2015 Wyoming Code
TITLE 39 - TAXATION AND REVENUE
CHAPTER 16 - USE TAX
ARTICLE 1 - STATE USE TAX
SECTION 39-16-101. - Definitions.

39-16-101. Definitions.

(a) As used in this article:

(i) "Quarterly return" means a tax return for each of four (4) periods of three (3) consecutive months in a calendar year beginning with January, April, July or October;

(ii) "Retail sale" means the sale of tangible personal property to a person for storage, use or consumption and not for subsequent resale;

(iii) "Sale" means the transfer of possession of tangible personal property from a vendor for a consideration for storage, use or other consumption in Wyoming excluding the exchange or transfer of tangible personal property upon which the seller has directly or indirectly paid sales or use tax incidental to:

(A) A division of partnership assets among the partners according to their interests in the partnership. As used in this subparagraph, "partnership" includes a limited partnership;

(B) The formation of a corporation by the owners of a business and the transfer of their business assets to the corporation in exchange for all the corporation's outstanding stock, except qualifying shares, in proportion to assets contributed;

(C) The transfer of assets of shareholders in the formation or dissolution of professional corporations;

(D) The dissolution and the pro rata distribution of the corporation's assets to its stockholders;

(E) The transfer of assets from a parent corporation to a subsidiary corporation which is owned at least eighty percent (80%) by the parent corporation, which transfer is solely in exchange for stock or securities of the subsidiary corporation;

(F) The transfer of assets from a subsidiary corporation which is owned at least eighty percent (80%) by the parent corporation to a parent corporation or to another subsidiary which is owned at least eighty percent (80%) by the parent corporation, which transfer is solely in exchange for stock or securities of the parent corporation or the subsidiary which received the assets;

(G) A transfer of a partnership interest;

(H) The formation of a partnership by the transfer of assets to the partnership or transfers to a partnership in exchange for proportionate interests in the partnership;

(J) The repossession of personal property by a chattel mortgage holder or foreclosure by a lienholder;

(K) The transfer of assets between parent and closely held subsidiary corporations, or between subsidiary corporations closely held by the same parent corporation, or between affiliated companies, partnerships and corporations which are owned in similar percentages by the same persons. "Closely held subsidiary corporation" means a corporation in which the parent corporation owns stock possessing at least eighty percent (80%) of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock entitled to vote and owns at least eighty percent (80%) of the total number of shares of all other classes of stock;

(M) The sale of a business entity when sold to a purchaser of all or not less than eighty percent (80%) of the value of all of the assets which are located in this state of the business entity when the purchaser continues to use the tangible personal property in the operation of an ongoing business entity in this state. As used in this subparagraph, "business entity" means and includes an individual, partnership, corporation, corporate division, joint stock company or any other association or entity, public or private, or separate business unit thereof.

(iv) "Sales price" means the consideration paid by the purchaser of tangible personal property excluding the actual trade-in value allowed on tangible personal property and manufacturer rebates for motor vehicles exchanged at the time of the transaction;

(v) "Storage" means the keeping or retention in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a vendor for any purpose except for sale in the course of business or subsequent use outside the state;

(vi) "Tangible personal property" means all personal property that can be seen, weighed, measured, felt or touched, or that is in any other manner perceptible to the senses. "Tangible personal property" includes electricity, water, gas, steam and prewritten computer software and includes any controlled substance as defined by W.S. 35-7-1002(a)(iv) which is not sold pursuant to a written prescription of or through a licensed practitioner as defined by W.S. 35-7-1002(a)(xx);

(vii) "Taxpayer" means the purchaser of tangible personal property, admissions or services which are subject to taxation under this article;

(viii) "This article" means W.S. 39-16-101 through 39-16-111;

(ix) "Use" means the exercise of any right or power over tangible personal property incident to ownership or by any transaction where possession is given by lease or contract;

(x) "Vendor" means any person engaged in the business of selling at retail or wholesale tangible personal property, having or maintaining within this state, directly or by any subsidiary, an office, distribution house, sales house, warehouse or other place of business, or any agents operating or soliciting sales or advertising within this state under the authority of the vendor or its subsidiary, regardless of whether the place of business or agent is located in the state permanently or temporarily or whether the vendor or subsidiary is qualified to do business within this state. Agents acting under the authority of the vendor include but are not limited to truckers, peddlers, canvassers, salespersons, representatives, employees, supervisors, distributors, delivery persons or any other persons performing services in this state. "Vendor" also includes every person who engages in regular or systematic solicitation by three (3) or more separate transmittances of an advertisement or advertisements in any twelve (12) month period in a consumer market in this state by the distribution of catalogs, periodicals, advertising flyers, or other advertising, or by means of print, radio, television or other electronic media, by mail, telegraph, telephone, computer data base, cable, optic, microwave, satellite or other communication system for the purpose of effecting retail sales of tangible personal property;

(xi) "Tertiary production" means the crude oil recovered from a petroleum reservoir by means of a tertiary enhanced recovery project to which one (1) or more tertiary enhanced recovery techniques meeting the certification requirements of the Wyoming oil and gas conservation commission or the United States government are being applied;

(xii) "Purchase price" means "sales price" as defined under W.S. 39-15-101;

(xiii) "Directly and predominantly in manufacturing" means an item manufactured from inventoried raw or prepared material beginning at the point at which raw or prepared material is moved from plant inventory on a contiguous plant site and ending at a point at which manufacturing has altered the raw or prepared material to its completed form, including packaging, if required. Machinery used during the manufacturing process to move material from one direct production step to another in a continuous flow and machinery used in testing during the manufacturing process shall be deemed to be used directly and predominantly in manufacturing;

(xiv) "Machinery" means all tangible personal property eligible for a use tax exemption pursuant to W.S. 39-16-105(a)(viii)(D), used to produce an article of tangible personal property. The term includes both the basic unit and any adjunct or attachment necessary for the basic unit to accomplish its intended function, the materials for the construction or repair of machinery, and machine tools;

(xv) "Manufacturing" means the operation of producing a new product, article, substance or commodity different from and having a distinctive nature, character or use from the raw or prepared material;

(xvi) "NAICS" means the Northern American Industry Classification System manual of 2002 that organizes establishments into industries on the basis of the activity in which they are primarily engaged;

(xvii) Telecommunications definitions:

(A) "800 service" means a telecommunications service that allows a caller to dial a toll-free number without incurring a charge for the call. The service is typically marketed under the name "800", "855", "866", "877" and "888" toll-free calling, and any subsequent numbers designated by the Federal Communications Commission;

(B) "900 service" means an inbound toll telecommunications service purchased by a subscriber that allows the subscriber's customers to call in to the subscriber's prerecorded announcement or live service. 900 service shall not include the charge for collection services provided by the seller of the telecommunications services to the subscriber or service or product sold by the subscriber to the subscriber's customer. The service is typically marketed under the name "900" service, and any subsequent numbers designated by the Federal Communications Commission;

(C) "Ancillary services" means services that are associated with or incidental to the provision of telecommunications services, including but not limited to detailed telecommunications billing, directory assistance, vertical service and voice mail services;

(D) "Coin-operated telephone service" means a telecommunications service paid for by inserting money into a telephone accepting direct deposits of money to operate;

(E) "Conference bridging service" means an ancillary service that links two (2) or more participants of an audio or video conference call and may include the provision of a telephone number. Conference bridging service shall not include the telecommunications services used to reach the conference bridge;

(F) "Detailed telecommunications billing service" means an ancillary service of separately stating information pertaining to individual calls on a customer's billing statement;

(G) "Directory assistance" means an ancillary service of providing telephone number information or address information;

(H) "Fixed wireless service" means a telecommunications service that provides radio communication between fixed points;

(J) "International" means a telecommunications service that originates or terminates in the United States and terminates or originates outside the United States, respectively. United States includes the District of Columbia or a United States territory or possession;

(K) "Interstate" means a telecommunications service that originates in one (1) state of the United States or a United States territory or possession and terminates in a different state of the United States or a United States territory or possession;

(M) "Intrastate" means a telecommunications service that originates in one (1) state of the United States or a United States territory or possession and terminates in the same state of the United States or a United States territory or possession;

(N) "Mobile wireless service" means a telecommunications service that is transmitted, conveyed or routed regardless of the technology used, whereby the origination or termination points of the transmission, conveyance or routing are not fixed, including, by way of example only, telecommunications services that are provided by a commercial mobile radio service provider;

(O) "Paging service" means a telecommunications service that provides transmission of coded radio signals for the purpose of activating specific pagers which transmissions may include messages or sounds;

(P) "Pay telephone service" means a telecommunications service provided through any pay telephone;

(Q) "Prepaid calling service" means the right to access exclusively telecommunications services, which requires advance payment and which enables the origination of calls using an access number or authorization code, whether manually or electronically dialed, and that is sold in predetermined units or dollars of which the number declines with use in a known amount;

(R) "Prepaid wireless calling service" means a telecommunications service that provides the right to utilize mobile wireless service as well as other nontelecommunications services including the download of digital products delivered electronically, content and ancillary services, which require advance payment that is sold in predetermined units or dollars of which the number declines with use in a known amount;

(S) "Private communications service" means a telecommunications service that entitles the customer to exclusive or priority use of a communications channel or group of channels between or among termination points, regardless of the manner in which the channel or channels are connected, and includes switching capacity, extension lines, stations and any other associated services that are provided in connection with the use of the channel or channels;

(T) "Residential telecommunications service" means a telecommunications service or ancillary services provided to an individual for personal use at a residential address, including an individual dwelling unit such as an apartment. In the case of institutions where individuals reside such as schools or nursing homes, telecommunications service is considered residential if it is provided to and paid for by an individual resident rather than the institution;

(U) "Telecommunications service" means the electronic transmission, conveyance or routing of voice, data, audio, video, or any other information or signals to a point, or between or among points. The term telecommunications service includes such transmission, conveyance, or routing in which computer processing applications are used to act on the form, code or protocol of the content for purposes of transmission, conveyance or routing without regard to whether such service is referred to as voice over Internet protocol services or is classified by the Federal Communications Commission as enhanced or value added. Telecommunications service shall not include:

(I) Data processing and information services that allow data to be generated, acquired, stored, processed, or retrieved and delivered by an electronic transmission to a purchaser where the purchaser's primary purpose for the underlying transaction is the processed data or information;

(II) Installation or maintenance of wiring or equipment on a customer's premises;

(III) Tangible personal property;

(IV) Advertising, including but not limited to directory advertising;

(V) Billing and collection services provided to third parties;

(VI) Internet access service;

(VII) Radio and television audio and video programming services, regardless of the medium, including the furnishing of transmission, conveyance and routing of the services by the programming service provider. Radio and television audio and video programming services shall include but not be limited to cable service as defined in 47 U.S.C. 522(6) and audio and video programming services delivered by commercial mobile radio service providers, as defined in 47 C.F.R. 20.3;

(VIII) Ancillary services; or

(IX) Digital products delivered electronically, including but not limited to software, music, video, reading materials or ring tones.

(W) "Value-added nonvoice data service" means a service that otherwise meets the definition of telecommunications services in which computer processing applications are used to act on the form, content, code or protocol of the information or data primarily for a purpose other than transmission, conveyance or routing;

(Y) "Vertical service" means an ancillary service that is offered in connection with one (1) or more telecommunications services, which offers advanced calling features that allow customers to identify callers and to manage multiple calls and call connections, including conference bridging services;

(Z) "Voice mail service" means an ancillary service that enables the customer to store, send or receive recorded messages. Voice mail service does not include any vertical services that the customer may be required to have in order to utilize the voice mail service.

(xviii) "Food for domestic home consumption" means substances whether in liquid, concentrated, solid, frozen, dried or dehydrated form that are sold for ingestion or chewing by humans and are consumed for their taste or nutritional value. "Food for domestic home consumption" does not include alcoholic beverages, tobacco or prepared foods;

(xix) "Prepared food":

(A) Includes:

(I) Food sold in a heated state or heated by the seller;

(II) Two (2) or more food ingredients mixed or combined by the seller for sale as a single item; or

(III) Food sold with eating utensils provided by the seller including plates, knives, forks, spoons, glasses, cups, napkins or straws. A container or package used to transport the food is not an eating utensil.

(B) Does not include:

(I) Food that is only cut, repackaged or pasteurized by the seller;

(II) Eggs, fish, meat, poultry or foods containing raw animal foods and which are required or recommended to be cooked by the consumer to prevent food borne illness;

(III) Food sold by a seller whose proper primary NAICS classification is manufacturing in sector 311, except subsector 3118 dealing with bakeries;

(IV) Food sold in an unheated state by weight or volume as a single item; or

(V) Bakery items including bread, rolls, buns, biscuits, bagels, croissants, pastries, donuts, danishes, cakes, tortes, pies, tarts, muffins, bars, cookies, tortillas and other bakery goods unless the item is sold as prepared food under subdivision (xlvi)(A)(III) of this subsection.

(b) Definitions under W.S. 39-15-101 shall apply to this article unless otherwise specified.