Under the proposal, the state - which leads the nation in uranium production - would invest about $1.4 million for the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality to set up rules and staff to meet Nuclear Regulatory Commission requirements, the Associated Press reported : DEQ Director Todd Parfitt said it could take four to six years for the agency to fully take over the job and get NRC approval. Once the state takes over responsibility, Wyoming would collect fees from the industry to cover its costs of regulating mining.