Senate Bill No. 190
(By Senators Kessler, Helmick, Unger, Edgell, Prezioso, Oliverio,
Snyder, Bailey, Sharpe, Plymale, McCabe, Ross, Bowman, Chafin,
Caldwell, Dempsey, Hunter, Minard, Rowe and Fanning)
____________
[Introduced January 16, 2004; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
____________
A BILL to amend and reenact §3-5-8 of the code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to altering the amount of
presidential and vice presidential certificate of announcement
filing fees.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §3-5-8 of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be
amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. PRIMARY ELECTIONS AND NOMINATING PROCEDURES.
§3-5-8. Filing fees and their disposition.
Every person who becomes a candidate for nomination for or
election to office in any primary election shall, at the time of
filing the certificate of announcement as required in this article,
pay a filing fee as follows:
(a) A candidate for president of the United States, for vice
president of the United States, for United States senator, for
member of the United States House of Representatives, for governor and for all other state elective offices shall pay a fee equivalent
to one percent of the annual salary of the office for which the
candidate announces
: Provided, That the filing fee for any
candidate for president or vice president of the United States
shall not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars commencing with
the two thousand four filing period;
(b) A candidate for the office of judge of a circuit court and
judge of a family court shall pay a fee equivalent to one percent
of the total annual salary of the office for which the candidate
announces;
(c) A candidate for member of the House of Delegates shall pay
a fee of one-half percent of the total annual salary of the office
and a candidate for state senator shall pay a fee of one percent of
the total annual salary of the office;
(d) A candidate for sheriff, prosecuting attorney, circuit
clerk, county clerk, assessor, member of the county commission and
magistrate shall pay a fee equivalent to one percent of the annual
salary of the office for which the candidate announces. A
candidate for county board of education shall pay a fee of
twenty-five dollars. A candidate for any other county office shall
pay a fee of ten dollars;
(e) Delegates to the national convention of any political
party shall pay the following filing fees:
A candidate for delegate-at-large shall pay a fee of twenty
dollars; and a candidate for delegate from a congressional district
shall pay a fee of ten dollars;
(f) Candidates for members of political executive committees
and other political committees shall pay the following filing fees:
A candidate for member of a state executive committee of any
political party shall pay a fee of twenty dollars; a candidate for
member of a county executive committee of any political party shall
pay a fee of ten dollars; and a candidate for member of a
congressional, senatorial or delegate district committee of any
political party shall pay a fee of five dollars.
Candidates filing for an office to be filled by the voters of
one county shall pay the filing fee to the clerk of the circuit
court and candidates filing for an office to be filled by the
voters of more than one county shall pay the filing fee to the
secretary of state at the time of filing their certificates of
announcement and no certificate of announcement shall be received
until the filing fee is paid.
All moneys received by such clerk from such fees shall be
credited to the general county fund. Moneys received by the
secretary of state from fees paid by candidates for offices to be
filled by all the voters of the state shall be deposited in a
special fund for that purpose and shall be apportioned and paid by
him to the several counties on the basis of population and that
received from candidates from a district or judicial circuit of
more than one county shall be apportioned to the counties
comprising the district or judicial circuit in like manner. When
such moneys are received by sheriffs, it shall be credited to the
general county fund.
__________
(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that the filing
fee for any candidate for president or vice president of the United
States may not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars commencing
with the two thousand four filing period.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.)