Tax, Cost Structure Create Warm Business Climate
Published Dec 16, 2008
Lawmakers at the capital in Cheyenne have created a business-friendly tax structure.
From physical space for expansion to a tax structure that’s the envy of other states, Wyoming is fast becoming a relocation destination for a range of industry sectors while simultaneously growing its existing business base at a brisk clip.
The state’s mineral extraction industry totes most of the tax freight, allowing for no personal income tax, no corporate income taxes and no taxes on inventories. Add to that educational assets such as the University of Wyoming and seven community colleges, high-quality health care, an integrated transportation network and spectacular natural beauty and it’s easy to see why Wyoming’s star is rising.
“With no corporate income tax, very competitive property taxes and a low overall state tax structure, this is a very good place to do business,” says Robert Jensen, chief executive officer of the Wyoming Business Council.
The state’s private-sector employment stood at more than 220,000 in 2007, up a stout 50 percent since 1990. Per-capita personal income rose to more than $43,000 in 2007, growing 84 percent in 10 years.
The mineral industry generates around $4.5 billion a year for the state, money plowed back into statewide infrastructure and for a variety of amenities that enhance quality of life in each of the state’s 23 counties.
In the last five years, more than $100 million has been invested in new business parks, expansion of existing parks and funding to communities to boost business growth, Jensen says.
“Communities also have received funds for everything from day-care centers to recreational amenities, so it’s not all going just for business concerns,” he says.
Research and development play a vital role in the state’s industry portfolio. BPI Labs, which formulates, manufactures and fills personal-care products for the health-and-beauty sector, was drawn by a more inviting atmosphere for business.
“We’re extremely busy these days,” says Kenneth Shirley, president of BPI Labs, who moved his outfit to Evanston in 1995 after finding the regulatory climate in California too oppressive. “The climate in Wyoming is exceptional in that I have much more freedom to do what I need to do, more access to community leaders and an ability to get things done.”
BPI is in discussions about building a new facility, having twice expanded its current 31,000-square-foot plant.
“We need a new facility that’s between 30,000 and 50,000 square feet, but much better organized than what we have here. And the city is working with us to find just the right location,” Shirley says.
The state’s efforts have not gone unnoticed, with Wyoming seeing investment and expansion from a cross-section of industries.
The active minerals and mining sector has fueled growth for companies such as L&H Industrial, an after-market supplier based in Gillette. Since its founding in 1964, L&H has grown to establish a worldwide distribution and service network.
Older companies have evolved and grown. WOTCO, founded in 1938 as a machining support center for its parent company in Laramie, has seen steady growth over the decades and now produces its custom-designed metal fabrications and wear materials for the construction and mining industries at a 165,000-square-foot facility.
Such growth is hardly surprising to Jensen, who says he hears similar stories from around Wyoming, all testament to state and local officials working together to retain and grow their business base.
“Existing businesses that want to grow, new businesses that want to locate in the state, we can help them all,” he says. “We can take a look at what their needs are, how their business fits the asset base of the state, and then we can help them by bringing all the right people to the table to make it work.”
Story by Joe Morris
Photo by Brian McCord
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