H. B. 2891
(By Delegate L. Smith)
[Introduced February 24, 1999; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article one, chapter
seven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact
section five-a, article twelve, chapter eight of said code,
all relating to restricting the power of counties and
municipalities to control the purchase, possession,
transfer, carrying, transport, sale and storage of certain
weapons and ammunition; and providing certain exceptions
thereto.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article one, chapter seven of the code
of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section five-a,
article twelve, chapter eight of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 7. COUNTY COMMISSIONS AND OFFICERS.
ARTICLE 1. COUNTY COMMISSIONS GENERALLY.
§7-1-3. Jurisdiction, powers and duties.
The county commissions, through their clerks, shall have the
custody of all deeds and other papers presented for record in
their counties and the same shall be preserved therein, or
otherwise disposed of as now is, or may be prescribed by law.
They shall have jurisdiction in all matters of probate, the
appointment and qualification of personal representatives,
guardians, committees, curators and the settlement of their
accounts and in all matters relating to apprentices. They shall
also, under
such regulations the rules as now are or may be
prescribed by law, have the superintendence and administration of
the internal police and fiscal affairs of their counties,
including the establishment and regulation of roads, ways,
streets, avenues, drives and the like, and the naming or renaming
thereof, in cooperation with local postal authorities, the
division of highways and the directors of county emergency
communications centers, to assure uniform, nonduplicative
conversion of all rural routes to city-type addressing on a
permanent basis, bridges, public landings, ferries and mills,
with authority to lay and disburse the county levies. They shall, in all cases of contest, judge of the election,
qualification and returns of their own members, and of all county
and district officers, subject to appeal as prescribed by law.
Such The tribunals as have been heretofore established by the
Legislature under and by virtue of section thirty-four, article
VIII of the constitution of one thousand eight hundred seventy- two, for police and fiscal purposes, shall, until otherwise
provided by law, remain and continue as at present constituted in
the counties in which they have been respectively established,
and shall be and act as to police and fiscal matters in lieu of
the county commission herein mentioned, until otherwise provided
by law. And until otherwise provided by law,
such the clerk as
is mentioned in section twenty-six, article VIII of the
constitution, as amended, shall exercise any powers and discharge
any duties heretofore conferred on, or required of, any court or
tribunal established for judicial purposes under said section of
the constitution of one thousand eight hundred seventy-two, or
the clerk of
such the court or tribunal, respectively, respecting
the recording and preservation of deeds and other papers
presented for record, matters of probate, the appointment and
qualification of personal representatives, guardians, committees,
curators and the settlement of their accounts and in all matters
relating to apprentices.
The county commission may not limit the
right of any person to purchase, possess, transfer, own, carry, transport, sell or store any revolver, pistol, rifle or shotgun
or any ammunition or ammunition components to be used therewith
nor to so regulate the keeping of gunpowder so as to, directly or
indirectly, prohibit the ownership of the ammunition: Provided,
That no provision in this section may be construed to limit the
authority of a county to restrict the commercial use of real
estate in designated areas through planning or zoning ordinances.
CHAPTER 8. MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS.
ARTICLE 12. GENERAL AND SPECIFIC POWERS, DUTIES AND ALLIED RELATIONS OF MUNICIPALITIES, GOVERNING BODIES AND MUNICIPAL OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES; SUITS AGAINST MUNICIPALITIES.
§8-12-5a. Limitations upon municipalities' power to restrict the
purchase, possession, transfer, ownership, carrying,
transport, sale and storage of certain weapons and ammunition.
The provisions of section five of this article
notwithstanding, neither a municipality nor the governing body of
any municipality
shall have the power to may limit the right of
any person to
purchase, possess, transfer, own,
carry, transport,
sell or store any revolver, pistol, rifle or shotgun or any
ammunition or ammunition components to be used therewith nor to
so regulate the keeping of gunpowder so as to directly or indirectly prohibit the ownership of
such the ammunition.
Nothing herein shall in any way impair the authority of any
municipality, or the governing body thereof, to enact any
ordinance or resolution respecting the power to arrest, convict
and punish any individual under the provisions of subdivision
(16), section five of this article or from enforcing any such
ordinance or resolution:
Provided, That any municipal ordinance
in place as of the effective date of this section shall be
excepted from the provisions of this section: Provided, however,
That no provision in this section may be construed to limit the
authority of a municipality to restrict the commercial use of
real estate in designated areas through planning or zoning
ordinances.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to restrict the power of
counties and municipalities to control the purchase and
possession of certain weapons and ammunition. Municipal
ordinances currently in effect are exempted from the provisions
of this bill.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.