COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

Senate Bill No. 486

(By Senator Craigo, Kessler, Helmick, Ross, Sharpe, Ball, Love, Dawson, Oliverio, McCabe, Minear, Anderson, Walker, Bowman and Plymale)

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[Originating in the Committee on Finance;

reported March 1, 2000.]

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A BILL to amend and reenact section three-b, article thirteen-a, chapter eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to requiring that the severance tax on timber be paid by the owner of the timber; calculating the value of the timber harvest by the stumpage; requiring the owner to submit a form to the tax department setting forth dates for proposed harvest, location of proposed harvest, type of trees to be harvested and number of trees to be harvested; and requiring tax commissioner to propose legislative rules to implement the legislation.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three-b, article thirteen-a, chapter eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 13A. SEVERANCE TAXES.

§11-13A-3b. Imposition of tax on privilege of severing timber.

(a) Imposition of tax. -- For the privilege of engaging or continuing within this state in the business of severing timber in this state for sale, profit or commercial use, there is hereby levied and shall be collected from every person landowner or timber owner where the timber rights are not owned by the landowner exercising such privilege an annual privilege tax.
(b) Rate and measure of tax. -- The tax imposed in subsection (a) of this section shall be three and twenty-two hundredths percent of the gross value of the timber produced. as shown by the gross proceeds derived from the sale thereof by the producer, except as otherwise provided in this article. The commissioner is hereby directed to propose emergency legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty nine-a of this code, designed to implement the provisions of this section regarding the calculation of the tax, the valuation of standing timber, and the collection of the tax provided for hereunder.
(c) Tax in addition to other taxes. -- The tax imposed by this section shall apply to all persons severing timber in this state landowners or timber owner exercising the privilege of having timber severed and shall be in addition to all other taxes imposed by law.
(d) Exemptions. -- The annual exemptions allowed under section three, article thirteen, chapter eleven of this code shall no longer apply to taxpayers who are subject to taxes under chapter eleven, article thirteen-a, section three-b.
(d)(e) Effective date. - This section, as amended in the year one thousand nine hundred ninety-three two thousand, shall apply to gross proceeds derived all timber harvested after the thirty-first day of May of such that year and in each successive year thereafter. The language of section three of this article, as in effect on the first day of January of such year, shall apply to gross proceeds derived prior to the first day of June of such year and, with respect to such gross income, shall be fully and completely preserved.