HB4352 HSB AM d1

    The Committee on Small Business, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development moved to amend the bill on page one following the enacting clause by striking the remainder of the bill and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

“That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new article, designated §5B-2I-1, §5B-2I-2, §5B-2I-3, §5B-2I-4, §5B-2I-5 and §5B-2I-6, all to read as follows:

ARTICLE 2I. Accountability of Businesses Receiving Economic    Development Incentives.

§5B-2I-1. Economic incentives - businesses to report.

   (a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any business, as defined in subsection (b) of this section, that receives an incentive from the state after the effective date of the enactment of this article in the 2014 regular session of the Legislature, in the form tax credits, loans or grants, in the amount of $25,000 or more, in any one fiscal year, for the purpose of stimulating economic development in the state shall file an annual progress report with the West Virginia Development Office receiving the incentive. The annual progress report shall be submitted in addition to any information that the business is required to submit pursuant to the terms of the economic incentive received. The business shall deliver the annual progress report one year from the date the incentive is received, and every year thereafter until the incentive ends.

   (b) For purposes of this article, "business" means any corporation, limited liability company, partnership, sole proprietorship, trust or foundation, or other individual or organization carrying on a business, whether or not operated for profit.

§5B-2I-2. Contents of report.

   The annual progress report required pursuant to section one of this article shall include, but may not be limited to, the following:

   (1) (A) If the recipient is a corporation, the corporate name of the recipient and the name of the chief officer; or

   (B) If the recipient is one or more individuals doing business as a partnership or other entity under a distinct business name, the business name used by the partnership or other entity;

   (2) The business address and business phone number of the recipient;

   (3) If the recipient received the economic incentive for the purpose of creating jobs:

   (A) A statement of the number of jobs created by the recipient;

   (B) Payroll or other data to verify the number of jobs created by the recipient since receipt of the economic incentive;

   (C) The position title, monthly wage, and benefits for each job created;

   (D) The employer-sponsored health benefits for each detailed occupational level; and

   (E) A statement as to whether the recipient reduced employment at any other site in the state that is controlled by the recipient as a result of automation, merger, acquisition, corporate restructuring, or other business activity;

   (4) If the recipient received the economic incentive for a purpose other than job creation, a statement that specifies the goals of the economic incentive and a detailed statement that specifies how the recipient is achieving those goals;

   (5) Any other information reasonably required by the West Virginia Development Office to evaluate the progress and effectiveness of the particular economic incentive received; and

   (6) A certification as to the accuracy of the progress report signed by the chief officer of the recipient that is a corporation or signed by an individual, or an authorized agent thereof, benefitting from the economic incentive due to an ownership interest in a partnership or other entity.

§5B-2I-3. West Virginia Development Office to present reports to    the Legislature.

   The development office shall condense and summarize the annual progress reports submitted pursuant to section one of this article and shall present an aggregate report of the data contained in the progress reports to the Legislature no later than the first day of the regular session each year.

§5B-2I-4. Reports are public records.

   (a) The annual progress reports received by the development office pursuant to section one of this article are considered public records under article one, chapter twenty-nine-b of this code. The development office shall maintain the reports and shall make the reports available for inspection by any person at reasonable times. Nothing in this section may be construed to permit the disclosure to the public of information exempted from public disclosure pursuant to section four, article one, section twenty-nine-b of this code, of any West Virginia income tax return or of any information that reveals the amount of compensation paid to any individual employee of the business submitting the report.

   (b) The West Virginia development office shall publish the aggregate report specified in section three of this article on its official website.”