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Enrolled Version - Final Version Senate Bill 638 History

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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
ENROLLED

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

Senate Bill No. 638

(Senators Love and Kessler, original sponsors)

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[Passed March 8, 2008; in effect ninety days from passage.]

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AN ACT to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §61-3-59, relating to the receipt and transfer of catalytic converters; imposing reporting and record retention requirements for certain purchasers of catalytic converters; providing for the inspection of records and materials by investigators employed by law enforcement; and establishing criminal penalties.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated §61-3-59, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY.
§61-3-59. Trading in catalytic converters; certificates, records and reports of purchases; criminal penalties.

(a) Any person who purchases or trades for catalytic converters or any materials derived from catalytic converters shall be subject to the provisions of this section.
(b) Any purchaser of catalytic converters or any materials derived from catalytic converters shall make and maintain a record of each transaction which shall contain the following information:
(1) Full name, permanent home and business addresses and telephone number, if available, of the seller;
(2) A description and the motor vehicle license number of any vehicle, if any, used to transport catalytic converters or any materials derived from catalytic converters to the place of purchase;
(3) The time and date of the transaction;
(4) A complete description of the catalytic converter or any materials derived from catalytic converters purchased or traded for; and
(5) A statement whether the catalytic converter or any material derived from a catalytic converter was purchased, taken as collateral for a loan or taken on consignment.
(c) The person purchasing or trading for a catalytic converter or any materials derived from a catalytic converter shall also require and retain from the seller the following information:
(1) A signed certificate of ownership of the catalytic converter or any materials derived from a catalytic converter being sold or signed authorization from the owner to sell; and
(2) A photocopy of a valid driver's license or identification card issued by the West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles of the person delivering a catalytic converter or any materials derived from a catalytic converter, or in lieu thereof, any other identification card containing a photograph of the seller as issued by any state or federal agency of the United States: Provided, That, if the buyer has a copy of the seller's photo identification on file, the buyer may reference the identification that is on file without making a separate photocopy for each transaction.
(d) Any law-enforcement officer investigating the theft of catalytic converters or any materials derived from a catalytic converter shall be permitted to inspect the purchased catalytic converter or any materials derived from a catalytic converter that is in the possession of the buyer or person trading for a catalytic converter for the purpose of detecting and identifying stolen property.
(e) It is unlawful for any of the aforementioned persons to purchase any catalytic converter or any materials derived from a catalytic converter without obtaining the information set forth in subsections (b) and (c) of this section. Such information shall be available for inspection by any law-enforcement officer to investigate the theft of any catalytic converter or any materials derived from a catalytic converter and must be maintained by the purchaser for not less than one year after the date of the purchase.
(f) Nothing in this section applies to scrap purchases by manufacturing facilities that melt, or otherwise alter the form of scrap metal and transform it into a new product or to the purchase or transportation of food and beverage containers or other nonindustrial materials having a marginal value per individual unit.
(g) Any person who knowingly violates any provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction of a first offense thereof, shall be fined not less than one thousand dollars nor more than three thousand dollars.
(h) Nothing in this section is intended to apply to a consumer purchasing a vehicle which contains a catalytic converter, nor is it intended to apply to a consumer who purchases a replacement catalytic converter for a vehicle.
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