39-17-102. Administration; confidentiality.

(a) The administration of this article is vested in the department which shall prescribe the reporting format and forms for the making of returns, and assessment and collection of license taxes and fees hereby imposed. The department shall promulgate rules and regulations consistent with the provisions hereof as provided by the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act necessary to the enforcement of the provisions of this article. All tax returns and records are open to examination by the director of the state department of audit or his deputies.

(b) No state employee who by virtue of his employment has knowledge of the business affairs of any person filing or required to file any tax returns under this article shall make known its contents in any manner or permit any person to have access to any returns or information contained therein except as provided by law or in the following cases:

(i) The delivery to the taxpayer or his legal representatives upon written request of a copy of any return or report in connection with his tax;

(ii) The publication of statistics so classified to prevent the identification of particular returns or reports;

(iii) The inspection by the attorney general of the report or return of any person who brings an action against the state, or against whom an action is contemplated or has been instituted;

(iv) The introduction into evidence of any report or return or information therefrom in any administrative or court proceeding to which the person making the report or return is a party;

(v) The furnishing of any information to the United States government and its territories, the District of Columbia, any state allowing similar privileges to the department or to the multistate tax commission for relay to tax officials of cooperating states. Information furnished shall be only for tax purposes;

(vi) The inspection of tax returns and records by the department of audit.

(c) Any person who violates subsection (b) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), imprisoned for not more than one (1) year, or both.