Senate Bill No. 287
(By Senator Deem)
____________
[Introduced March 11, 1997; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
____________
A BILL to amend and reenact section five, article six, chapter
eight of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to municipal
corporations; and annexation by minor boundary adjustment
that includes annexation of territory that is surrounded by
the municipal corporation.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section five, article six, chapter eight of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 6. ANNEXATION.
PART IV. ANNEXATION BY MINOR BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT.
§8-6-5. Annexation by minor boundary adjustment.
In the event a municipality desires to increase its corporate limits by making a minor boundary adjustment, the
governing body of such the municipality may apply to the county
commission of the county wherein the municipality or the major
portion of the territory thereof, including the territory to be
annexed, is located for permission to effect such annexation by
minor boundary adjustment.
Such The application shall disclose the number of persons
residing in the territory to be annexed to the corporate limits
by the proposed change, and shall have attached thereto an
accurate map showing the metes and bounds of such the additional
territory.
If satisfied that the proposed annexation is only a minor
boundary adjustment or the proposed annexation is territory that
is surrounded by the municipality, the county commission shall
order publication of a notice of the proposed annexation to the
corporate limits and of the date and time set by the commission
for a hearing on such the proposal. Publication shall be as in
the case of an order calling for an election, as set forth in
section two of this article. A like notice shall be prominently
posted at not less than five public places within the area
proposed to be annexed.
If the freeholders of the area proposed to be annexed who
are present or are represented at the hearing are not substantially opposed to the proposed boundary change, the
commission may enter an order changing the corporate limits of
the municipality as requested, which order may be reviewed by the
circuit court as an order of a county commission ordering an
election may be reviewed under section sixteen, article five of
this chapter. After the date of such order, the corporate limits
of the municipality shall be as set forth therein, unless
judicial review is sought under the provisions of said section
sixteen. If the proposed change is substantially opposed at the
hearing by any such freeholder, the commission shall dismiss the
application. Dismissal of any such application shall does not
preclude proceedings in accordance with the provisions of
sections two and three or section four of this article. The
municipality shall pay the costs of all proceedings under this
section. If the proposed change involves the proposed annexation
of territory that is surrounded by the municipality, the
municipality may proceed in accordance with the provisions of
sections two and three of this article insofar as the publication
and election requirements apply.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to permit a municipality
to annex territory that is surrounded by that municipality
without an application or petition first filed by the freehold
residents of that territory.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.