COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 622
(By Senators McCabe, Foster, Hunter, Kessler, Barnes and
Oliverio)
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[Originating in the Committee on Economic Development;
reported February 20, 2008.]
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A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §5B-2G-1, §5B-2G-2,
§5B-2G-3, §5B-2G-4, §5B-2G-5, §5B-2G-6, §5B-2G-7, §5B-2G-8 and
§5B-2G-9; and to amend and reenact §59-1-10 of said code, all
relating generally to the Voluntary Rural and Outdoor Heritage
Conservation Act; establishing Outdoor Heritage Conservation
Fund; Board of Trustees created; funding of land conservation
and issuance of bonds; and deed recording fee increase to go
to Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund, Farmland Protection
Fund and clerk of county commission.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new article, designated §5B-2G-1, §5B-2G-2,
§5B-2G-3, §5B-2G-4, §5B-2G-5, §5B-2G-6, §5B-2G-7, §5B-2G-8 and
§5B-2G-9; and that §59-1-10 of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 5B. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1985.
ARTICLE 2G. LAND CONSERVATION.
§5B-2G-1. Short title.
This article shall be known as the "Voluntary Rural and
Outdoor Heritage Conservation Act".
§5B-2G-2. Legislative findings and purpose.
Legislative findings and purpose:
(a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that:
(1) The State of West Virginia's rural character, natural
wonders, scenic beauty, and recreational opportunities combine to
create an exceptional quality of life for its citizens;
(2) West Virginia's landscapes serve as an economic engine
supporting vibrant forest products, agricultural, hunting and
fishing, and tourism industries;
(3) West Virginia's unique and important lands are key to
attracting new businesses and knowledge workers who are mobile and
capable of doing business anywhere, and critical to diversifying
the economy of the State of West Virginia;
(4) West Virginia's unique and important lands provide all
West Virginians hunting, fishing, rafting, hiking and other
recreational opportunities important to their health and
well-being;
(5) West Virginia's unique and important lands are critical to
the continued health of the state's wildlife habitats and West Virginia's Wildlife Conservation Action Plan, mandated by the
United States Congress, recognizes that habitat loss is a key issue
confronting conservation of the state's valuable fish and wildlife
resources;
(6) The conversion of rural land to developed land in West
Virginia doubled between 1982 and 1997 (NRCS 2001);
(7) There is a critical need to invest in the conservation of
unique and important wildlife habitat, natural areas, forestlands,
farmland and lands for hunting, fishing and recreation; and
(8) It is critical to encourage cooperation and innovative
public-partnerships among landowners, state agencies, nonprofit
organizations, and others, which must work together in order to
conserve West Virginia's most important unique and rural lands.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to provide persons and
other entities an opportunity to voluntarily conserve land.
(c) Further, it is the intent of the Legislature to establish
a West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund, hereinafter
"Fund", to establish an ongoing funding source to conserve unique
and important wildlife habitat, natural areas, forests, working
lands, lands for hunting, fishing, and recreation, and other lands
important to West Virginians.
(d) The Legislature finds that an ongoing funding source to
conserve unique and important lands will help to ensure that
present and future generations of West Virginians are able to enjoy
the economic, quality of life, health, recreational, scenic, and
other benefits of conserved lands.
§5B-2G-3. West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund -
Established.
The West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund is
established within the Department of Commerce. The Fund has the
powers and duties provided in this article.
§5B-2G-4. West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund - Board
of Trustees.
(a)
Composition; chairman; quorum; qualifications. -- The Fund
shall be governed and administered by a board of trustees composed
of the director of the Division of Natural Resources and the
director of the Division of Forestry, who shall serve as voting ex
officio members, and nine voting members to be appointed by the
Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The ex
officio members may appoint designees to serve on the board of
trustees. One of the appointed members shall be a representative
of the West Virginia agricultural land protection authority; one of
the appointed members shall be a registered forester; three of the
appointed members shall be representatives of independent I.R.C.
501(c)(3) land trusts; two of the appointed members shall be
recognized professional experts in biology or ecology nominated by
the West Virginia Academy of Sciences; one of the appointed members
shall have demonstrated expertise in public health or public
recreation; and one of the appointed members shall be a
representative of sportsmen and sportswomen. A concerted effort
shall be made to appoint members who represent a cross-section of the State.
The board shall elect the chair and other officers as
necessary from among the nine appointed members. A majority of the
members of the board serving at any one time constitutes a quorum
for the transaction of business.
If any of the entities to be represented on the board under
this section ceases to exist, the Governor shall appoint a
representative with similar expertise from an entity with a
similar mission.
(b)
Terms. --
(1) The Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate,
shall appoint the nine members for the following terms:
(A) Three for a term of four years;
(B) Three for a term of three years; and
© Three for a term of two years.
(2) Successors to appointed members whose terms expire shall
be appointed for terms of four years. Vacancies shall be filled
for the unexpired term. An appointed member may not serve more
than two successive terms. Appointment to fill a vacancy may not
be considered as one of two terms.
©
Oath. --
Appointed members shall take the oath of office as prescribed
by law.
(d)
Recusal. --
A board member shall recuse himself or herself from any vote
in which he or she has a conflict of interest. The provisions of this subsection is in addition to any other provisions of law or
applicable rules relating to the ethics of public officers or
employees.
(e)
Compensation and expenses. --
Members shall not receive compensation. Each member of the
board shall receive expense reimbursement from the Fund for actual
reasonable and necessary expenses incurred while engaged in the
discharge of official duties, the actual expenses not to exceed the
amount paid for similar reimbursement to members of the
Legislature.
§5B-2G-5. West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund -
Powers.
The board has the following general powers on behalf of the
Fund:
(a)
Power to sue. -- To sue and be sued in contractual matters
in its own name;
(b)
Power to contract. -- To enter into contracts generally
and to execute all instruments necessary or appropriate to carry
out its purposes;
©
Power to conserve land. -- To acquire interests in real
property for conservation purposes;
(d)
Power to transfer. -- To transfer interests in real
property for conservation purposes.
(e)
Power to disburse grants. -- To act as a granting
authority to award grants to eligible grant recipients in accordance with section nine of this article.
(f)
Power to seek funding. -- To apply for and receive funding
from any and all state, federal and private sources to be used as
provided in this chapter.
(g)
Power to authorize bond issuance. -- To direct the
Economic Development Authority to issue revenue bonds payable from
the portion of the recording fee imposed in section ten, article
one, chapter fifty-nine of this code to be allocated to the Fund
and any other special revenue made against to the Fund for this
purpose in accordance with section eight of this article or other
provisions of this code.
§5B-2G-6. West Virginia Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund -
Duties.
The board shall on behalf of the Fund:
(a) Disseminate information regarding land conservation and
promote the conservation of land;
(b) Develop and implement additional guidelines and
procedures, consistent with the purposes of this chapter, as
necessary to implement this chapter.
© Seek and apply for funds from federal, state and private
sources to carry out its purpose as provided in this chapter.
(d) From moneys received from the recording fee in accordance
with section ten, article one, chapter fifty-nine of this code,
to:
(1) Make available to the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources fifty percent of the moneys so received by the Fund, for
the division to acquire interests in real property for conservation
purposes in perpetuity in keeping with the West Virginia Wildlife
Conservation Action Plan or other conservation plans developed by
the division, provided that the board approves any acquisitions.
The division may agree to permit the Fund to retain any or all of
this fifty percent to remain in the Fund to be used as payment of
debt service and other costs associated with revenue bonds on the
Fund's behalf by the Economic Development Authority in accordance
with the provisions of this article;
(2) Insure that the remaining fifty percent of the moneys so
received by the Fund are used for competitive grants in accordance
with this article, or used as payment of debt service and other
costs associated with revenue bonds on the Fund's behalf by the
Economic Development Authority in accordance with the provisions of
this article, the proceeds of which shall also be used for such
competitive grants.
(e) Prepare and file electronically with the Governor's office
and with the Legislature by the thirty-first day of August of each
year a report that accounts for Fund receipts and disbursals and
sets forth a list and description of all grants approved and all
acquisitions of interests in real property obtained with moneys
from the Fund during the current year, including the recipients of
the grants, the amounts, and the public benefits of the interests
in real property acquired.
(f) Propose rules for legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to
carry out its purposes and programs, to include specifically the
qualifications and procedures relating to its awarding of grants.
§5B-2G-7. Definitions.
For purposes of this article, the following terms have the
meanings set forth in this section.
(a) "Board" means the board of trustees established in section
three of this article.
(b) "Conservation easement" means a nonpossessory interest in
real property as defined in section three, article twelve, chapter
twenty of this code, except that a conservation easement acquired
pursuant to this article shall be held in perpetuity.
© "Conservation purposes" means the conservation of land for
outdoor recreation by the public, for conservation of natural plant
and wildlife habitat or similar ecosystem, for conservation of
forestland and other open spaces, for conservation of land of
historical or cultural significance, or as further defined under
conservation criteria developed in this article.
(d) "Eligible grant recipient" means:
(1) The following state agencies:
(A) Division of Natural Resources;
(B) Division of Forestry; or
(2) A charitable corporation, charitable association or
charitable trust registered with the Secretary of State and exempt
from taxation pursuant to section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 [Public Law 99-514, 26 U.S.C. §501 (c)(3)], or other federal or state statutes or rules, the purposes or powers of
which include retaining or protecting the natural, scenic,
agricultural or open-space values of real property; assuring the
availability of real property for agricultural, forest,
recreational, or open-space use; protecting natural resources and
wildlife; maintaining or enhancing land, air, or water quality; or
preserving the historical, architectural, archaeological or
cultural aspects of real property, as defined in section three,
article twelve, chapter twenty of this code.
(e) "Fund" means the West Virginia Outdoor Heritage
Conservation Fund established in this article.
(f) "Land conservation" means acquisition of interests in real
property for conservation purposes.
(g) "Stewardship" means the necessary monitoring, maintenance,
and enforcement of interests in real property for conservation
purposes.
§5B-2G-8. Funding of land conservation; issuance of revenue bonds.
(a)
Fund. --
(1)
Created. -- The West Virginia Outdoor Heritage
Conservation Fund is created for the purposes specified in this
article.
(2)
Sources. -- The West Virginia Outdoor Heritage
Conservation Fund is comprised of:
(A) Any money made available to the Fund by general or special
fund appropriations;
(B) Any money made available to the fund by grants or
transfers from governmental or private sources;
© Any money realized by investments, interest, dividends or
distributions;
(D) Any money received from the issuance of revenue bonds in
accordance with the provisions of this article; and
(E) Any money received from fees under section ten, article
one, chapter fifty-nine of this code.
(3)
Disbursements. -- The treasurer may not disburse any money
from the fund other than:
(A) For costs associated with the staffing, administration,
and technical and legal duties of the Fund;
(B) For reasonable and necessary expenses incurred by the
members of the board of trustees of the Fund in the performance of
official duties;
© For costs associated with the acquisition of interests in
real property for conservation purposes and for costs associated
with stewardship authorized by this article;
(D) For grants to be awarded in accordance with section nine
of this article.
(E) For payment of debt service and other costs associated
with revenue bonds issued on the Fund's behalf by the Economic
Development Authority; and
(F) Of revenue received directly or indirectly from the
recording fee under section ten, article one, chapter fifty-nine of
this code and not used for the payment of revenue bonds and expenses associated therewith, for purposes consistent with the
duties of the Fund set forth in this article,
(4)
Money remaining at end of fiscal year. -- Any money
remaining in the Fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert
to the General Revenue Fund of the state, but shall remain in the
Fund to be used for the purposes specified in this article.
(5)
Budget. -- The estimated budget of the Fund for the next
fiscal year shall be included with the budget of the West Virginia
Department of Commerce.
(6)
Audit. -- The Fund shall be audited annually.
(b)
Bonds. --
The Legislature finds and declares that in order to attract
new business, commerce and industry to this state, to retain
existing business and industry providing the citizens of this state
with economic security and to advance the business prosperity of
this state and the economic welfare of the citizens of this state,
it is necessary to provide public financial support for land
conservation as provided in this article.
(1) The West Virginia Economic Development Authority created
and provided in article fifteen, chapter thirty-one of this code
shall, by resolution, in accordance with the provisions of this
article and article fifteen, chapter thirty-one of this code, and
upon direction of the board of the Outdoor Heritage Conservation
Fund, issue revenue bonds of the Economic Development Authority to
pay for all or a portion of the cost of the acquisition of
interests in real property for conservation purposes authorized under this article or to refund the bonds at the discretion of the
Fund. Such revenue bonds shall mature at a time or times not
exceeding thirty years from their respective dates. The principal
of, and the interest and redemption premium, if any, on the bonds
shall be payable from the moneys deposited in the Fund pursuant to
section ten, article one, chapter fifty-nine of this code, or from
other sources identified by the board of the Fund.
(2) There is established in the State Treasury a special
revenue fund named the "Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund" into
which shall be deposited on and after the first day of July, two
thousand eight, the amounts to be deposited in the Fund as
specified in this article. The Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund
shall consist of all such moneys, all appropriations to the Fund,
all interest earned from investment of the Fund and any gifts,
grants or contributions received by the Fund. All amounts
deposited in the Fund pursuant to section ten, article one, chapter
fifty-nine of this code, shall be pledged to the repayment of the
principal, interest and redemption premium, if any, on any revenue
bonds or refunding revenue bonds authorized by this section,
including any and all commercially customary and reasonable costs
and expenses which may be incurred in connection with the issuance,
refunding, redemption or defeasance thereof. The West Virginia
Economic Development Authority may further provide in the
resolution and in the trust agreement for priorities on the
revenues paid into the Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund pursuant
to section ten, article one, chapter fifty-nine of this code, as may be necessary for the protection of the prior rights of the
holders of bonds issued at different times under the provisions of
this section. The bonds issued pursuant to this subsection shall
be separate from all other bonds which may be or have been issued
from time to time under the provisions of this article.
(3) Bonds issued under this subsection shall state on their
face that the bonds do not constitute a debt of the State of West
Virginia; that payment of the bonds, interest and charges thereon
cannot become an obligation of the State of West Virginia; and that
the bondholders' remedies are limited in all respects to the
"special revenue fund" established in this subsection for the
liquidation of the bonds.
(4) The West Virginia Economic Development Authority shall
expend the bond proceeds from the revenue bond issues authorized
and directed by this section for such projects as may be certified
by the board of the Fund under the provisions of this article as
serving a public purpose and meeting the criteria established by
this article.
(5) If any proceeds from sale of bonds remain after paying
costs and making grants as provided in this subsection, the surplus
may be used as elsewhere provided in this article.
§5B-2G-9. Grants for land conservation; application; criteria.
(a) An eligible grant recipient may apply for a grant from the
Fund to acquire interests in real property for conservation
purposes or for stewardship. An application may not be submitted
to the Fund without the written consent of the owner of the interest in real property identified in the application.
(b) Before applying for a grant, the eligible grant recipient
shall notify the owner that is the subject of the grant of the
following in writing:
(1) That interests in real property acquired with a grant from
the Fund result in a permanent conveyance of such interests in real
property from the owner to the eligible grant recipient or its
assigns; and
(2) That it may be in the owner's interest to retain
independent legal counsel, appraisals, and other professional
advice.
The application shall contain an affirmation that the notice
requirement of this subsection has been met.
© Grants from the Fund shall be awarded based upon the
conservation criteria and financial criteria contained in this
section. In each application, the eligible grant recipient shall
provide information regarding how the proposal meets one or more of
these criteria and advances the purposes of this article.
(d) For purposes of this article, conservation criteria
include:
(1) Unique or important wildlife habitat as specified in the
State Wildlife Conservation Action Plan;
(2) Habitat for rare, threatened, or endangered species;
(3) A relatively undisturbed or outstanding example of an
ecosystem or natural community indigenous to West Virginia;
(4) An important area for public hunting, fishing, or other outdoor recreational uses;
(5) Important recreation lands or important habitats
identified in county comprehensive plans;
(6) Riparian habitats, wetlands, water quality, watersheds of
significant ecological value, or critical aquifer recharge areas;
(7) Forestland or working land that has strategic economic
significance;
(8) A larger area containing conserved lands or as a
connection between conserved lands;
(9) Land of unique cultural, historical or archaeological
significance;
(10) Degree of threat to land; and
(11) The number of acres of land to be conserved.
(e) For purposes of this article, financial criteria include:
(1) The degree to which the proposal leverages grants from the
Fund by including funding or in-kind assets or services from other
governmental sources; and
(2) The degree to which the proposal leverages grants from the
Fund by including funding or in-kind assets or services from
private or nonprofit sources, or charitable donations, including
bargain sales of interests in real property for conservation
purposes;
(f) The board of the Fund shall evaluate each proposal
according to the conservation criteria and financial criteria set
forth in this section, and shall award grants on the basis of how
well proposals meet these two criteria.
(g) If an eligible grant recipient entity is dissolved or
ceases to exist as an entity, or if any interests in real property
obtained with a grant from the Fund are not being utilized strictly
for conservation purposes, the real property interest shall vest in
the Fund upon recording of a notice signed by the chair of the Fund
and filed with the clerk of the appropriate county, and the Fund
may transfer the interest to an appropriate eligible grant
recipient.
CHAPTER 59. FEES, ALLOWANCES AND COSTS;
NEWSPAPERS; LEGAL ADVERTISEMENTS.
ARTICLE 1. FEES AND ALLOWANCES.
§59-1-10. Fees to be charged by clerk of county commission.
For the purpose of this section, the word "page" is defined as
being a paper or electronic writing of not more than legal size, 8
½'' x 14''.
The clerk of the county commission shall charge and collect the
following fees:
(a) When a writing is admitted to record, for receiving proof
of acknowledgment thereof, entering an order in connection
therewith, endorsing clerk's certificate of recordation thereon and
indexing in a proper index, where the writing is a:
(1) Deed of conveyance (with or without a plat), trust deed,
release of trust deed, fixture filing or security agreement
concerning real estate lease.........................$30.00
(2) Financing, continuation, termination or other statement or writing permitted to be filed under chapter forty-six of this
code........................................................$10.00
(3) Plat or map (with no deed of conveyance)...........$10.00
(4) Service discharge recordNo Charge
(5) Any document or writing other than those referenced in
subdivisions (1), (2), (3) and (4) of this subsection .........$5.00
(6) If any document or writing contains more than five pages,
for each additional page.....................................$1.00
(7) Eleven dollars of the recording fee received pursuant to
subdivision (1) of this subsection shall be retained by the county
clerk for the operation of that office, and nineteen dollars of this
recording fee shall be paid by the county clerk into the State
Treasury which shall divide the revenue into equal amounts for
deposit into the Farmland Protection Fund created in article twelve,
chapter eight-a of this code for the benefit of the West Virginia
Agricultural Land Protection Authority and for deposit into the
Outdoor Heritage Conservation Fund created in article two-g, chapter
five-b of this code.
For any of the documents admitted to record pursuant to this
subsection, if the clerk of the county commission has the technology
available to receive these documents in electronic form or other
media, the clerk shall set a reasonable fee to record these writings
not to exceed the cost for filing paper documents.
(b) For administering any oath other than oaths by officers and
employees of the state, political subdivisions of the state, or a
public or quasi-public entity of the state or a political subdivision of the state, taken in his or her official capacity
...$5.00
© For issuance of marriage license and other duties pertaining
to the marriage license (including preparation of the application,
administrating the oath, registering and recording the license,
mailing acknowledgment of minister's return to one of the licensees
and notification to a licensee after sixty days of the nonreceipt
of the minister's return)........................$35.00
(1) One dollar of the marriage license fee received pursuant
to this subsection shall be paid by the county clerk into the State
Treasury as a state registration fee in the same manner that license
taxes are paid into the Treasury under article twelve, chapter
eleven of this code;
(2) Fifteen dollars of the marriage license fee received
pursuant to this subsection shall be paid by the county clerk into
the State Treasury for the Family Protection Shelter Support Act in
the same manner that license taxes are paid into the Treasury under
article twelve, chapter eleven of this code;
(3) Ten dollars of the marriage license fee received pursuant
to this subsection shall be deposited in the Courthouse Facilities
Improvement Fund created by section six, article twenty-six, chapter
twenty-nine of this code.
(d) (1) For a copy of any writing or document, if it is not
otherwise provided for.......................................$1.50
(2) If the copy of the writing or document contains more than
two pages, for each additional page...........................$1.00
(3) For annexing the seal of the commission or clerk to any
paper .......................................................$1.00
(4) For a certified copy of a birth certificate, death
certificate or marriage license..............................$5.00
(e) For copies of any record in electronic form or a medium
other than paper, a reasonable fee set by the clerk of the county
commission not to exceed the costs associated with document search
and duplication.