Email
FISCAL NOTE
2024 REGULAR SESSION
Introduced
Senate Bill 181
By Senators Stuart, Chapman, Deeds, and Woodrum
A BILL to amend and reenact §17A-3-14g of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §18B-10-7e; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new article, designated §29-37-1, §29-37-2, and §29-37-3, all relating to establishing the First Responder Financial Assistance Act; creating a surcharge for the purpose of vanity license plate purchases to be deposited into the First Responder Financial Assistance Fund; providing for a tuition waiver for first responders; providing for definitions; establishing the act; providing certain benefits for first responders; and providing a fund for the act.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
(a) The division may issue special emergency or volunteer registration plates as follows:
(1) Any owner of a motor vehicle who is a resident of the State of West Virginia and who is a certified paramedic or emergency medical technician, member of a paid fire department, member of the State Fire Commission, the State Fire Marshal, State Fire Marshal assistant, State Fire Administrator, or voluntary rescue squad member may apply for a special license plate for any number of Class A vehicles titled in the name of the qualified applicant which bears the insignia of the profession, group, or commission. Any insignia shall be designed by the commissioner. License plates issued pursuant to this subsection shall bear the requested insignia in addition to the registration number issued to the applicant pursuant to the provisions of this article.
(2) Each application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall be accompanied by an affidavit signed by the fire chief or department head of the applicant stating that the applicant is justified in having a registration with the requested insignia, proof of compliance with all laws of this state regarding registration and licensure of motor vehicles, and payment of all required fees.
(3) Each application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall be accompanied by payment of a special initial application fee of $10, which is in addition to all other fees required by this chapter. All special fees shall be collected by the division and deposited into the State Road Fund.
(b) The division may issue special certified firefighter registration plates as follows:
(1) Any owner of a motor vehicle who is a resident of the State of West Virginia and who is a certified firefighter may apply for a special license plate that bears the insignia of the profession for any number of Class A vehicles titled in the name of the qualified applicant. Any insignia shall be designed by the commissioner. License plates issued pursuant to this subsection shall bear the requested insignia pursuant to the provisions of this article. Upon presentation of written evidence of certification as a certified firefighter, certified firefighters are eligible to purchase the special registration plate issued pursuant to this subsection.
(2) Each application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall be accompanied by an affidavit stating that the applicant is justified in having a registration with the requested insignia, proof of compliance with all laws of this state regarding registration and licensure of motor vehicles, and payment of all required fees. The firefighter certification department, section, or division of the West Virginia University fire service extension shall notify the commissioner in writing immediately when a firefighter loses his or her certification. If a firefighter loses his or her certification, the commissioner may not issue him or her a license plate under this subsection.
(3) Each application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall be accompanied by payment of a special initial application fee of $10, which is in addition to all other fees required by this chapter. All special fees shall be collected by the division and deposited into the State Road Fund.
(c) The division may issue special volunteer firefighter registration plates as follows:
(1) Any owner of a motor vehicle who is a resident of West Virginia and who is a volunteer firefighter may apply for a special license plate for any Class A vehicle titled in the name of the qualified applicant which bears the insignia of the profession in white letters on a red background. The insignia shall be designed by the commissioner and shall contain a fireman’s helmet insignia on the left side of the license plate.
(2) Each application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall be accompanied by an affidavit signed by the applicant’s fire chief, stating that the applicant is a volunteer firefighter and is justified in having a registration plate with the requested insignia. The applicant must comply with all other laws of this state regarding registration and licensure of motor vehicles and must pay all required fees.
(3) Each application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall be accompanied by payment of a special one-time initial application fee of $10, which is in addition to all other fees required by this chapter. All application fees shall be deposited into the State Road Fund.
(d) The division may issue special registration plates to applicants supporting law-enforcement officers, to retired members of the West Virginia State Police, and to survivors of wounds received in the line of duty as a member with a West Virginia law-enforcement agency as follows:
(1) Upon appropriate application, the division shall issue a special registration plate designed by the commissioner which recognizes, supports, and honors the men and women of law-enforcement and includes the words Back the Blue. Upon appropriate application, the division shall issue to any member of a municipal police department, sheriff’s department, the State Police, or the law-enforcement division of the Division of Natural Resources who has been wounded in the line of duty and awarded a Purple Heart in recognition thereof by the West Virginia Chiefs of Police Association, the West Virginia Sheriffs’ Association, the West Virginia Troopers Association, or the Division of Natural Resources a special registration plate for one vehicle titled in the name of the qualified applicant with an insignia appropriately designed by the commissioner.
(2) For special registration plates supporting law-enforcement officers, the division shall charge a special initial application fee of $10 in addition to all other fees required by this chapter. This special fee shall be collected by the division and deposited in the State Road Fund. An annual fee of $15 shall be charged for each plate supporting law-enforcement officers in addition to all other fees required by this chapter.
(3) Registration plates issued pursuant to this subsection to survivors of wounds received in the line of duty as a member with a West Virginia law-enforcement agency are exempt from the registration fees otherwise required by the provisions of this chapter. A surviving spouse may continue to use his or her deceased spouse’s special registration plate until the surviving spouse dies, remarries, or does not renew the plate. Survivors of wounds received in the line of duty as a member with a West Virginia law-enforcement agency may obtain a license plate as described in this subsection for use on a passenger vehicle titled in the name of the qualified applicant. The division shall charge for the second plate a one-time fee of $10, to be deposited into the State Road Fund, which is in addition to all other fees required by this chapter.
(4) Upon appropriate application, the division may issue special registration plates designed by the commissioner for any number of vehicles titled in the name of the qualified applicant who offers sufficient proof of being a retired member of the West Virginia State Police. The division shall charge a special initial application fee of $10 in addition to all other fees required by this chapter. This special fee shall be collected by the division and deposited in the State Road Fund.
(5) Additionally, there is established a $10 surcharge for the purchase of a vanity license plate under this section to be deposited into the First Responder Financial Assistance Fund set forth in §29-37-3 of this code. This surcharge shall be separate from the other fees established in this section.
The governing boards shall make provision for institutions under their respective jurisdictions to award a tuition and fee waiver for undergraduate courses at state institutions of higher education for any student who is a first responder, as otherwise set forth in §29-37-1 of this code. The first responder must provide proof of their employment as a first responder as defined in §29-37-1 of this code.
To be eligible for a waiver award, a student must first: (1) Apply to and be accepted at the institution; and (2) apply for other student financial assistance, other than student loans, in compliance with federal financial aid rules, including the federal Pell grant.
Waiver renewal is contingent upon the student continuing to meet the academic progress standards established by the institution.
The waiver provided by this section for each eligible student may be used for no more than four years of undergraduate study. An initial waiver must be granted within two years of graduation from high school or passing the GED examination.
The waiver may only be used after other sources of financial aid that are dedicated solely to tuition and fees are exhausted.
Any award under this section is in addition to the number of fee waivers permitted in sections five and six of this article for undergraduate, graduate and professional schools.
No student who is enrolled in an institution of higher education as of the effective date of this section is eligible for a waiver award under the provisions of this section.
The governing boards may establish any limitations on the provisions of this section as they consider proper.
(a) "First responders" shall include, but are not limited to, emergency medical technicians, firefighters, law-enforcement officers, neighborhood assistance officers, and paramedics.
(b) "Medical or emergency responders" means paid or volunteer firefighters, law-enforcement officers, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, or other emergency service personnel, providers, or entities acting within the usual course of their duties.
(a) There is hereby created the First Responder Financial Assistance Act.
(b) This article shall provide educational assistance for first responders, as set forth in §18B-10-7e of this code.
(c) Additionally, this article shall provide the following financial assistance to first responders:
(1) Childcare assistance;
(2) Retention bonuses; and
(3) Retirement supplements.
(e) The Department of Homeland Security shall be responsible for administering the benefits set forth in this article, with funding coming from §29-37-3 of this code.
(a) There is hereby created in the State Treasury a special revenue account to be known as the First Responder Financial Assistance Fund. The fund shall be administered by the Department of Homeland Security. The fund shall consist of all moneys that may be appropriated and designated for the fund by the Legislature, and all interest or other return earned from investment of the fund. The fund may receive any appropriations, gifts, grants, contributions, or other money from any source that is designated for deposit into the fund.
(b) Expenditures from the fund shall be for the purposes set forth in this article and are not authorized from collections but are to be made only in accordance with appropriation by the Legislature. Any balance, including accrued interest and other returns, remaining in the fund at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the General Revenue Fund, but shall remain in the fund and be expended as provided by this section.
(c) The amount of the surcharge collected from vanity license plates as otherwise set forth in §17A-3-14g of this code shall also be deposited into this fund.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to establish the First Responder Financial Assistance Act. The bill creates a surcharge for the purpose of vanity license plate purchases to be deposited into the First Responder Financial Assistance Fund. The bill provides for a tuition waiver for first responders. The bill provides for definitions. The bill establishes the Act and provides certain benefits for first responders. Finally, the bill establishes a fund for the Act.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
Webmaster | © 2024 West Virginia Legislature **
