Senate Bill No. 680
(By Senator Unger)
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[Introduced February 19, 2007; referred to the Committee on
Government Organization; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §7-1-3mm of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to county commission development
rights transfer; transfer pursuant to a countywide ordinance
in effect for less than five years; and transfer for use in
accordance with zoning and subdivision ordinances.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §7-1-3mm of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. COUNTY COMMISSIONS GENERALLY.
§7-1-3mm. Transfer of development rights in growth counties.
(a) In addition to all other powers and duties now conferred
by law upon county commissions, if a county has been designated as
a growth county, as that term is defined in section three, article
twenty, chapter seven of this code, those county commissions, upon
approval by a majority of the legal votes cast at an election as
provided in section three-nn of this article, are hereby authorized
to, as part of a county-wide zoning ordinance,
which has been in effect for a minimum of five years, establish a program for the
transfer of development rights, in order to:
(1) Encourage the preservation of natural resources;
(2) Protect the
historic scenic, recreational and agricultural
qualities of open lands; and
(3) Facilitate orderly growth and development in the county.
(b) The program for the transfer of development rights may
provide for:
(1) The voluntary transfer of the development rights permitted
on any parcel of land to another parcel of land
for use in
accordance with the zoning and subdivision ordinances;
(2) Restricting or prohibiting further development of the
parcel from which development rights
are severed; and
(3) Increasing the density or intensity of development of the
parcel to which such rights are transferred.
(c) The program for the transfer of development rights shall:
(1) Designate a
universal program for which development rights
may be transferred from any parcel of land to any other parcel of
land
for use in accordance with the zoning and subdivision
ordinances;
(2) Provide that any rights transferred under this section be
for ten years; and
(3) Any rights purchased, but not
approved and used for
development, revert to the original
parcel of land from which such
rights were first severed owner after ten years.
(d) The county commission may not set a price for any development rights that are proposed to be transferred or received.
(e) "Transferable development rights" means an interest in
real property that constitutes the right to develop and use
property under the zoning ordinance which is made severable from
the parcel to which the interest is appurtenant and transferable to
another parcel of land for development and use in accordance with
the zoning ordinance. Transferable development rights may be
transferred by deed from the owner of the parcel from which the
development rights are derived and upon the transfer shall vest in
the grantee and be freely alienable. The zoning ordinance may
provide for the method of transfer of these rights,
recordation of
the date of each transfer, name(s) of the transferor and
transferee, parcels descriptions and any such other information
deemed necessary by the governing body for the administration of
the program, and may provide for the granting of easements and
reasonable regulations to effect and control transfers and assure
compliance with the provisions of the ordinance.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize county
commissions to transfer development rights for use in accordance
with zoning and subdivision ordinances, pursuant to a county-wide
ordinance in effect for less than five years.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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