Wyoming Education Trust Bill Makes Tiny Change: Swaps 'Interest' for 'Earnings' in 134-Year-Old Law

The Wyoming Education Trust Modernization Act kicks off with a very specific, technical adjustment to how the state talks about its education funding. The bill’s first section focuses on cleaning up the language regarding revenue generated from the public lands set aside for schools back in 1890.

The Land Trust Language Cleanup

This isn't a bill about raising taxes or building new schools; it’s about making sure the legal dictionary is consistent. The legislation makes several changes across Sections 5, 7, and 8 of the original 1890 Act that established these education lands. In short, whenever the old law mentions the “interest” earned on the money from these lands, the new language swaps it out for “earnings on.” For example, in Section 8, the bill specifically changes “income thereof” to “earnings on which.”

Think of it this way: your bank account might earn “interest,” but your investments might generate “earnings.” For the state’s massive education land trust, which generates revenue from everything from mineral leases to grazing fees, using the broader term “earnings” is simply more accurate than the narrower term “interest.” This change doesn't alter how the money is calculated or how much money is generated; it just updates the legal terminology to better reflect the diverse sources of revenue flowing into the trust.

Why the Word Swap Matters

For most people, this change has zero daily impact. The money still flows into the same education accounts, and the local school district funding formula isn't changing because of this word swap. The real beneficiaries here are the state lawyers and administrators who manage the trust. By ensuring consistent terminology—always referring to the revenue as “earnings” rather than mixing in “interest” or “income”—it reduces the chance of administrative confusion or legal ambiguity down the road. It’s the legislative equivalent of standardizing file names across a massive database: boring, but essential for long-term stability and clarity.