H. B. 4110
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates
Staton, Browning and Mahan)
[Introduced January 25, 2006; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §17-16A-18a of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to the requirement that
the West Virginia Parkways, Economic Development and Tourism
Authority hold public hearings in each county of the state
through which the turnpike runs with adequate public notice of
the hearings and to require commuter pass applications for the
West Virginia Turnpike to be made available at all Department
of Motor Vehicles offices throughout the state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §17-16A-18a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 16A. WEST VIRGINIA PARKWAYS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND
TOURISM AUTHORITY.
§17-16A-18a. Corridor "L" toll fees authorized; commuter pass;
annual report.
(a) The Parkways Authority is hereby authorized to operate the
currently existing toll collection facility located at the
interchange of U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") and said turnpike
subject to the following:
(1) The toll fee charges by the Parkways, Economic Development
and Tourism Authority at its toll facilities located at the
interchange of U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") and said turnpike shall
not exceed those toll charges levied and collected by the authority
at said interchange as of the first day of January, one thousand
nine hundred ninety, and hereafter, no proposed increase in such
toll fees shall be implemented by the Parkways Authority unless the
authority shall have first complied with validly promulgated and
legislatively approved rules and regulations pursuant to the
applicable provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code;
(2) Any toll fee increase as mentioned in subdivision (1
),
subsection (a) shall not be imposed by the Parkway Authority until
public hearings are held on the proposed increase in every county
of the state through which the turnpike runs.
There shall be legal
publication in order to give notice that these public hearings are
to be held in the form of Class III legal publication in
accordance with section two, article three, chapter fifty-nine of
this code before such public hearings are to occur.
(2) (3) As soon as reasonably possible after the effective
date of this legislation, but in no event later than the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety, the authority shall
establish, advertise, implement and otherwise make generally
available to all qualified members of the public, resident or
nonresident, a system of commuter passes, in a form to be
determined by the authority: Provided, That said system of
commuter passes shall, at a minimum, permit the holder of such pass
or passes, after paying the applicable fee to the authority, to
travel through the U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") turnpike
interchange and toll facilities on an unlimited basis, without
additional charge therefor, for a period of one year after the
issuance of said commuter pass or passes: Provided, however, That
the cost for such commuter pass or passes shall in no event
aggregate more than five dollars per year for a full calendar year
of unlimited travel through the U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L")
turnpike interchange toll facilities. Applications for these
commuter passes are to be made available by the Parkway Authority
to every Division of Motor Vehicles office in the state.
To the extent required or necessary, the Parkways Authority is
further hereby authorized and empowered, in addition to the extent
previously authorized and empowered pursuant to section six and
section thirteen-b, article sixteen-a of this chapter, to
promulgate rules in accordance with chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code with regard to the implementation of proposed future toll
increases at the U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") turnpike toll facility;
(3) (4) The system of commuter passes implemented in
accordance with the provisions of subdivision (2) (3), subsection
(a), above, shall be available only for use when operating or
traveling in a Class "A" motor vehicle as herein defined. Whoever
shall knowingly or intentionally utilize any commuter pass issued
in accordance with this section while operating other than a Class
"A" motor vehicle, as herein defined, at the U.S. Route 19
(Corridor "L") turnpike toll facility, or any other toll facility
at or upon which such pass may later be usable, shall be guilty of
a misdemeanor, and for every such offense shall, upon conviction
thereof, be punished in accordance with the provisions of section
seventeen, article sixteen-a of this chapter; and the Parkways
Authority shall hereafter be authorized and empowered to cancel any
such commuter pass or passes improperly used in accordance with
this section;
(4) (5) In addition to the annual report required by section
twenty-six of this article, the Parkways Authority will prepare and
deliver to the Governor, the Speaker of the House of Delegates and
the President of the Senate a separate annual report of toll
revenues collected from the U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") turnpike
toll facility. The report shall disclose separately the toll
revenues generated from regular traffic and the commuter pass
created herein. The reports shall include, but not be limited to, disclosing separately the expenditure of said toll revenues
generated from the U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") turnpike toll
facility including a description of the purposes for which such
toll revenues are expended;
(5) (6) In the event any court of competent jurisdiction shall
issue an order which adjudges that any portion of subdivision (1),
(2), or (3) or (4) subsection (a) of this section is illegal,
unconstitutional, unenforceable or in any manner invalid, the
parkways authority shall discontinue, remove and not otherwise
relocate the U.S. Route 19 (Corridor "L") turnpike toll facility
within three hundred sixty-five days after the date upon which said
court order is final or all appeals to said order have been
exhausted;
(6) (7) For the purpose of this section, a Class "A" vehicle
shall be defined as a motor vehicle of passenger type and truck
with a gross weight of not more than 8,000 pounds and registered or
eligible for registration as a Class "A" vehicle in accordance with
section one, article ten, chapter seventeen-a of this code as the
same is currently constituted; and
(7) (8) Notwithstanding any other provisions of the code to
the contrary, the Parkways Authority may not promulgate emergency
rules in accordance with section fifteen, article three, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code to increase or decrease toll fees or the
commuter pass fee established herein.
(b) Nothing in this section is to be construed to apply to,
regulate, or in any manner affect the operation of the three main
line toll barriers and toll collection facilities currently located
on the West Virginia Turnpike and operated by the Parkways
Authority as Barrier A, Barrier B and Barrier C (I-64, I-77).
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require that the West
Virginia Parkways, Economic Development and Tourism Authority hold
public hearings in each county of the state through which the
turnpike runs, with adequate public notice of the hearings and to
require commuter pass applications for the West Virginia Turnpike
to be made available at all Department of Motor Vehicles offices
throughout the state.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.