ORIGINAL HOUSE ENGROSSED
JOINT RESOLUTION. HJ0001
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1,
REPRESENTATIVES
SIXTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2025 GENERAL SESSION
1
A JOINT RESOLUTION requesting Congress to introduce a bill
and enact law to amend Wyoming's act of admission to authorize
the expenditure of earnings for the support of the common
schools in Wyoming.
WHEREAS, on July 10, 1890, the United States Congress enacted
the Act of Admission that admitted Wyoming as a state in the
United States of America; and
WHEREAS, the Act of Admission granted the state of Wyoming
two (2) sections of land in every township for the support of
common schools; and
WHEREAS, the Act of Admission specified that any proceeds
from the disposition of granted school lands were to
constitute a permanent school fund, "the interest of which
only shall be expended in the support of said schools"; and
WHEREAS, the Act of Admission specified that a percentage of
the proceeds of the sales of federal public lands in Wyoming
were to constitute a permanent fund, "the interest of which
only shall be expended for the support of the common schools"
in Wyoming; and
WHEREAS, the Act of Admission specified that certain
previously granted lands constituted a permanent fund, with
the interest and income to be used for university purposes;
and
WHEREAS, the state created the common school account within
the permanent land fund in accordance with the requirements
of the Act of Admission and Article 7, Section 2 of the
Wyoming Constitution; and ORIGINAL HOUSE ENGROSSED
JOINT RESOLUTION. HJ0001
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1,
REPRESENTATIVES
SIXTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2025 GENERAL SESSION
2
WHEREAS, the common school account within the permanent land
fund has grown over the years and has been invested to where
the current value of the fund exceeds five billion six hundred
million dollars ($5,600,000,000.00); and
WHEREAS, the investment of the funds in the common school
account generates earnings and capital gains that are in
addition to interest and income generated from the funds; and
WHEREAS, an amendment to Wyoming's Act of Admission that would
replace references to "interest" and "income" with references
to "earnings" will better reflect the reality of how the
common school account is invested and will allow the earnings
that are generated from the investment of the permanent funds
of the common school account to be better and more efficiently
applied for the benefit of Wyoming's public schools.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MEMBERS OF THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING:
Section 1. That the Wyoming Legislature requests that
members of Wyoming's congressional delegation introduce, and
that Congress enact, legislation that will amend Wyoming's
Act of Admission to strike references to "interest" in
sections 5 and 7 of the Act of Admission and to insert
references to "earnings" and to strike the reference to
"income" in section 8 and insert a reference to "earnings."
Section 2. That members of Wyoming's congressional
delegation and Congress consider introducing legislation that
makes the following changes to sections 5, 7 and 8 of the Act
of Admission as follows:
Section 5. ORIGINAL HOUSE ENGROSSED
JOINT RESOLUTION. HJ0001
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1,
REPRESENTATIVES
SIXTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2025 GENERAL SESSION
3
All lands herein granted for educational purposes
shall be disposed of only at public sale, the
proceeds to constitute a permanent school fund, the
interest of which only shall be expended
in the support of said schools. But said lands may,
under such regulations as the legislature shall
prescribe, be leased for mineral, grazing,
agricultural, or other purposes, provided that the
term of agricultural and grazing leases shall not
exceed 10 years; and such land shall not be subject
to preemption, homestead entry, or any other entry
under the land laws of the United States, whether
surveyed or unsurveyed, but shall be reserved for
school purposes only.
Section 7.
Five per cent of the proceeds of the sales of public
lands lying within said state which shall be sold
by the United States subsequent to the admission of
said state into the union, after deducting all the
expenses incident to the same, shall be paid to the
said state, to be used as a permanent fund, the
interest of which only shall be expended
for the support of the common schools within said
state.
Section 8.
The lands granted to the Territory of Wyoming by
the act of February 18, 1881, entitled "An act to
grant lands to Dakota, Montana, Arizona, Idaho and
Wyoming, for university purposes," are hereby ORIGINAL HOUSE ENGROSSED
JOINT RESOLUTION. HJ0001
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1,
REPRESENTATIVES
SIXTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2025 GENERAL SESSION
4vested in the State of Wyoming, to the extent of
the full quantity of 72 sections to said state, and
any portion of said lands that may not have been
selected by said Territory of Wyoming may be
selected by the said state; but said act of February
18, 1881, shall be so amended as to provide that
none of said lands shall be sold for less than $10
per acre, and the proceeds shall constitute a
permanent fund to be safely invested and held by
said state, and the
exclusively for university purposes. The schools,
colleges, and universities provided for in this act
shall forever remain under exclusive control of
said state, and no part of the proceeds arising
from the sale or disposal of any lands herein
granted for educational purposes shall be used for
the support of any sectarian or denominational
school, college, or university. The section of land
granted by the act of May 28, 1888, to the Territory
of Wyoming for a fish hatchery and other public
purposes shall, upon the admission of said State of
Wyoming into the union, become the property of said
state. ORIGINAL HOUSE ENGROSSED
JOINT RESOLUTION. HJ0001
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1,
REPRESENTATIVES
SIXTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2025 GENERAL SESSION
5
Section 3. That the Secretary of State of Wyoming
transmit copies of this resolution to the President of the
United States, to the President of the Senate and the Speaker
of the House of Representatives of the United States Congress,
the governor, the state treasurer and to each member of the
Wyoming Congressional Delegation.
(END)
Speaker of the HousePresident of the SenateGovernorTIME APPROVED: _________DATE APPROVED: _________
I hereby certify that this act originated in the House.
Chief Clerk