Is made to a person owning or controlling ten percent (10%) or more and less than eighty percent (80%) of the bank's or the bank holding company's voting ownership interests.
(c) The state banking commissioner may disapprove any
transfer of stock required to be reported if he finds that the transferee:
(i) Repealed by Laws 1993, ch. 115, § 3.
(ii) Has been convicted of a felony; or
(iii) Has been removed from a position as director,
officer or employee of a bank or other financial institution pursuant to an order of the state banking commissioner or appropriate federal regulatory authority.
13-2-305. Purchase or acceptance of own capital stock.
A bank shall not accept as collateral or purchase its own capital stock unless the taking of the collateral or purchase is necessary to prevent loss upon a debt previously contracted in good faith. The stock shall be sold by the bank within six (6) months from the date it was received as collateral or acquired by purchase unless the debt is paid in full.
13-2-306. Stock register; inspection.
A bank shall keep a record of shareholders that is open for inspection during business hours to officers, directors and shareholders of the bank. As used in this section, "record of shareholders" means as defined in W.S. 17-16-140(a)(xlix).
13-2-307. Voting by shareholders generally; balloting for
directors.
(a) Except as otherwise provided by W.S. 13-2-302, each
share entitles the owner to one (1) vote on all elections of directors and all other questions submitted at meetings of shareholders. Shareholders may vote by proxies executed in writing but no officer, clerk, teller or bookkeeper of the bank shall act as proxy. The presence in person or by proxy of the owners of at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the issued and outstanding capital stock at any meeting of stockholders constitutes a quorum. No shareholder whose liability to the bank is past due and unpaid shall be allowed to vote. (b) In balloting for directors each qualified shareholder may vote the number of shares owned by him for as many directors as are to be elected or may cumulate his votes by giving one (1) candidate the number of votes equal to the number of directors to be elected multiplied by the number of his shares and he may distribute his votes cumulatively on the same principle among any number of candidates. The persons having the highest number of votes shall be declared elected as the board of directors for the ensuing corporate year.
13-2-308. Preferred stock.
(a) A bank may issue one (1) or more classes of preferred
stock upon the approval of two-thirds (2/3) of the stockholders pursuant to this section and the approval of the state banking commissioner.
(b) Copies of the directors' and stockholders' minutes
approving the issuance bearing the approval of the state banking commissioner shall be filed in the office of the secretary of state and treated as an amendment to the articles of incorporation.
(c) At a board of directors' meeting called on not less
than one (1) days notice, the directors may adopt a resolution calling for the issuance of preferred shares. The directors shall then call a meeting of the stockholders of the corporation, giving not less than five (5) days notice for the purpose of stockholder approval.
(d) The voting rights and manner of retirement of
preferred shares shall be as adopted in the resolution of the stockholders authorizing their issuance subject to the provisions of the articles of incorporation and the approval of the state banking commissioner.
(e) The holders of the preferred stock of the highest
class shall be entitled to cumulative dividends of up to six percent (6%) per year before dividends are paid on any other stock. The holders of preferred stock of subsequent classes shall next be entitled to cumulative dividends of up to six percent (6%) in order of preference before dividends are paid to the holders of common stock. In any liquidation no payment shall be made to the holders of common stock until the holders of preferred stock have been paid the full par value of their stock and accumulated dividends in order of preference. (f) The preferred stock and holders of preferred stock are not liable for assessments to restore impairment of capital or for any liability imposed by law on common stock or the holders of common stock.
(g) No issue of preferred stock is valid until the entire
par value of the shares has been paid in cash or until arrangements satisfactory to the state banking commissioner have been made for payment.
(h) The par value of preferred stock shall be included in
any determination of required capital under this act.
13-2-309. Issuance of capital notes or debentures;
generally.
(a) A bank may issue, sell or pledge its capital notes or
debentures if the bank has first obtained the written or voting approval of the shareholders holding a majority of the shares of the bank and the written approval of the state banking commissioner.
(b) The board of directors shall determine the terms of
its capital notes or debentures subject to the provisions of W.S. 13-2-311 and subsection (c) of this section.
(c) The amount of outstanding capital notes or debentures
of any bank shall not exceed fifty percent (50%) of the amount of the capital stock and surplus fund of the bank at the date of issue. The periods of maturities with respect to any issue shall not exceed twenty-five (25) years as prescribed by the state banking commissioner. Capital notes and debentures shall be subject to a schedule of prepayments or to an appropriate sinking fund for the amortization of the indebtedness.
13-2-310. Issuance of capital notes or debentures;
approval by state banking commissioner.
The state banking commissioner may approve the issue of capital notes or debentures by any bank. Applications for approval shall be in writing and contain information which he requests including a full explanation of the need for and proposed use of the funds. The state banking commissioner shall consider whether the issuance would constitute sound banking practice and would be in the best interests of the public, depositors, creditors and stockholders of the bank. 13-2-311. Capital notes or debentures; provisions to be stated.
(a) The following provisions shall be stated in the
capital notes or debentures:
(i) That the notes or debentures are an unsecured
indebtedness of the bank and subordinate to the claims of creditors and depositors;
(ii) In the event of liquidation of the bank all
depositors and creditors are entitled to be paid in full with interest provided by law prior to payment on the notes or debentures;
(iii) No payment will be made on the principal of the
notes or debentures unless following the payment the aggregate of the capital, surplus and undivided profits of the bank is at least equal to the amount of the capital, surplus and undivided profits at the date of issue unless otherwise authorized by the state banking commissioner.
13-2-312. Capital notes or debentures; conversion into
common or preferred stock.
Capital notes and debentures may be converted into shares of common or preferred stock in accordance with the provisions of the capital notes or debentures. If capital notes or debentures are converted the president or vice-president shall subscribe and verify triplicate originals of a certificate stating the amount of conversion and other information as required by the state banking commissioner. The certificates shall be delivered to and approved by the state banking commissioner who shall file one (1) of the certificates in his office, one (1) in the office of the secretary of state and return one (1) to the subscribing officer of the bank.
13-2-313. Capital notes or debentures; no assessment or
liability.
Capital notes, debentures and the holders thereof are not subject to any assessment nor are holders of the notes or debentures liable for any debts or contracts of the bank.
13-2-314. Capital notes or debentures; proceeds not part
of capital or surplus. (a) The proceeds from the sale of capital notes or debentures shall not be considered a portion of the capital or surplus of the issuing bank nor treated as meeting any requirements, restrictions or conditions relating to the capital or surplus of a bank.
(b) The proceeds from the sale of notes or debentures
issued may not be used to reduce or retire outstanding capital stock or surplus.
ARTICLE 4 - DIRECTORS
13-2-401. Authority to manage banks; qualifications.
The affairs of a bank shall be managed by not less than five (5) directors. Shareholders or the board of directors if provided by the articles of incorporation may adopt and amend bylaws for the management of the bank. Each director shall take an oath that he will faithfully and diligently perform the duties of his office and will not violate or knowingly permit the violation of any of the laws of this state relating to the banking business. Within thirty (30) days after being elected or appointed each director of a bank shall sign the oath required by this section on a form prescribed by the commissioner and it shall be part of the record of the meeting and included in the bank's minutes. Within thirty (30) days after initially being elected or appointed each director of a bank shall file with the commissioner a sworn financial statement on a form prescribed by the state banking commissioner.
13-2-402. Election; term; vacancies; number.
(a) The initial and elected directors of any bank shall
hold office for one (1) year and until their successors are elected and qualified except in cases of death, resignation or removal under the laws of this state. All elections shall be held annually on a day designated by the directors on or before April 30.
(b) If the annual election of directors is not held at the
time designated an election may be held within sixty (60) days thereafter following notice by publication in three (3) consecutive issues of a weekly newspaper printed in the county in which the bank is located, or if no newspaper is printed in the county then in a newspaper of general circulation in the state. (c) Any director who during his tenure as a director becomes insolvent or makes a general assignment of his property for the benefit of creditors shall vacate his office.
(d) Vacancies which reduce the board to less than five (5)
members shall be filled within ninety (90) days of the vacancy by appointment by the remaining directors for the unexpired term. The board shall notify the banking commissioner of any vacancy on the board within thirty (30) days of the vacancy.
(e) Changes in the number of directors shall be authorized
by a majority vote of the stockholders to be effective upon expiration of the current corporate year. The change may become effective immediately with the consent of the directors and written notification to the state banking commissioner.
13-2-403. Meetings; record of proceedings and business.
(a) The board of directors of a bank shall hold a regular
meeting every quarter of the calendar year. At each meeting a detailed report showing every loan and investment in excess of one percent (1%) of the bank's capital and surplus made since the last report and the aggregate liability, direct or contingent, to the bank of each officer and director shall be submitted. The board of directors shall review the report and make it a part of the record of the meeting. The record shall show their approval or disapproval of the report.
(b) A record of the proceedings and business of all
meetings shall be included in the bank's minutes. The record shall show the gross earnings of the bank and their disposition by indicating expenses and taxes paid, worthless items charged off, depreciation in assets, amount carried to surplus fund and amount of dividend and amount of undivided profits remaining.
13-2-404. Liability.
Any director who participates in or consents to any action of a bank in making loans in excess of or contrary to law or regulations shall be liable in his individual capacity for damages proximately sustained by the bank, its stockholders or other persons.
13-2-405. Repealed by Laws 1992, ch. 46, § 2.
ARTICLE 5 - RESERVE REQUIREMENTS
13-2-501. Repealed by Laws 1981, ch. 29, § 1.
13-2-502. Repealed by Laws 1981, ch. 29, § 1.
13-2-503. Repealed by Laws 1981, ch. 29, § 1.
ARTICLE 6 - BRANCH BANKS GENERALLY
13-2-601. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
13-2-602. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
13-2-603. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
13-2-604. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
13-2-605. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
13-2-606. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
13-2-607. Repealed By Laws 1997, ch. 75, § 3.
ARTICLE 7 - STATEWIDE BRANCH BANKING
13-2-701. Definitions.
(a) As used in this act:
(i) "Branch" means any manned branch bank, branch
office, branch agency, additional office, separate office or any branch or separate place of business operated by a parent bank in this state which offers any or all of the banking services conducted at a parent bank, but excludes a remote electronic terminal as defined in W.S. 13-1-501(a)(v) and loan production offices operated in accordance with W.S. 13-2-709;
(ii) Repealed by Laws 1995, ch. 62, § 2.
(iii) Repealed by Laws 1993, ch. 115, § 3.
(iv) "Parent bank" means a state or national bank
which operates or has applied to operate a branch in this state;
(v) "This act" means W.S. 13-2-701 through 13-2-708.
13-2-702. Authorization; application; fee; activities;
examination; criteria. (a) With prior approval of the state banking commissioner a bank may establish and operate one (1) or more branches at any location in this state or in a state other than Wyoming.
(i) Repealed By Laws 1999, ch. 41, § 2.
(ii) Repealed By Laws 1999, ch. 41, § 2.
(b) All applications for establishing and operating a
branch shall be filed with the commissioner and be accompanied by a filing fee established by rule and regulation of the commissioner. The application shall be signed by the chief executive officer of the applicant bank and contain and be accompanied by the following information:
(i) Name and address of the applicant bank;
(ii) Exact location of the proposed branch;
(iii) Certification of publication of notice of the
application at least once in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the proposed branch will be located;
(iv) Repealed By Laws 1999, ch. 41, § 2.
(v) Certification that the applicant bank is well
capitalized, as defined by rule of the commissioner;
(vi) Certification of compliance with the provisions
of W.S. 13-3-201 relating to investment limitations in bank premises;
(vii) Certification that the establishment of the
branch does not involve a prohibited insider transaction or management interlock;
(viii) Discussion of any planned variances in the
applicant bank's lending policy, procedures or services at the proposed branch;
(ix) Other information as the commissioner may
require in order to determine if the requirements of this section are met.
(c) The commissioner shall issue a certificate of
authority for the branch to the applicant bank within twenty (20) days after receipt of the complete application and fee unless he finds:
(i) Establishment or operation of the proposed branch
would pose undue risk to the capital or surplus requirements of the applicant bank;
(ii) The name of the proposed branch does not
reasonably identify the branch as a branch of the applicant bank or is likely to unduly confuse the public; or
(iii) Repealed by Laws 1995, ch. 62, § 2.
(iv) The applicant bank has failed to substantially
comply with applicable law governing its operation.
(d) The certificate of authority expires one (1) year
after its issuance unless the branch has opened and business has begun in good faith.
(e) The application fee provided by subsection (b) of this
section shall be deposited by the state banking commissioner with the state treasurer and credited to the financial institutions administration account. Expenditures shall be made from the account by warrants drawn by the state auditor, upon vouchers issued and signed by the director or commissioner. Funds from the account shall be expended only to carry out the duties of the commissioner or the state banking board. If the application expenses are less than the amount of the fee, the unexpended amount shall remain within the account.
(f) Repealed By Laws 1999, ch. 42, § 3.
(g) Every branch bank in this state shall be licensed by
the commissioner before operating, engaging in or conducting a banking business.
(h) The commissioner shall fix the amount of the initial
license fee and annual renewal fee by rule and regulation.
(j) An application for an initial branch license shall be
submitted to the commissioner in writing in the form and containing the information required by the commissioner. Each licensed branch of a bank chartered under the laws of this state or of any other state is subject to compliance examinations as the commissioner deems necessary. (k) The activities and operations of a branch are attributable to the applicant bank for purposes of determining qualification for authority to do business in this state.
(m) An out-of-state bank which has established a Wyoming
branch may establish and operate one (1) or more branches at any location in this state, subject to the requirements of subsections (g) through (k) of this section.
13-2-703. Amendment to articles of incorporation.
Before opening a branch under this act, the applicant bank shall deliver an amendment to its articles of incorporation reflecting the branch to the commissioner in the same manner provided in W.S. 13-4-102. W.S. 13-4-102 applies to all amendments to articles of incorporation delivered under this section.
13-2-704. Closing of a branch.
No branch shall be closed unless the parent bank certifies to the commissioner that all persons with an account at that branch have been notified of the date of closure not less than sixty (60) days before the date of closure and that a notice indicating the branch will be closed will be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the branch is located at least weekly for three (3) consecutive weeks prior to the calendar week in which the date of closure will occur.
13-2-705. Bank facility not a branch.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this act, a
bank may establish and operate a facility which shall not be considered a branch, but an extension or expansion of an existing parent bank or branch if the facility is:
(i) Within the boundary lines of a single contiguous
area of property owned or leased and occupied as a place of business by a parent bank or branch bank, whether or not the facility is physically connected to the bank or place of business; or
(ii) Across a street, alley, railroad right-of-way or
thoroughfare from the existing parent bank or branch bank when such facility is physically connected to the bank or place of business by a private, enclosed, secure overhead passageway, underground tunnel or pneumatic tube system; or (iii) Within one thousand (1,000) yards of the parent bank or branch bank, whether or not such facility is physically connected to the bank or place of business, after being granted prior written approval of the department stating that the facility qualifies for this exemption.
13-2-706. No limits on authority of existing branches and
banks.
Nothing in this act shall limit the authority of any existing branch or bank operating at the time this act takes effect.
13-2-707. Prohibition on foreign bank branching.
Nothing in this act shall be construed as permitting a bank to establish a branch in any state other than Wyoming. Except as provided in W.S. 13-2-702(m) and 13-2-901 through 13-2-904, a bank not authorized or organized to do business under the laws of this state, or a bank organized under the laws of a country other than the United States, shall not establish or operate a branch in the state of Wyoming.
13-2-708. Antitrust laws.
If, but for this act, any action by any one (1) or more banks would be in violation of the laws of this state or of the United States, commonly referred to as the antitrust laws, then this act shall be construed so as to permit or require only actions that shall not be in violation of the laws.
13-2-709. Loan production offices; activities;
notification; examination; name.
(a) After notifying the commissioner, a bank may establish
and operate one (1) or more loan production offices. A loan production office may conduct any of the following activities:
(i) Solicit loans on behalf of the bank or a branch
of the bank;
(ii) Assemble credit information;
(iii) Make property inspections and appraisals;
(iv) Secure title information;
(v) Prepare applications for loans, including making recommendations with respect to action;
(vi) Solicit investors to purchase loans from the
bank and to contract with the bank for servicing of such loans; and
(vii) Any other activity that federal authorities
have approved for a loan production office operated by a national bank.
(b) A bank shall not accept deposits, originate deposits
or savings or checking accounts, approve loans or disburse loan funds at a loan production office established pursuant to this section.
(c) The notification to the commissioner shall include the
following information:
(i) The street address of the loan production office;
(ii) A general description of the area where the loan
production office will be located;
(iii) The proposed activities to be conducted at the
loan production office and the types of loans to be solicited at the office.
(d) Each loan production office shall be subject to
examination and supervision by the commissioner in the same manner and to the same extent as the bank. If the commissioner determines that the loan production office is violating any applicable law or that the operation of the loan production office is adversely affecting the safety and soundness of the bank, the commissioner may take any appropriate administrative action authorized in this act.
(e) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a bank from
establishing and operating a loan production office in a state other than Wyoming, provided that the bank complies with all applicable provisions of Wyoming law, the law of the state where the loan production office will be located and federal law.
(f) Every loan production office operating in this state,
including a loan production office operated by a federally chartered financial institution or an out-of-state bank, shall include the words "loan production office" in its title, official documents, letterhead, advertisements, signs and any other communications with its customers or the general public.
ARTICLE 8 - INTERSTATE BRANCHING AND BANK MERGERS
13-2-801. Repealed By Laws 2013, Ch. 24, § 2.
13-2-802. Definitions.
(a) As used in this article:
(i) "Affiliate" has the meaning set forth in the Bank
Holding Company Act, 12 U.S.C. section 1841(k);
(ii) "Bank" has the meaning set forth in 12 U.S.C.
section 1813(h), provided that the term "bank" shall include a foreign bank only if organized under the laws of a territory of the United States, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa or the Virgin Islands and the deposits of which are insured by the federal deposit insurance corporation;
(iii) "Bank supervisory agency" means any of the
following:
(A) Any agency of another state with primary
responsibility for chartering and supervising banks; and
(B) The office of the comptroller of the
currency, the federal deposit insurance corporation, the board of governors of the federal reserve system and any successor to these agencies.
(iv) "Branch" means any manned branch bank, branch
office, branch agency, additional office, separate office or any branch or separate place of business operated by a bank in this state which offers any or all of the banking services conducted at a parent bank, but excludes a remote electronic terminal as defined in W.S. 13-1-501(a)(v);
(v) "Control" shall be construed consistently with
the provisions of 12 U.S.C. section 1841(a)(2);
(vi) "Home state" means:
(A) With respect to a state bank, the state by
which the bank is chartered; (B) With respect to a national bank, the state in which the main office of the bank is located;
(C) With respect to a foreign bank, the state
determined to be the home state of the foreign bank under 12 U.S.C. section 3103(c).
(vii) "Home state supervisor" means, with respect to
an out-of-state state bank, the bank supervisory agency of the state in which the bank is chartered;
(viii) "Host state" means a state, other than the
home state of a bank, in which the bank maintains or seeks to establish and maintain a branch;
(ix) "Insured depository institution" means any
institution included for any purpose within the definitions of "insured depository institution" as set forth in 12 U.S.C. section 1813(c)(2) and (3);
(x) "Interstate merger transaction" means:
(A) The merger or consolidation of banks with
different home states, and the conversion of branches of any bank involved in the merger or consolidation into branches of the resulting bank; or
(B) The purchase of all or substantially all of
the assets, including all of the branches, of a bank whose home state is different from the home state of the acquiring bank.
(xi) "Out-of-state bank" means a bank whose home
state is a state other than Wyoming;
(xii) "Out-of-state state bank" means a bank
chartered under the laws of any state other than Wyoming;
(xiii) "Resulting bank" means a bank that has
resulted from an interstate merger transaction under this article;
(xiv) "State" means any state, territory or other
possession of the United States, including the District of Columbia;
(xv) "Wyoming bank" means a bank whose home state is
the state of Wyoming; (xvi) "Wyoming state bank" means a bank chartered under the laws of the state of Wyoming.
13-2-803. Authority of state banks to establish interstate
branches.
With the prior approval of the commissioner, a Wyoming state bank may establish, maintain and operate one (1) or more branches in a state other than Wyoming. Not later than the date on which the required application for the establishment of a branch is filed with the responsible federal bank supervisory agency, the applicant Wyoming state bank shall file an application on a form prescribed by the commissioner and pay the fee established pursuant to W.S. 13-2-702(b). The applicant shall also comply with the applicable provisions of W.S.
Wyo. Stat. § 19-13-414
19-13-414 shall be known and may be cited as the "Emergency Management Assistance Compact."
19-13-402. Purposes and authorities.
(a) This compact is made and entered into by and between
the participating member states that enact this compact, hereinafter called party states. For the purposes of this agreement, the term "states" is taken to mean the several states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia and all United States territorial possessions. (b) The purpose of this compact is to provide for mutual assistance between the states entering into this compact in managing any emergency or disaster that is duly declared by the governor of the affected state, whether arising from natural disaster, technological hazard, man-made disaster or emergency aspects of resource shortages.
(c) This compact shall also provide for mutual cooperation
in emergency-related exercises, testing or other training activities using equipment and personnel simulating performance of any aspect of the giving and receiving of aid by party states or subdivisions of party states during emergencies for actions occurring outside actual declared emergency periods. Mutual assistance in this compact may include the use of the states' national guard forces, either in accordance with the National Guard Mutual Assistance Compact or by mutual agreement between states.
19-13-403. General implementation.
(a) Each party state entering into this compact recognizes
many emergencies transcend political jurisdictional boundaries and that intergovernmental coordination is essential in managing these and other emergencies under this compact. Each state further recognizes that there will be emergencies, which require immediate access and present procedures to apply outside resources to make a prompt and effective response to an emergency. This is because few, if any, individual states have all the resources they may need in all types of emergencies or the capability of delivering resources to areas where emergencies exist.
(b) The prompt, full, and effective utilization of
resources of the participating states, including any resources on hand or available from the federal government or any other source, that are essential to the safety, care and welfare of the people in the event of any emergency or disaster declared by a party state, shall be the underlying principle on which all provisions of this compact shall be understood.
(c) On behalf of the governor of each state participating
in the compact, the legally designated state official who is assigned responsibility for homeland security will be responsible for formulation of the appropriate interstate mutual aid plans and procedures necessary to implement this compact.
19-13-404. Party state responsibilities.
(a) It shall be the responsibility of each party state to formulate procedural plans and programs for interstate cooperation in the performance of the responsibilities listed in this section. In formulating the plans, and in carrying them out, the party states, insofar as practical, shall:
(i) Review individual state hazards analyses and, to
the extent reasonably possible, determine all those potential emergencies the party states might jointly suffer, whether due to natural disaster, technological hazard, man-made disaster, emergency aspects of resource shortages, or enemy attack;
(ii) Review party states' individual homeland
security plans and develop a plan, which will determine the mechanism for the interstate management and provision of assistance concerning any potential emergency;
(iii) Develop interstate procedures to fill any
identified gaps and to resolve any identified inconsistencies or overlaps in existing or developed plans;
(iv) Assist in warning communities adjacent to or
crossing the state boundaries;
(v) Protect and assure uninterrupted delivery of
services, medicines, water, food, energy and fuel, search and rescue, and critical lifeline equipment, services and resources, both human and material;
(vi) Inventory and set procedures for the interstate
loan and delivery of human and material resources, together with procedures for reimbursement or forgiveness.
(b) The authorized representative of a party state may
request assistance of another party state by contacting the authorized representative of that state. The provisions of this agreement shall only apply to requests for assistance made by and to authorized representatives. Requests may be verbal or in writing. If verbal, the request shall be confirmed in writing within thirty (30) days of the verbal request. Requests shall provide the following information:
(i) A description of the emergency service function
for which assistance is needed, including but not limited to fire services, law enforcement, emergency medical, transportation, communications, public works and engineering, building inspection, planning and information assistance, mass care, resource support, health and medical services and search and rescue;
(ii) The amount and type of personnel, equipment,
materials and supplies needed and a reasonable estimate of the length of time they will be needed;
(iii) The specific place and time for staging of the
assisting party's response and a point of contact at that location.
(c) There shall be frequent consultation between state
officials who have assigned homeland security responsibilities and other appropriate representatives of the party states with affected jurisdictions and the United States government, with free exchange of information, plans and resource records relating to emergency capabilities.
19-13-405. Limitations.
Any party state requested to render mutual aid or conduct exercises and training for mutual aid shall take the action necessary to provide and make available the resources covered by this compact in accordance with the terms hereof; provided that it is understood that the state rendering aid may withhold resources to the extent necessary to provide reasonable protection for that state. Each party state shall afford to the emergency forces of any party state, while operating within its state limits under the terms and conditions of this compact, the same powers (except that of arrest unless specifically authorized by the receiving state), duties, rights and privileges afforded forces of the state in which they are performing emergency services. Emergency forces will continue under the command and control of their regular leaders, but the organizational units will come under the operational control of the emergency services authorities of the state receiving assistance. These conditions may be activated, as needed, only subsequent to a declaration of a state of emergency or disaster by the governor of the party state that is to receive assistance or commencement of exercises or training for mutual aid and shall continue so long as the exercises or training for mutual aid are in progress, the state of emergency or disaster remains in effect or loaned resources remain in an official capacity in the receiving state, whichever is longer.
19-13-406. Licenses and permits.
Whenever any person holds a license, certificate or other permit issued by any state party to the compact evidencing the meeting of qualifications for professional, mechanical or other skills, and when assistance is requested by the receiving party state, the person shall be deemed licensed, certified or permitted by the state requesting assistance to render aid involving the skill to meet a declared emergency or disaster, subject to limitations and conditions the governor of the requesting state may prescribe by executive order or otherwise.
19-13-407. Liability.
Officers or employees of a party state rendering aid in another state pursuant to this compact shall be considered agents of the requesting state for tort liability and immunity purposes. Any party state or its officers or employees rendering aid in this state pursuant to this compact shall be liable for any act or omission on the part of the forces while so engaged or for the maintenance or use of any equipment or supplies in connection therewith in accordance with the provisions of the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act.
19-13-408. Supplementary agreements.
If it is probable that the pattern and detail of the machinery for mutual aid among two (2) or more states may differ from that among the states that are party hereto, this instrument contains elements of a broad base common to all states, and nothing herein contained shall preclude any state from entering into supplementary agreements with another state or affect any other agreements already in force between states. Supplementary agreements may comprehend, but shall not be limited to, provisions for evacuation and reception of injured and other persons and the exchange of medical, fire, police, public utility, reconnaissance, welfare, transportation and communications personnel and equipment and supplies.
19-13-409. Compensation.
Each party state shall provide for the payment of compensation and death benefits to injured members of the emergency forces of that state and representatives of deceased members of the forces in case the members sustain injuries or are killed while rendering aid pursuant to this compact, in the same manner and on the same terms as if the injury or death were sustained within their own state. 19-13-410. Reimbursement.
Any party state rendering aid in another state pursuant to this compact shall be reimbursed by the party state receiving aid for any loss or damage to or expense incurred in the operation of any equipment and the provision of any service in answering a request for aid and for the costs incurred in connection with the requests; provided, that any aiding party state may assume in whole or in part the loss, damage, expense or other cost, or may loan the equipment or donate the services to the receiving party state without charge or cost; and provided further, that any two (2) or more party states may enter into supplementary agreements establishing a different allocation of costs among those states. Expenses under W.S. 19-13-409 shall not be reimbursable under this provision.
19-13-411. Evacuation.
Plans for the orderly evacuation and interstate reception of portions of the civilian population as the result of any emergency or disaster of sufficient proportions to so warrant, shall be worked out and maintained between the party states and the emergency management services directors of the various jurisdictions where any type of incident requiring evacuations might occur. The plans shall be put into effect by request of the state from which evacuees come and shall include the manner of transporting the evacuees, the number of evacuees to be received in different areas, the manner in which food, clothing, housing and medical care will be provided, the registration of the evacuees, the providing of facilities for the notification of relatives or friends, and the forwarding of the evacuees to other areas or the importing of additional materials, supplies and all other relevant factors. The plans shall provide that the party state receiving evacuees and the party state from which the evacuees come shall mutually agree as to reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred in receiving and caring for the evacuees, for expenditures for transportation, food, clothing, medicines and medical care and like items. The expenditures shall be reimbursed as agreed by the party state from which the evacuees come. After the termination of the emergency or disaster, the party state from which the evacuees come shall assume the responsibility for the ultimate support of repatriation of the evacuees.
19-13-412. Implementation.
(a) This compact shall become operative immediately upon its enactment into law by any two (2) states; thereafter, this compact shall become effective for any other state upon its enactment by that state.
(b) Any party state may withdraw from this compact by
enacting a statute repealing the same, but no withdrawal shall take effect until thirty (30) days after the governor of the withdrawing state has given notice in writing of the withdrawal to the governors of all other party states. The action shall not relieve the withdrawing state from obligations assumed hereunder prior to the effective date of withdrawal.
(c) Duly authenticated copies of this compact and of
supplementary agreements entered into shall, at the time of their approval, be deposited with each of the party states and with the federal department of homeland security and other appropriate agencies of the United States government.
19-13-413. Validity.
This act shall be construed to effectuate the purposes stated in W.S. 19-13-402 hereof. If any provision of this compact is declared unconstitutional, or its applicability to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the constitutionality of the remainder of this act and its applicability to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected.
19-13-414. Additional provisions.
Nothing in this compact shall authorize or permit the use of military force by the national guard of a state at any place outside that state in any emergency for which the president is authorized by law to call into federal service the militia, or for any purpose for which the use of the Army or the Air Force would in the absence of express statutory authorization be prohibited under Section 1385 of Title 18, United States Code.
ARTICLE 5 - PROTECTION OF CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE
19-13-501. Definitions.
(a) As used in this article:
(i) "Conveyance" means every instrument in writing by
which any interest in real property is created, alienated, mortgaged, leased or assigned, or by which the title to any real property may be affected in law or in equity. "Conveyance" shall not include wills;
(ii) "Critical infrastructure" means any property,
system and asset, whether physical or cyber-based, so vital to the United States or the state of Wyoming that the degradation or destruction of the property, system and asset would have a debilitating impact on national security, including national economic security and national public health or safety;
(iii) "Critical infrastructure zone" means an area of
property, whether covering the surface estate, mineral estate, pore space estate or nonphysical property, designated by the governor in consultation with the director of the office of homeland security as property encompassing critical infrastructure;
(iv) "Designated country or person" means:
(A) A foreign government or foreign
nongovernment person determined to be a foreign adversary by the United States secretary of commerce and specified in 15 C.F.R. 791.4(a); or
(B) A country or government designated as a
state sponsor of terrorism by the United States secretary of state under the federal Export Administration Act of 1979, the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, the Arms Export Control Act or any other provision of federal law.
(v) "Director" means the director of the office of
homeland security appointed under W.S. 19-13-104;
(vi) "Critical system" means any one (1) or more of
the following:
(A) A petroleum refinery;
(B) A petroleum, chemical or rubber production,
transportation, storage or processing facility;
(C) A chemical manufacturing facility;
(D) A water or wastewater treatment facility and
water development, distribution or conveyance system, including a dam; (E) An electric generation facility and any associated substation or switchyard;
(F) An electrical transmission or distribution
substation;
(G) An electrical transmission line of not less
than sixty-nine thousand (69,000) volts;
(H) An electronic communication station or
tower;
(J) An energy control center;
(K) A distribution operating center;
(M) A facility that transfers or distributes
natural gas, including a compressor station, regulator station, city gate station or pressure-limiting station or a liquefied natural gas facility or supplier tap facility;
(N) Any railroad infrastructure or facility;
(O) A federal, state, county, chancery or
municipal court;
(P) A public safety or emergency operation
facility;
(Q) A federal, state, county or municipal jail
or correctional facility or any other facility where persons are incarcerated;
(R) A federal or state military installation or
facility;
(S) A hospital that receives air ambulance
services;
(T) Any surface, subsurface or in-situ mining or
manufacturing infrastructure or facility;
(U) Any other facility or property deemed to be
a critical infrastructure or critical system by the governor. (vii) "Model aircraft" means as defined in section 336 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, P.L. 112- 95;
(viii) "Unmanned aircraft system" means as defined by
W.S. 6-5-214(a)(iii);
(ix) "Real property" means all interests in land and
appurtenances, including structures, affixed thereto, and any intangible characteristic that contributes to the fair market value thereof. "Real property" includes surface interests, mineral interests and pore space interests.
19-13-502. Critical infrastructure zones; reporting of
conveyances; investigations; notification; rulemaking.
(a) The governor, in consultation with the director, shall
designate any property or area of property that qualifies under this article as a critical infrastructure zone. The governor and director shall identify each property designated as a critical infrastructure zone by using a legal description of the property. Any designation under this section shall be the least restrictive designation necessary to ensure the security of the critical infrastructure to be protected. The director, in consultation with the governor, may remove a designation of a critical infrastructure zone from any property. Not later than July 1, 2025 and each July 1 thereafter, the director, in consultation with the governor, shall review the designations made under this subsection to determine whether designations should be removed or amended. Any property designated as a critical infrastructure zone under this subsection shall remain designated until removed in accordance with this subsection or by order of a court.
(b) Repealed by Laws 2025, ch. 52, § 2.
(c) Within fifteen (15) days after a conveyance is
recorded, the county clerk shall report the conveyance to the director and to the division of criminal investigation.
(d) Upon receiving a report from a county clerk under
subsection (c) of this section, the director and the division of criminal investigation shall determine whether a conveyance is within a critical infrastructure zone or located up to five (5) miles from a critical infrastructure zone and, upon reasonable suspicion, investigate the conveyance to determine if the conveyance involves a designated country or person or if the conveyance poses a threat to national or state security or to critical infrastructure.
(e) The director, the attorney general and the division of
criminal investigation may take any action authorized by law to determine the actual identity of any party to a conveyance reported under this section if the party's actual identity is not clear from the conveyance. Any investigation and information obtained during the investigation shall remain confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.
(f) The director shall promulgate any rules necessary for
the designation of critical infrastructure zones in accordance with this section.
19-13-503. Unlawful operation of unmanned aircraft systems
over critical infrastructure and systems prohibited; permitted actions by law enforcement.
(a) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section,
no person shall operate or use an unmanned aircraft system over or near critical infrastructure or a critical system:
(i) To intentionally photograph critical
infrastructure or a critical system;
(ii) To intentionally loiter over or near critical
infrastructure or a critical system;
(iii) In furtherance of any other criminal offense.
(b) Unless otherwise authorized by law, no person shall
operate or use an unmanned aircraft system or model aircraft that is carrying, contains or is an explosive device over or near critical infrastructure or a critical system. This subsection shall not apply to law enforcement and the military while acting in the course of their lawful duties.
(c) This section shall not apply to:
(i) A person authorized by the federal aviation
administration to operate or use an unmanned aircraft system if the person's operation or use complies with the authorization granted or with rules promulgated by the federal aviation administration; (ii) A governmental entity's use of an unmanned aircraft system owned by the governmental entity;
(iii) The use of an unmanned aircraft system by the
owner or the owner's agent of critical infrastructure or a critical system on or near the owner's critical infrastructure or critical system;
(iv) The use of an unmanned aircraft system by a law
enforcement agency, emergency medical service agency, hazardous materials response team, disaster management agency or other emergency management agency for the purpose of incident command, area reconnaissance, personnel and equipment deployment monitoring, training or a related purpose;
(v) The use of an unmanned aircraft system by a
private landowner on property owned by the private landowner.
(d) A person who violates subsection (a) or (b) of this
section is guilty of:
(i) A misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment not to
exceed six (6) months, a fine not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00), or both, for a first offense;
(ii) A felony punishable by imprisonment not to
exceed two (2) years, a fine not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), or both, for a second or subsequent offense.
(e) A peace officer or law enforcement official may take
or authorize the use of reasonable actions to prevent or stop the use of unmanned aircraft systems or model aircrafts operating in violation of this section. For purposes of this subsection, reasonable actions may include disabling, damaging or removing the unmanned aircraft system or model aircraft from the prohibited location.
(f) The governor may order the national guard of Wyoming
to assist in taking or using reasonable actions to prevent or stop the use of unmanned aircraft systems or model aircrafts operating in violation of this section, in accordance with W.S.
Wyo. Stat. § 35-9-107
35-9-107(a)(iv), that entity has sole construction inspection authority on the approved plans and sole authority for periodic fire and life safety inspections on state owned or leased buildings. For the purpose of this section, school buildings shall be construed to be state buildings. If local code provisions are more stringent than adopted state codes, the local code prevails. The authority granted to local governmental entities under this subsection is subject to certification of local inspectors as follows: (i) If sole plan review authority is requested, certification of a plan reviewer by the international conference of building officials or the International Code Council;
(ii) If code enforcement authority for fire and
building codes is requested, certification of a fire inspector or building inspector by the International Code Council or the International Conference of Building Officials;
(iii) If code enforcement authority for the
electrical code is requested:
(A) Certification of an electrical inspector by
the International Code Council or the International Association of Electrical Inspectors; and
(B) Licensing of an electrical inspector by the
state as a master electrician.
(c) If a municipality or county has assumed enforcement
authority for only one (1) or two (2) of the fire, building and electrical standards, the municipality or county shall deliver notice of any project plans submitted to the municipality or county for approval to the department. The notice of the project shall be delivered within ten (10) days of receiving plans from the applicant.
(d) A municipality or county which has enforcement
authority under this section shall create its own appeals boards to determine the suitability of alternate materials and types of construction and to interpret and grant variances from adopted codes or standards. The boards shall be appointed and removed by the governing body of the municipality or county, but the person making the decision upon which the appeal is based shall not be a member of the appeal board.
(e) A decision rendered by the local municipal or county
appeals board pursuant to subsection (d) of this section may be appealed to the council on fire prevention and electrical safety in buildings for a final decision. A decision of the council may be appealed to the appropriate district court.
(f) Any appeal to a local board under subsection (d) of
this section or the council under subsection (e) of this section shall be heard within thirty (30) days of the request for appeal. (g) Nothing in this section prohibits the state fire marshal from assisting, upon request, a municipality, county or other local governmental entity in exercising authority granted to that entity under this section.
35-9-121.1. Health care facilities; jurisdiction;
delegation; rules.
(a) The department of health has jurisdiction over all
aspects of construction and remodeling, except electrical installation, of any state licensed health care facility as defined in W.S. 35-2-901.
(b) The fire safety code requirements for the construction
and remodeling of any state licensed health care facility shall meet the minimum requirements established in the National Fire Protection Association 101 Life Safety Code or any other code required to meet federal fire and life safety certification. If any code requirements for federal certification conflict with the code of any other state or local governmental entity, the code required for federal certification shall prevail.
(c) The department of health shall promulgate rules and
regulations for all aspects of construction and remodeling of health care facilities except electrical installation. For aspects of construction and remodeling included in codes adopted by the council pursuant to W.S. 35-9-106, the rules and regulations shall be based on and not exceed the standards of these codes except where federal certification requirements dictate otherwise.
(d) Upon written request from any county or municipality,
the department of health shall delegate plan review and inspection responsibilities to the county or municipality that has personnel who are certified pursuant to the applicable code. The department of health shall transfer jurisdiction and authority by letter. The department of health shall notify the governing body of the municipality or county of the minimum standards and requirements under this section and W.S. 16-6-501 and 16-6-502. The following shall apply:
(i) Any municipality or county may issue a
certificate of occupancy for a health care facility. The certificate shall reference any code applied to the construction or remodeling of the facility; (ii) A municipality or county which has enforcement authority under this subsection shall create its own appeals board to determine the suitability of alternate materials and types of construction.
(e) After construction or remodeling of any health care
facility, the department of health shall have jurisdiction over the fire and life safety inspections required for federal certification.
Division 3. Electrical Licensing
35-9-122. Chief electrical inspector responsible for
licensing.
The chief electrical inspector is responsible for licensing electrical contractors, master electricians, journeyman electricians, low voltage electrical contractors, limited electrical contractors, low voltage technicians and limited technicians and shall pass on the fitness and qualifications of applicants for licenses. Every applicant for a license under this chapter shall provide his social security number to the chief electrical inspector.
35-9-123. Electrical installations to be performed by
licensed electricians; exceptions.
(a) Licensed electrical contractors employing licensed
master or journeymen electricians, or registered apprentice electricians supervised by a licensed master or journeyman electrician shall install all electrical equipment. This requirement is waived for the following, however the waiver does not exempt the following persons from meeting all other code requirements under this act:
(i) Property owned or leased by a person when the
person, his partner or a major stockholder of a family corporation is installing the equipment and the property is not for immediate resale;
(ii) Oil or gas field operations, including those
operations involving exploration, testing, drilling, production or transporting via pipeline of oil or gas, railroads, petroleum refineries, fertilizer manufacturing facilities, foundries, mines and their appurtenant facilities; (iii) Liquefied petroleum, gas, electric or communication facilities exercising their function as public utilities;
(iv) Cable-TV, satellite-TV and telecommunications,
including data and related services of cable-TV, satellite-TV and telecommunications providers including its contractors and subcontractors provided such contractors and subcontractors are limited to the installation of low voltage cable, A.M. or F.M. radio stations, television stations, phone services, internet services, data services and related services;
(v) Farms or ranches of forty (40) acres or more on
deeded land;
(vi) Buildings constructed by a school or community
college district as part of an industrial arts curriculum, under the direct supervision of a qualified industrial arts instructor. The school or community college district shall have the installations inspected by the state electrical inspector's office or the local enforcement authority, whichever has jurisdiction, to ensure compliance with W.S. 35-9-120;
(vii) Licensed low voltage electrical contractors
employing licensed low voltage technicians or registered low voltage apprentice technicians who may install electrical equipment which falls under the scope of their low voltage license or registration. No low voltage contractor may work on electrical systems which exceed ninety (90) volts unless allowed pursuant to this subsection. The chief electrical inspector may issue a low voltage electrical contractor's license to contractors not qualified for an electrical contractor's license but qualified for their low voltage area of expertise for the installation, repair or remodel of:
(A) All electrical systems under ninety (90)
volts;
(B) Alarm systems under ninety (90) volts;
(C) Communication systems under ninety (90)
volts or current limited communication systems of higher voltage;
(D) Sound systems under ninety (90) volts;
(E) Television systems under ninety (90) volts;
(F) Control systems under ninety (90) volts;
(G) Lawn sprinkler systems under ninety (90)
volts.
(viii) Licensed limited electrical contractors
employing licensed limited technicians or registered limited apprentice technicians who may install electrical equipment which falls under the scope of their limited license or registration. The electrical work shall only include the electrical system on the load side of the disconnect which supplies power to the electrical equipment that they are licensed to work on. The chief electrical inspector may issue a limited electrical contractor's license to a contractor not qualified for an electrical contractor's license but qualified in his limited area of expertise for the:
(A) Installation, repair or remodel of heating,
ventilating and air conditioning systems limited to wiring on the load side of the equipment disconnect;
(B) Installation, repair or remodel of elevator
systems limited to wiring on the load side of the equipment disconnect;
(C) Installation, repair or remodel of sign
systems limited to wiring on the load side of the equipment disconnect;
(D) Installation, repair or remodel of water
well and irrigation systems limited to wiring on the load side of the equipment disconnect;
(E) Routine repair or maintenance of light
fixtures limited to replacement of ballasts and fixture parts.
(ix) Employees of rural electric cooperatives, as
defined in W.S. 37-17-101(a)(i), when performing the following work:
(A) Installation of new or upgraded service
connections or attachments of secondary service wires to any utility point of attachment on all overhead connections of the cooperative's equipment to the cooperative's customer's connections and all underground connections that are in close proximity to conductors in excess of six hundred (600) volts; or (B) Making repairs on secondary service wires or reattachments of secondary service wires to any utility point of attachment in emergency or outage situations.
(b) Exceptions shall not apply to anyone who contracts or
subcontracts to or for any exempt person, partnership or corporation.
35-9-124. Powers and duties of board; appeals.
(a) The board shall:
(i) Adopt rules and regulations to implement this
section and to establish minimum standards for:
(A) Training requirements for all classes of
electricians;
(B) Licensing requirements for all classes of
electricians; and
(C) Reciprocal licenses for any journeyman
electrician, master electrician, low voltage technician or limited technician license.
(ii) Regarding the installation of electrical
equipment and electrical safety standards, hear appeals to determine the suitability of alternate materials and type of construction and to interpret and grant variances from the National Electrical Code.
(b) Any applicant may appeal a decision of the chief
electrical inspector to the board.
(c) The board may suspend or cancel the license of any
licensee for a repeated or serious violation of this act or the rules and regulations of the board. A serious violation is any violation that poses a risk of injury or death to persons or is likely to result in property damage exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00). A repeated violation is one that occurs within two (2) years of any previously documented violation.
(d) Any person whose license is suspended, cancelled or
refused by the board may appeal to the appropriate district court. (e) Repealed By Laws 2010, Ch. 84, § 3.
(f) The board may hear appeals of civil penalties imposed
by the department pursuant to W.S. 35-9-130.
(g) The board may enter into and approve reciprocal
license agreements with other states if such agreements conform with the conditions and minimum standards required under W.S.
Wyo. Stat. § 35-9-131
35-9-131.
(c) Upon receipt from the department of family services of
a certified copy of an order from a court to withhold, suspend or otherwise restrict a license issued by the chief electrical inspector, the chief electrical inspector shall notify the party named in the court order of the withholding, suspension or restriction of the license in accordance with the terms of the court order.
35-9-120. Minimum requirements for electrical
installations; permits; inspections; fees.
(a) The installation of electric equipment in or on
buildings, mobile homes and premises shall be made subject to the applicable minimum requirements of the National Electrical Code. To the extent that any provision in the International Fire Code, the International Building Code, the International Mechanical Code, the International Existing Building Code and the International Fuel Gas Code conflicts with the standards prescribed by the National Electrical Code, the National Electrical Code shall control.
(b) Subject to W.S. 35-9-121(b), the chief electrical
inspector and his deputies:
(i) Have the right of ingress or egress to all
buildings or other structures owned or leased by the state or local governmental entities during reasonable working hours to make electrical inspections;
(ii) May inspect any building or structure:
(A) With a search warrant issued by a district
court after a finding of probable cause that there is a violation of state law regarding electrical installations; or
(B) At any time during construction and within
thirty (30) days after completion of the installation for which an electrical wiring permit was issued or an electrical plan review was performed.
(iii) Shall inspect any building or structure within
five (5) business days of the request of the owner or the general or electrical contractor installing the electrical equipment.
(c) For any requested electrical inspection conducted or
electrical wiring permit issued by the chief electrical inspector or his deputy, a fee established by the department by rule shall be paid by the person or contractor making the request. The electrical wiring permit fee shall be waived for anyone requesting and paying for an electrical inspection. The fees established by the department shall not exceed the following:
(i) Electrical inspection fees for requested
inspections:
(A) Each residential unit $20.00
plus $.50 per ampere rating of the electrical service;
(B) Mobile home services $20.00
plus $.50 per ampere rating of mobile home;
(C) Temporary services ..$40.00 each;
(D) Remodels of residential units $20.00
plus 2% of the value of any electrical installation included in the remodel;
(E) All other electrical installations
$20.00
plus $.50 per ampere rating of the electrical service;
(F) Reinspections $50.00
plus $.20 per ampere rating of the electrical service.
(ii) Electrical wiring permit fees. $50.00
(d) Inspection fees pursuant to paragraph (c)(i) of this
section shall be charged for requested inspections made on installations that are not under new construction or remodeling.
(e) No person shall install electrical equipment in new
construction or remodeling, if the remodeling requires a public utility to connect or disconnect and restore electrical power, of a building, mobile home or premises without obtaining an electrical wiring permit. No public utility shall energize an electrical service for an electrical installation which requires an electrical wiring permit until the person responsible for the electrical installation has obtained an electrical wiring permit. A utility may energize an electrical service in an emergency situation without proof that an electrical wiring permit has been obtained, however the utility shall notify the department of the action as soon as possible, but in no case later than five (5) days following the date that the electrical service was energized. Electrical wiring permits shall be issued by the chief electrical inspector upon request. Each permit shall explain procedures and costs for permits and requested inspections conducted by the chief electrical inspector or his deputy electrical inspectors. This subsection does not apply to municipalities and counties granted local enforcement authority for electrical safety standards under W.S. 35-9-121(a) and to exempt installations under W.S. 35-9-123(a)(ii) through (v).
(f) Ninety-five percent (95%) of the fees collected
pursuant to subsection (c) of this section shall be deposited in a separate account for the purpose of providing additional state electrical inspectors. Five percent (5%) of the fees collected pursuant to subsection (c) of this section shall be deposited in the general fund.
35-9-121. Local enforcement.
(a) The state fire marshal shall delegate complete
authority to municipalities and counties which apply to enforce and interpret local or state fire, building, existing building standards or electrical safety standards which meet the requirements of this section. The state fire marshal shall notify the governing body of the municipality or county of the minimum standards and requirements of this act and W.S. 16-6-501 and 16-6-502 and transfer jurisdiction and authority by letter. Except as provided in W.S. 35-9-119(a)(i) and subsection (b) of this section, nothing in this section affects the authority of the state fire marshal or chief electrical inspector regarding state owned or leased buildings. Local enforcement authority under this subsection shall be subject to the following requirements and certification of inspectors:
(i) Before a municipality or county without local
enforcement authority is initially granted local enforcement authority for fire, building, existing building standards or electrical standards the state fire marshal shall determine that the local governing body has adopted minimum standards by ordinance or resolution that are equivalent to or more stringent than those applicable standards adopted by the department;
(ii) If a municipality or county that has been
granted local enforcement authority under this subsection fails to adopt, within six (6) months following the adoption of new standards by the department, or maintain standards by ordinance or resolution that at least meet the statewide standards, enforcement authority shall immediately revert to the department. It shall be the responsibility of the municipality or county to notify the department of the repeal of minimum standards in their jurisdiction;
(iii) If code enforcement authority for fire and
building codes is requested, certification of a fire inspector or building inspector by the International Code Council or the International Conference of Building Officials is required for any inspector employed or contracted after July 1, 2010 to enforce those codes for the municipality or county;
(iv) If code enforcement authority for the electrical
code is requested:
(A) Certification of an electrical inspector by
the International Code Council or the International Association of Electrical Inspectors; and
(B) Licensing of an electrical inspector by the
state as a journeyman or master electrician is required.
(v) If a municipality or county that has been granted
local enforcement authority under this subsection fails to maintain employment of an inspector holding any certification required by this subsection, enforcement authority shall revert to the department one hundred twenty (120) days after the last day the properly certified inspector has left the employment of the municipality or county. It shall be the responsibility of the municipality or county to notify the department upon the termination of employment of any certified inspector required by this subsection.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of
this section a local governmental entity is authorized to assume sole plan review authority, and, in accordance with W.S.
Wyo. Stat. § 40-23-133
40-23-133. 40-23-103. Powers and duties of commissioner.
(a) In addition to any other powers and duties imposed
upon the commissioner by law, the commissioner shall:
(i) Perform any and all acts necessary to promulgate,
administer and enforce the provisions of this act and any rules, regulations, orders, limitations, standards, requirements or licenses issued under this act, and to exercise all incidental powers as necessary to carry out the purposes of this act;
(ii) Order any mortgage broker, mortgage lender or
mortgage loan originator to cease any activity or practice which the commissioner deems to be deceptive, dishonest, a violation of state or federal laws or regulations or unduly harmful to the interests of the public;
(iii) Conduct investigations, issue subpoenas, and
hold hearings as necessary to determine whether a person has violated any provision of this act;
(iv) Conduct examinations of the books and records of
licensees and conduct investigations as necessary and proper for the enforcement of the provisions of this act and the rules promulgated under the authority of this act;
(v) Issue orders that are necessary to execute,
enforce and effectuate the purposes of this act;
(vi) Require that all application, renewal,
licensing, examination and all other fees included under this act, except the amount paid for data processing by a nationwide mortgage licensing system and database, shall be deposited by the commissioner with the state treasurer into the financial institutions administration account within the earmarked revenue fund;
(vii) Require the mortgage broker to reimburse the
borrower for undisclosed or incorrectly disclosed fees pursuant to W.S. 40-23-114(d) and require the mortgage lender to reimburse the borrower for undisclosed or incorrectly disclosed fees pursuant to W.S. 40-23-113(e);
(viii) Require a background investigation including
fingerprint checks for state and national criminal history record checks as necessary. The commissioner may utilize background checks completed by the division of criminal investigation, other government agencies in this state or in other states, the federal bureau of investigation or a nationwide mortgage licensing system;
(ix) Determine the content of application forms and
the means by which an applicant applies for, renews or makes changes to a license under this act. The commissioner may require applicants to utilize a nationwide mortgage licensing system and database for the processing of applications and fees;
(x) Establish fees authorized in this act in
accordance with W.S. 13-1-603(d) through (f).
40-23-104. License requirements.
(a) With the exception of those persons exempt pursuant to
W.S. 40-23-105, on and after July 1, 2005, no company shall engage in mortgage lending activities or mortgage brokering activities without first obtaining a license in accordance with this act.
(b) A company engaged in mortgage lending or mortgage
brokering activities with any dwelling located in Wyoming shall first obtain a license in accordance with this act.
40-23-105. Exemptions from license requirements.
(a) The provisions of this act do not apply to:
(i) Agencies of the United States and agencies of
this state and its political subdivisions;
(ii) An owner of real property who offers credit
secured by a contract of sale, mortgage or deed of trust on the property sold;
(iii) Any person licensed or chartered under the laws
of any state or the United States as a bank, savings and loan association, credit union, or trust company or an operating subsidiary of which the person owns or controls eighty percent (80%) or more of the voting stock;
(iv) An attorney licensed to practice law in Wyoming
who is not principally engaged in the business of negotiating residential mortgage loans when the attorney renders services in the course of his practice as an attorney; (v) Repealed By Laws 2009, Ch. 184, § 3.
(vi) Any person who purchases or otherwise obtains a
residential mortgage loan which has been originated, processed and closed with the borrower by a licensee or by an exempt person, who does not directly or indirectly solicit borrowers in Wyoming for the purpose of making residential mortgage loans, and who does not participate in the negotiation of residential mortgage loans with the borrower. For the purpose of this paragraph, "negotiation of residential mortgage loans" does not include setting the terms under which a person may buy or fund a residential mortgage loan originated by a licensee or exempt person after the residential mortgage loan has closed.
(b) The Financial Technology Sandbox Act shall apply to
this act.
40-23-106. Initial licensing and compliance.
A person conducting mortgage lending or mortgage brokering activities, as of July 1, 2005 shall, not later than September 30, 2005, apply to the commissioner for a license.
40-23-107. Application for license to do business as a
mortgage lender or mortgage broker.
(a) The commissioner shall receive and act on all
applications for licenses to do business as a mortgage lender or mortgage broker. Applications shall be filed in the manner prescribed by the commissioner, shall contain such information as prescribed by the commissioner, shall be updated as prescribed by the commissioner to keep the information current, and shall be accompanied by an application fee not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for the home office location and an amount not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) for each additional location, as set by rule of the commissioner. When an application for licensure is denied or withdrawn, the commissioner shall retain all fees paid by the applicant.
(b) An application for license may be granted if the
commissioner finds:
(i) The financial responsibility and experience,
character and fitness of the license applicant, of the owners or persons in charge of the applicant and individuals designated in charge of the applicant's places of business, are such as to warrant belief that the business will be operated honestly and fairly within the purposes of this act;
(ii) The applicant has not been convicted of, pled
guilty or nolo contendere to, a felony in a domestic, foreign or military court during the seven (7) year period preceding the date of the application for licensing, or at any time preceding such date of application if such felony involved an act of fraud, dishonesty, breach of trust or money laundering;
(iii) The applicant has not been the subject of any
administrative action or enforcement proceeding by any state or federal government agency involving the revocation of any license or authority substantially equivalent to a license under this act;
(iv) The applicant has not filed an application for a
license which is false or misleading with respect to any material fact;
(v) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 76, § 2.
(vi) The applicant has provided information on the
application as required by the commissioner pursuant to subsection (a) of this section; and
(vii) The applicant has not been convicted of, pled
guilty or nolo contendere to a misdemeanor in a domestic, foreign or military court involving an act of fraud, dishonesty, breach of trust or money laundering.
(c) The commissioner is empowered to conduct
investigations as deemed necessary to determine the existence of the requirements in subsection (b) of this section.
(d) Upon written request, an applicant is entitled to a
hearing on the question of his qualifications for a license if:
(i) The commissioner has notified the applicant in
writing that his application has been denied, or objections to the application have been filed with the commissioner;
(ii) The commissioner has not issued a license within
sixty (60) days after a complete application for the license was filed. (e) If a hearing is held, the applicant and those filing objections shall reimburse, pro rata, the commissioner for his reasonable and necessary expenses incurred as a result of the hearing. Notwithstanding any provision under the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, a request for hearing shall not be made more than fifteen (15) days after the applicant has received notification by certified mail that the application has been denied and stating in substance the commissioner’s finding supporting denial of the application or that objections have been filed and the substance thereof.
(f) Every licensee shall license and maintain a home
office as a principal location for the transaction of mortgage business. A separate license shall be required for each place of business from which mortgage brokering activities or mortgage lending activities are directly or indirectly conducted. The commissioner may issue additional licenses to the same applicant upon compliance with all the provisions of this act governing the issuance of a single license. Each license shall remain in full force and effect unless the licensee does not satisfy the renewal requirements of W.S. 40-23-109, or the license is relinquished, suspended or revoked. Licenses shall be terminated upon the relinquishment or revocation of a home office license.
(g) No licensee shall change the location of any place of
business, consolidate two (2) or more locations, open a new location or close any location, without giving the commissioner prior written notice and paying a license modification fee not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) as set by rule of the commissioner.
(h) A licensee shall not engage in the business of making
or brokering residential mortgage loans at any place of business for which he does not hold a license nor shall he engage in business under any other name than that on the license without the approval of the commissioner.
(j) The commissioner may suspend action upon a license
application pending resolution of any criminal charges, before any court of competent jurisdiction, against an applicant which would disqualify that applicant if convicted.
(k) An applicant shall make complete disclosure of all
information required in the application, including information concerning officers, directors, partners, members, managers or employees. 40-23-108. Change in control of a licensee.
(a) A licensee shall give the commissioner written notice
of a proposed change of control of a licensee within fifteen (15) business days after learning of the proposed change of control.
(b) The commissioner may require the licensee to provide
additional information concerning the proposed persons in control of the licensee. The additional information shall be limited to the same information required of the licensee or persons in control of the licensee as part of its original license or renewal application.
(c) The licensee shall reapply and submit the required
fees established by rule, not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for a home office location and an amount not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) for each additional location upon a change in the control of the licensee as determined by the commissioner. The license is not transferable nor assignable to the new persons in control of the licensee.
(d) Before filing a request for approval to acquire
control, a person may request in writing a determination from the commissioner as to whether the person would be considered a person in control of a licensee upon consummation of a proposed transaction. If the commissioner determines that the person would not be a person in control of a licensee, the commissioner shall enter an order stating the proposed person and transaction is not subject to the requirements of subsections (a) through (c) of this section.
40-23-109. License renewal and annual report.
(a) Each mortgage broker and mortgage lender license
issued under this act shall expire on December 31. The license shall be renewed annually not less than thirty (30) days before the stated expiration date. The renewal fee for each license shall not exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for the home office location and an amount not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) for each additional location, as set by rule of the commissioner.
(b) The renewal fee shall be accompanied by a report, in a
form prescribed by the commissioner, which shall include: (i) Any material changes to any of the information submitted by the licensee on its original application which have not been reported previously to the commissioner on any other report required to be filed under this act;
(ii) Any update necessary on the surety bond;
(iii) Any update on civil or criminal proceedings
against the licensee or any administrative or enforcement proceedings by any state or federal government agency involving fines, penalties or the revocation or suspension of any business licensee or authority substantially equivalent to a license under this act;
(iv) Any other information as the commissioner may
deem necessary.
40-23-110. Surety bonds.
(a) All licensees shall maintain a surety bond to the
state of Wyoming in accordance with this section. The surety bond shall be used to cover individual loan originators employed or under contract with a licensee. The bond to be maintained shall be in the amount:
(i) Until December 31, 2009, of twenty-five thousand
dollars ($25,000.00). This amount shall be increased by an additional sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) for each licensed office;
(ii) Effective January 1, 2010, as established by
rule of the commissioner based upon the volume of business activity transacted by the licensee under this act.
(b) The surety bond shall be a continuing obligation of
the issuing surety. The surety's liability under the bond for any claims made under the bond either individually or in the aggregate shall in no event exceed the face amount of the bond issued. The bond shall be issued by a surety authorized to do business in the state of Wyoming. The bond, including any and all riders and endorsements executed subsequent to the effective date of the bond, shall be placed on file with the commissioner.
(c) In the event that a licensee or person employed by or
under contract with a licensee has violated any of the provisions of this act or of a rule or order lawfully made pursuant to this act, or federal law or regulation pertaining to the mortgage lending or mortgage brokering, and has damaged any person by such violation, then the bond shall be forfeited and paid by the surety to the state of Wyoming for the benefit of any person so damaged, in an amount sufficient to satisfy the violation or the bond in its entirety if the violation exceeds the amount of the bond.
(d) Surety bonds shall remain effective continuously until
released in writing by the commissioner. If a bond has not been previously released by the commissioner, the bond shall expire two (2) years after the date of the surrender, revocation or expiration of the license.
40-23-111. Examinations and investigations.
(a) The commissioner may conduct examinations of any
licensee under this act at intervals he deems necessary to determine compliance with this act and other applicable laws, rules and regulations.
(b) The commissioner may at any time investigate the loans
or business books and records of any licensee or person engaged in mortgage lending or mortgage brokering activities for the purpose of determining compliance with this act or securing information required under this act. For these purposes, the commissioner shall have free and reasonable access to the offices, places of business, books and records of the licensee.
(c) If a licensee's or person's records are located
outside this state, the licensee or person shall have the option to make them available to the commissioner at a convenient location within this state, or pay the reasonable and necessary expenses for the commissioner or his representative to examine them at the place where they are maintained. The commissioner may designate representatives, including comparable officials of the state in which the records are located, to inspect them on his behalf.
(d) Each licensee or person subject to examination or
investigation under this act shall pay to the commissioner an amount assessed by the commissioner to cover the direct and indirect cost of examinations or investigations conducted pursuant to this section not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) per hour.
40-23-112. Records; confidentiality of records; exception.
(a) Every licensee shall maintain records in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in a manner that will enable the commissioner to determine whether the licensee is complying with the provisions of this act. The recordkeeping system of a licensee shall be sufficient if he makes the required information available. The records need not be kept in the place of business where residential mortgage loans are made, if the commissioner is given free access to the records wherever located. The records pertaining to any loan shall be retained for the period of twenty-five (25) months from the date of loan closing.
(b) Except as provided in subsections (c) through (f) of
this section, all information or reports obtained by the commissioner from an applicant or licensee are confidential.
(c) The commissioner may disclose confidential information
to mortgage lending or mortgage brokering supervisory agencies in other states or to federal regulatory authorities or to appropriate prosecuting attorneys.
(d) The commissioner may enter into cooperative,
coordinating or information sharing agreements with any other supervisory agency or any organization affiliated with or representing one (1) or more mortgage lending or mortgage brokering supervisory agencies with respect to the periodic examination or other supervision of any office in Wyoming of an out-of-state licensee, and the commissioner may accept such parties’ reports of examination and reports of investigation in lieu of conducting his own examinations or investigations.
(e) The commissioner may enter into contracts with any
mortgage lending or mortgage brokering supervisory agency having concurrent jurisdiction over a Wyoming licensee pursuant to this act to engage the services of the agency’s examiners at a reasonable rate of compensation. Any such contract shall not be subject to the provisions of W.S. 9-2-3204(b).
(f) Except as provided in P.L. 110-289, section 1512, the
requirements under any federal law or state law regarding the privacy or confidentiality of any information or material provided to the registry, and any privilege arising under federal or state law, including the rules of any federal or state court, with respect to such information or material, shall continue to apply to such information or material after the information or material has been disclosed to the registry. Such information and any other confidential material obtained by the commissioner may be shared with all state and federal regulatory officials with mortgage industry oversight authority without the loss of privilege or the loss of confidentiality protections provided by federal law or any state law.
(g) Information or material that is subject to a privilege
or confidentiality under subsection (f) of this section shall not be subject to:
(i) Disclosure under any federal or state law
governing the disclosure to the public of information held by an officer or agency of the federal government or the respective state; or
(ii) Subpoena, discovery or admission into evidence,
in any private civil action or administrative process, unless with respect to any privilege held by the registry with respect to such information or material, the person to whom such information or material pertains waives that privilege, in whole or in part.
(h) Any Wyoming law relating to the disclosure of
confidential supervisory information or any information or material described in subsection (f) of this section that is inconsistent with subsection (f) of this section shall be superceded by the requirements of this section.
(j) This section shall not apply with respect to the
information or material relating to the employment history of, and publicly adjudicated disciplinary and enforcement actions against, any mortgage loan originator that is included in the registry for access by the public.
(k) This section does not prohibit the commissioner from
disclosing to the public a list of persons licensed under this act.
40-23-113. Disclosure of mortgage lender fees.
(a) Within three (3) working days of taking a mortgage
loan application and prior to receiving any consideration, other than third party fees, from the borrower, the mortgage lender shall:
(i) Disclose the terms of the loan to the borrower in
compliance with the disclosure requirements of the federal Truth-in-Lending Act, its associated regulations, and the federal Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and its associated regulations and any other applicable federal and state requirements;
(ii) If a prepayment penalty may be a condition of
the residential mortgage loan offered to a borrower, that fact shall be separately disclosed in writing to the borrower and the borrower shall agree in writing to accept that condition. The disclosure shall state that a prepayment penalty provision imposes a charge if the borrower refinances or pays off the mortgage loan before the date for repayment stated in the loan agreement. The written disclosure shall be in a form prescribed by the commissioner and shall initially be delivered along with the good faith estimate of settlement costs within three (3) business days after accepting an application from the borrower. The disclosure shall subsequently be provided by the lender and signed by the borrower at the same time the borrower is given the final federal Truth-in-Lending Act disclosure.
(b) With the exception of a loan cancellation fee, a
licensed mortgage lender shall not require a borrower to pay any fees or charges prior to a residential mortgage loan closing, except:
(i) Charges actually incurred by the licensee on
behalf of the borrower for services which have been rendered by third parties necessary to process the application. These fees may include, but are not limited to, fees for credit reports, flood insurance certifications, property inspections, title insurance commitments, uniform commercial code article 4 lien searches, and appraisals;
(ii) A rate lock in fee; and
(iii) A commitment fee upon approval of the
residential mortgage loan.
(c) A loan cancellation fee may be charged and collected
by a licensee at any time either prior to the scheduled closing of a residential mortgage loan transaction or subsequent thereto.
(d) Any fees charged under the authority of this section
shall be reasonable and customary as to the type and the amount of the fee charged. (e) A mortgage lender shall not receive any fee that inures to the benefit of the mortgage lender, either directly or indirectly, if the fee exceeds the fee disclosed on the most recent good faith estimate unless:
(i) The need to charge the higher fee was not
reasonably foreseeable at the time the good faith estimate was written; and
(ii) The mortgage lender has provided to the
borrower, no less than three (3) business days prior to the signing of the mortgage loan closing documents, a new good faith estimate of settlement costs, a clear written explanation of the increase in the fee and the reason for charging a fee that exceeds the fee which was previously disclosed.
(f) If the fee was originally disclosed as a percentage of
the mortgage loan amount and the dollar amount of the fee increases because the mortgage loan amount increases, but the fee as a percentage of the mortgage loan amount does not change, then no redisclosure shall be required unless the fee increased by more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00).
40-23-114. Disclosure of mortgage broker fees.
(a) Within three (3) business days of a borrower signing a
completed mortgage loan application and before the borrower provides any consideration to the licensee, the licensee shall execute and deliver to the borrower a mortgage brokerage agreement. The mortgage brokerage agreement shall be in writing, signed and dated by both the borrower and the authorized representative of the licensed mortgage broker whose services to the borrower constitute mortgage brokering and shall contain the following information:
(i) That the mortgage broker cannot make mortgage
loans or issue loan commitments in the mortgage broker's name;
(ii) That the mortgage broker cannot guarantee
acceptance into any particular mortgage loan program or promise any specific mortgage loan terms or conditions;
(iii) A good faith estimate of the fees to be
collected, including a credit report fee, property appraisal fee or any other third party fee; (iv) The terms and conditions for obtaining a refund of any fees or arranging for the transfer of third party service work products to another mortgage lender or mortgage broker, if any. The amount of any fees collected in excess of the actual cost shall be returned within sixty (60) days after rejection, withdrawal of an application or closing of the loan.
(b) The mortgage brokerage agreement shall be the only
agreement between the borrower and licensee with respect to a single mortgage loan transaction, except that the licensed mortgage broker shall also provide to the borrower disclosure statements necessary to comply with the federal Truth-in-Lending Act and its associated regulations, the federal Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and its associated regulations, and any other applicable federal and state requirements.
(c) A licensed mortgage broker shall not require a
borrower to pay any fees or charges prior to the mortgage loan closing, except charges actually incurred by the licensed mortgage broker on behalf of the borrower for services from third parties necessary to process the mortgage loan application, such as credit reports and appraisals.
(d) A mortgage broker shall not receive any fee that
inures to the benefit of the mortgage broker, either directly or indirectly if it exceeds the fee disclosed on the most recent good faith estimate unless:
(i) The need to charge the higher fee was not
reasonably foreseeable at the time the good faith estimate was written; and
(ii) The mortgage broker has provided to the
borrower, no less than three (3) business days prior to the signing of the mortgage loan closing documents, a new good faith estimate of settlement costs, a clear written explanation of the increase in the fee and the reason for charging a fee that exceeds that which was previously disclosed.
(e) If the fee was originally disclosed as a percentage of
the mortgage loan amount, and the dollar amount of the fee increases because the mortgage loan amount increases, but the fee as a percentage of the mortgage loan amount does not change, then no redisclosure shall be required unless the fee increased by more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00). (f) Any fees charged under the authority of this section shall be reasonable and customary as to the type and the amount of the fee charged.
40-23-115. Loan commitments; prepayment penalty disclosure
by mortgage broker.
(a) A mortgage broker may issue a loan commitment and may
furnish a lock-in of the interest rate and program on behalf of the mortgage lender when the mortgage broker has obtained a written or electronically transmitted loan commitment or lock-in for the mortgage loan from the mortgage lender on behalf of the borrower. The loan commitment issued by the mortgage broker to the borrower on behalf of the mortgage lender shall be in the same form and substance as issued by the mortgage lender and shall identify the mortgage lender by name.
(i) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 76, § 2.
(ii) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 76, § 2.
(iii) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 76, § 2.
(iv) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 76, § 2.
(b) If a prepayment penalty is a condition of the
residential mortgage loan offered to a borrower, that fact shall be separately disclosed in writing to the borrower and the borrower shall agree in writing to accept that condition. The disclosure shall state that a prepayment penalty provision imposes a charge if the borrower refinances or pays off the mortgage loan before the date for repayment stated in the loan agreement. The written disclosure shall be in a form prescribed by the commissioner and shall be delivered as soon as the condition is known, but no later than the issuance of a commitment, for the mortgage loan product chosen by the borrower.
40-23-116. Trust accounts.
All monies received from a borrower for payment of third party provider services shall be deemed as held in trust immediately upon receipt. All such trust funds shall be deposited, prior to the end of the third business day following receipt of the funds, in a trust account of a federally insured financial institution. All trust account funds collected under this act shall remain on deposit in a noninterest bearing trust account until disbursement. The trust account shall be designated and maintained for the benefit of borrowers. Monies maintained in the trust account shall be exempt from execution, attachment or garnishment. A mortgage lender or mortgage broker shall not in any way encumber the corpus of the trust account or commingle any other operating funds with trust account funds. Withdrawals from the trust account shall be only for the payment of bona fide services rendered by a third party provider or for refunds to a borrower.
40-23-117. Prohibited practices.
(a) No licensee or person required to have a license
shall:
(i) Pay compensation to, contract with or employ in
any manner, any person engaged in mortgage lending or brokering activities who is not properly licensed unless such person is exempt under W.S. 40-23-105;
(ii) Obtain any exclusive dealing or exclusive agency
agreement from any borrower;
(iii) Delay closing of any residential mortgage loan
for the purpose of increasing interest, costs, fees or charges payable by the borrower;
(iv) Accept any fees at closing which were not
previously disclosed fully to the borrower;
(v) Obtain any agreement or instrument in which
blanks are left to be filled in after execution;
(vi) Engage in any misrepresentation in connection
with a residential mortgage loan;
(vii) Directly or indirectly make any statement
regarding value, except that a copy of the sales contract for purchase transactions may be provided, or make or provide payment of any kind to any in-house or fee appraiser for the purpose of influencing the independent judgment of the appraiser with respect to the value of any real estate which is to be covered by a residential mortgage loan;
(viii) Make any false promises likely to influence or
persuade, or pursue a course of misrepresentations and false promises through agents, solicitors, advertising or otherwise; (ix) Misrepresent, circumvent or conceal any of the material particulars or the nature thereof, regarding a transaction to which it is a party;
(x) Enter into any agreement, with or without the
payment of a fee, to fix in advance a particular interest rate or other term in a residential mortgage loan unless written confirmation of the agreement is delivered to the borrower.
40-23-118. License suspension or revocation.
(a) The commissioner may suspend, not to exceed six (6)
months, or revoke a license if the commissioner finds:
(i) Any fact or condition exists that, if it had
existed at the time when the licensee applied for its license, would have been grounds for denying the application;
(ii) The licensee violated any provision of this act
or any rule or order validly promulgated by the commissioner;
(iii) The licensee is conducting its business in an
unsafe or unsound manner;
(iv) The licensee refuses to permit the commissioner
to make any examination authorized by this act;
(v) The licensee willfully fails to make any report
required by this act;
(vi) The competence, experience, character or general
fitness of the licensee indicates that it is not in the public interest to permit the licensee to continue to conduct business;
(vii) The bond of the licensee has been revoked,
cancelled, expired or otherwise is not effective;
(viii) The licensee or any partner, officer,
director, manager or employee of the licensee has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor involving any aspect of the mortgage lending business, breach of trust, or fraudulent or dishonest dealing;
(ix) The licensee or any partner, officer, director,
manager or employee of the licensee has had a license substantially equivalent to a license under this act, and issued by another state, denied, revoked or suspended under the laws of that state;
(x) The licensee has filed an application for a
license which as of the date the license was issued, or as of the date of an order denying, suspending or revoking a license, was incomplete in any material respect or contained any statement that was, in light of the circumstances under which it was made, false or misleading with respect to any material fact.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of the Wyoming
Administrative Procedure Act, if the commissioner finds that probable cause for revocation of a license exists and that enforcement of this act and the public interest require immediate suspension of the license pending investigation, he may, after a hearing upon five (5) days written notice, enter an order suspending the license for not more than thirty (30) days.
(c) The commissioner may, in his discretion, reinstate a
license, terminate a suspension or grant a new license to a person whose license has been revoked or suspended if no fact or condition then exists which clearly would justify the commissioner in refusing to grant a license.
(d) For purposes of this section, "licensee" shall also
mean a licensed mortgage loan originator pursuant to W.S.
The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)