H. B.2798
(By Delegates Boggs, Craig, Browning, Amores,
Varner, Cann and Ashley )
[Introduced ; Referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §61-3-49 of the code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to establishing the crime of
purchasing scrap railroad steel without making a record of
such purchase; and setting forth a penalty.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §61-3-49 of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as
amended, be amended and reenacted, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY.
§61-3-49. Purchase of nonferrous metals
or steel railroad track by
scrap metal purchasing businesses, salvage yards, or
recycling facilities; certificates, records and
reports of such purchases; criminal penalties.
(a) Any person in the business of purchasing scrap metal, any
salvage yard owner or operator, or any public or commercial
recycling facility owner or operator, or any agent or employee
thereof, who purchases any form of copper, aluminum, brass, lead or
other nonferrous metal of any kind,
or steel railroad track and
track material, shall make a record of such purchase. Such record shall accurately list the name, permanent and business addresses
and telephone number of the seller, the motor vehicle license
number of any vehicle used to transport the nonferrous metal
or
steel railroad track and track material to the place of purchase,
the time and date of the transaction and a complete description of
the kind and character of the nonferrous metal
or steel railroad
track and track material purchased. The person purchasing the
nonferrous metal
or steel railroad track and track material shall
also require from the seller, and retain in the record, a signed
certificate of ownership of the nonferrous metal
or steel railroad
track and track material being sold or authorization from the owner
to sell. It shall be unlawful for any of the aforementioned
persons to purchase any nonferrous metal
or steel railroad track
and track material without obtaining the certificate of ownership,
or authorization from the owner to sell, on the part of the seller.
Such record and certificate shall be available for inspection by
any law-enforcement officer and must be maintained by the purchaser
for not less than one year after the date of the purchase.
(b) Should the transaction involve one hundred or more pounds
of copper
, steel railroad track or aluminum, in any form, the
purchaser of the copper
, steel railroad track or aluminum, or his
or her agent, shall report in writing to the chief of police of the
municipality or the sheriff of the county wherein he or she is
transacting business and to the local detachment of the division of
public safety all the information obtained. The report must be
filed within seventy-two hours after the transaction. The provisions of this subsection do not apply to purchases made at
wholesale under contract or as a result of a bidding process.
(c) Nothing in this section applies to scrap purchases by
manufacturing facilities that melt, or otherwise alter the form of
scrap metal and transform it into a new product or to the purchase
or transportation of food and beverage containers or other
nonindustrial materials having a marginal value per individual
unit.
(d) Any person
violating who knowingly or with fraudulent
intent violates any of the provisions of this section, including
the knowing
failure to make a report or the knowing falsification
of any required information, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon
conviction, shall be fined not less than five hundred nor more than
two thousand dollars.
Note: The purpose of this bill is to require reports from
those persons buying scrap steel railroad track.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.