AN ACT relating to trade and commerce; specifying rounding requirements for cash payments; specifying exclusions; specifying applicability; specifying duties of the director of the Wyoming department of agriculture; and providing for an effective date.
Summary
HB0071 would create a new Wyoming statute allowing merchants to round certain cash transactions to the nearest five cents when they cannot make exact change because pennies are unavailable. The bill sets out a specific rounding formula: amounts ending in 1, 2, 6, or 7 cents generally round down; amounts ending in 3, 4, 8, or 9 cents round up; amounts ending in 0 or 5 cents are not rounded. It also includes a special rule that exact totals of 1 or 2 cents round up to 5 cents.
The bill requires sales tax and any other applicable tax to be added before rounding, and it makes clear that rounding does not change the amount of tax owed. It limits the rule to cash payments that require change, excludes credit, debit, check, and exact-change transactions, and allows rounding for SNAP purchases only to the extent federal law permits. Businesses that round cash transactions would have to post a sign notifying customers. The bill also updates the Wyoming Department of Agriculture’s authority to verify pricing and point-of-sale computations to include rounding under the new section, and it would take effect July 1, 2026.
Impact
HB0071 would amend Wyoming’s trade and commerce laws by adding W.S. 40-10-137 and expanding related definitions and enforcement authority in the state’s weights and measures chapter. In practical terms, it would give retailers a legal framework for handling cash transactions when pennies are unavailable, while preserving tax collection rules and limiting the policy to cash sales that require change. It would also place compliance and signage obligations on affected sellers and give the Department of Agriculture oversight over rounding-related price computations.
Sentiment
There is no recorded committee discussion or vote history in the provided materials, so the bill’s sentiment cannot be measured from debate or roll call data. Based on the text alone, the proposal appears administrative and consumer-facing rather than ideologically charged, aimed at standardizing a practical cash-handling issue. The bill did not advance, as its last action was that it was not considered for introduction.
Contention
The main potential points of contention are consumer fairness, business compliance, and the treatment of low-value cash transactions. Critics could question whether rounding up in some cases disadvantages cash-paying customers, while supporters would likely view the bill as a necessary response to penny shortages and a way to simplify transactions. The special handling of SNAP purchases and the requirement to follow federal law may also be important for stakeholders concerned about benefits administration and federal preemption.