11-40-105. Licensing; use of trademark; royalty.
(a) The committee may license any person to market Wyoming lean beef and use the label, trademark or trade name "Wyoming lean beef" who:
(i) Pays an annual licensing fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00);
(ii) Pays an additional annual licensing fee of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for each state or fraction thereof for which the licensee has obtained a geographically exclusive license;
(iii) Agrees to pay the royalty required by subsection (h) of this section;
(iv) Agrees to pay any additional royalty that may be established to support advertising and promotion programs;
(v) Agrees to abide by the standards established for Wyoming lean beef and to market no beef as Wyoming lean beef that fails to meet the standards;
(vi) Agrees to abide by applicable state and federal standards relating to public health and the slaughtering and preparation of meat for sale;
(vii) Agrees to abide by any other terms of the license the committee deems appropriate provided that the committee may make no term for the purpose of creating a monopoly in the marketing of Wyoming lean beef.
(b) The committee may give geographically exclusive licenses for markets outside Wyoming provided that the market shall not exceed the area the licensee can reasonably be expected to serve within a reasonable period of time and may be revoked in whole or in part for failure of the licensee to adequately supply the market with Wyoming lean beef. The committee may set specific volume of sales targets for the license to meet in order to retain a geographically exclusive license. If more than one (1) person applies for a geographically exclusive license for the same area the committee may divide the area or choose between the persons based on the criteria set forth in subsection (d) of this section.
(c) The issuance of a geographically exclusive license for a particular geographic area shall not prohibit other licensees from selling Wyoming lean beef directly to residents of the geographic area if the sales are for consumption and not for resale and are made within Wyoming or in response to mail or telephone solicitation originating within Wyoming or in response to an advertisement in a publication of national circulation. No geographically exclusive license shall include any of the state of Wyoming. No geographically exclusive license shall include more than twenty (20) of the states of the United States until the licensee has actually served the market within the states for which he is licensed.
(d) The committee may reject, restrict, accept, or accept in part an application for a license to market Wyoming lean beef, or may choose between competing applicants based upon:
(i) The financial strength of the applicant;
(ii) The marketing expertise of the applicant and his specific marketing plans;
(iii) The access of the applicant to a supply of Wyoming lean beef;
(iv) The prior experience of the applicant in relevant businesses; and
(v) Any other standards or criteria the committee deems appropriate.
(e) The committee may deny, revoke, suspend or limit the license of anyone who:
(i) Fails to abide by the provisions of subsection (a) of this section or any terms of the license;
(ii) Is convicted of violating the public health laws of the United States or any state;
(iii) Is convicted or has been convicted of any felony;
(iv) Willfully or unintentionally but repeatedly markets beef as Wyoming lean beef which does not meet the quality standards for Wyoming lean beef.
(f) Any retailer who is selling Wyoming lean beef furnished by any person licensed to sell Wyoming lean beef may use the "Wyoming lean beef" trademark or trade name in connection with any advertising or promotion of that beef. The committee may forbid licensees to furnish any Wyoming lean beef to any retailer who labels any other beef as Wyoming lean beef.
(g) The committee may seek through legal action monetary damages from any person labeling or selling as Wyoming lean beef any beef which does not meet the quality standards for Wyoming lean beef. Damages recovered may be used to reimburse the state for any expenses it may have incurred in connection with the case and may be used for advertising and promotion to overcome any damage to the public image of Wyoming lean beef.
(h) The committee shall annually set the royalty to be paid by licensees which shall be not less than fifty cents ($.50) per head and not more than five dollars ($5.00) per head and shall be designed to defray the expenses of the committee, the expenses of the inspection and enforcement program and give the state of Wyoming a return of eight percent (8%) per annum on the monies appropriated for the marketing of Wyoming lean beef by Chapter 199, Wyoming Session Laws 1985 and by any other legislative appropriation and spent by the University of Wyoming on the 1985 San Francisco simulated market test. The royalties shall be deposited in the general fund of the state except that fifty percent (50%) of any royalties in excess of the amount budgeted for the expenses of the committee, the inspection and enforcement program and repayment to the state shall be deposited in the University of Wyoming fund to the credit of the agricultural experiment station account.