Senate Bill No. 512
(By Senator Plymale)
____________
[Introduced March 24, 1997; referred to the Committee
on Finance.]
____________
A BILL to amend and reenact section five, article five, chapter
eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to exempting county
boards of education from the obligation of paying certain
charges for municipal services; and making certain findings
relating to the same.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section five, article five, chapter eighteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-5-5. Corporate character and general powers of board;
exemption of school property from legal process and
taxes.
The county board of education shall be a corporation by the
name of "The board of education of the county of ..........," and
as such may sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, contract and
be contracted with. It shall succeed and be subrogated to all
the rights of former magisterial and independent district boards
and may institute and maintain any and all actions, suits and
proceedings now pending or which might have been brought and
prosecuted in the name of any former board for the recovery of
any money or property, or damage to any property due to or vested
in the former board, and shall also be liable in its corporate
capacity for all claims legally existing against the board of
which it is a successor. The board shall, according to law, hold
and dispose of any real estate or personal property belonging to
the former corporation or its predecessors, or that may hereafter
come into its possession.
The board according to law and the intent of the instrument
conferring title, shall receive, hold and dispose of any gift,
grant or bequest.
All public school property used for school purposes shall be
exempt from execution or other process, and free from lien or
distress for taxes or municipal, county or state levies:
Provided, That the Legislature finds that, because of their
respective potential for undermining settled funding mechanisms for the public schools of this state, the imposition, upon the
board, of rates, fees and charges, for certain municipal
services, as otherwise authorized by section thirteen, article
thirteen, chapter eight of this code, is not reasonable and,
accordingly, the board is, likewise, exempt from the obligation
to pay any such rates, fees and charges.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exempt county boards
of education from the obligation of paying certain charges for
municipal services.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.