H. B. 4307
(By Delegates White, Proudfoot and Hrutkay)
[Introduced January 29, 2008; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §19-23-10 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to bona fide residents wholly or
solely owning greyhounds; the training of track facilities;
increasing the amount from the breeder development fund that
can be used for construction and maintenance of two training
track facilities; not requiring anyone to be a member of an
association in order to participate in the breeder development
fund.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §19-23-10 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 23. HORSE AND DOG RACING.
§19-23-10. Daily license tax; pari-mutuel pools tax; how taxes
paid; alternate tax; credits.
(a) Any racing association conducting thoroughbred racing at
any horse racetrack in this state shall pay each day upon which horse races are run a daily license tax of two hundred fifty
dollars. Any racing association conducting harness racing at any
horse racetrack in this state shall pay each day upon which horse
races are run a daily license tax of one hundred fifty dollars. Any
racing association conducting dog races shall pay each day upon
which dog races are run a daily license tax of one hundred fifty
dollars. In the event thoroughbred racing, harness racing, dog
racing, or any combination of the foregoing are conducted on the
same day at the same racetrack by the same racing association, only
one daily license tax in the amount of two hundred fifty dollars
shall be paid for that day. Any daily license tax shall not apply
to any local, county or state fair, horse show or agricultural or
livestock exposition at which horse racing is conducted for not
more than six days.
(b) Any racing association licensed by the racing commission
to conduct thoroughbred racing and permitting and conducting pari-
mutuel wagering under the provisions of this article shall, in
addition to the daily license tax set forth in subsection (a) of
this section, pay to the racing commission, from the commission
deducted each day by the licensee from the pari-mutuel pools on
thoroughbred racing a tax calculated on the total daily
contribution of all pari-mutuel pools conducted or made at any and
every thoroughbred race meeting of the licensee licensed under the
provisions of this article. The tax, on the pari-mutuel pools
conducted or made each day during the months of January, February, March, October, November and December, shall from the effective
date of this section and for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
eighty-five be calculated at two and six-tenths percent; for fiscal
year one thousand nine hundred eighty-six, be calculated at two and
three-tenths percent; for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
eighty-seven, be calculated at two percent of the pool; for fiscal
year one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, be calculated at one
and one-half percent; for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
eighty-nine, be calculated at one percent of the pool; for fiscal
year one thousand nine hundred ninety, seven tenths of one percent,
and for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-one and each
fiscal year thereafter be calculated at four tenths of one percent
of the pool; and, on the pari-mutuel pools conducted or made each
day during all other months, shall from the effective date of this
section and for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred eighty-five,
be calculated at three and six-tenths percent; for fiscal year one
thousand nine hundred eighty-six, be calculated at three and three-
tenths percent; for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred eighty-
seven, be calculated at three percent of the pool; for fiscal year
one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, be calculated at two and
one-half percent; for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred eighty-
nine, be calculated at two percent of the pool; for fiscal year one
thousand nine hundred ninety, be calculated at one and seven-tenths
percent of the pool; and for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
ninety-one and each fiscal year thereafter, be calculated at one
and four-tenths percent of the pool:
Provided, That out of the amount realized from the three tenths of one percent decrease in
the tax effective for fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-
one and thereafter, which decrease correspondingly increases the
amount of commission retained by the licensee, the licensee shall
annually expend or dedicate: (i) One half of the realized amount
for capital improvements in its barn area at the track, subject to
the racing commission's prior approval of the plans for the
improvements; and (ii) the remaining one half of the realized
amount for capital improvements as the licensee may determine
appropriate at the track. The term "capital improvement" shall be
as defined by the Internal Revenue Code:
Provided, however, That
any racing association operating a horse racetrack in this state
having an average daily pari-mutuel pool on horse racing of two
hundred eighty thousand dollars or less per day for the race
meetings of the preceding calendar year shall, in lieu of payment
of the pari-mutuel pool tax, calculated as in this subsection, be
permitted to conduct pari-mutuel wagering at the horse racetrack on
the basis of a daily pari-mutuel pool tax fixed as follows: On the
daily pari-mutuel pool not exceeding three hundred thousand dollars
the daily pari-mutuel pool tax shall be one thousand dollars plus
the otherwise applicable percentage rate imposed by this subsection
of the daily pari-mutuel pool, if any, in excess of three hundred
thousand dollars:
Provided further, That upon the effective date of
the reduction of the daily pari-mutuel pool tax to one thousand
dollars from the former two thousand dollars, the association or
licensee shall daily deposit five hundred dollars into the special fund for regular purses established by subdivision (1), subsection
(b), section nine of this article:
And provided further, That if an
association or licensee qualifying for the foregoing alternate tax
conducts more than one racing performance, each consisting of up to
thirteen races in a calendar day, the association or licensee shall
pay both the daily license tax imposed in subsection (a) of this
section and the alternate tax in this subsection for each
performance:
And provided further, That a licensee qualifying for
the foregoing alternate tax is excluded from participation in the
fund established by section thirteen-b of this article:
And
provided further, That this exclusion shall not apply to any
thoroughbred racetrack at which the licensee has participated in
the West Virginia thoroughbred development fund for more than four
consecutive years prior to the thirty-first day of December, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-two.
(c) Any racing association licensed by the racing commission
to conduct harness racing and permitting and conducting pari-mutuel
wagering under the provisions of this article shall, in addition to
the daily license tax required under subsection (a) of this
section, pay to the racing commission, from the commission deducted
each day by the licensee from the pari-mutuel pools on harness
racing, as a tax, three percent of the first one hundred thousand
dollars wagered, or any part thereof; four percent of the next one
hundred fifty thousand dollars; and five and three-fourths percent
of all over that amount wagered each day in all pari-mutuel pools conducted or made at any and every harness race meeting of the
licensee licensed under the provisions of this article.
(d) Any racing association licensed by the racing commission
to conduct dog racing and permitting and conducting pari-mutuel
wagering under the provisions of this article shall, in addition to
the daily license tax required under subsection (a) of this
section, pay to the racing commission, from the commission deducted
each day by the licensee from the pari-mutuel pools on dog racing,
as a tax, four percent of the first fifty thousand dollars or any
part thereof of the pari-mutuel pools, five percent of the next
fifty thousand dollars of the pari-mutuel pools, six percent of the
next one hundred thousand dollars of the pari-mutuel pools, seven
percent of the next one hundred fifty thousand dollars of the pari-
mutuel pools, and eight percent of all over three hundred fifty
thousand dollars wagered each day:
Provided, That the licensee
shall deduct daily from the pari-mutuel tax an amount equal to one
tenth of one percent of the daily pari-mutuel pools in dog racing
in fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety; fifteen hundredths
of one percent in fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-one;
two tenths of one percent in fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
ninety-two; one quarter of one percent in fiscal year one thousand
nine hundred ninety-three; and three tenths of one percent in
fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-four and every fiscal
year thereafter. The amounts deducted shall be paid to the racing
commission to be deposited by the racing commission in a banking institution of its choice in a special account to be known as "West
Virginia Racing Commission-Special Account-West Virginia Greyhound
Breeding Development Fund". The purpose of the fund is to promote
better breeding,
a training
track facilities facility and racing of
greyhounds in the state through awards and purses to bona fide
resident registered greyhound owners of accredited West Virginia
whelped greyhounds. In order to
participate and be eligible to
receive an award or purse through the fund, the registered
greyhound owner
must be licensed to race in the State of West
Virginia. The registered greyhound Dam at the time of breeding
must be wholly or solely owned or leased by a bona fide resident or
residents of the State of West Virginia. of the The accredited West
Virginia whelped greyhound must be
wholly or solely owned by a bona
fide resident
or residents of this state. To qualify as a bona fide
resident of West Virginia, a registered greyhound owner may not
claim residency in any other state. A registered greyhound owner
must prove bona fide residency by providing to the commission
personal income tax returns filed in the State of West Virginia for
the most recent tax year and the three previous tax years, has real
or personal property in this state on which the owner has paid real
or personal property taxes during the most recent tax year and the
previous three tax years and an affidavit stating that the owner
claims no other state of residency. The racing commission
and the
West Virginia registered greyhound owners and breeders association
shall maintain a registry for West Virginia bred greyhounds. The
moneys shall be expended by the racing commission for purses for stake races,
training track facilities, supplemental purse awards,
administration, promotion and educational programs involving West
Virginia whelped dogs, owned by residents of this state under rules
promulgated by the racing commission. The racing commission shall
pay out of the greyhound breeding development fund to each of the
licensed dog racing tracks the sum of seventy-five thousand dollars
for the fiscal year ending the thirtieth day of June, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-four. The licensee shall deposit the sum into
the special fund for regular purses established under the
provisions of section nine of this article. The funds shall be
expended solely for the purpose of supplementing regular purses
under rules promulgated by the racing commission.
Supplemental purse awards will be distributed as follows:
Supplemental purses shall be paid directly to the registered
greyhound owner of an accredited greyhound.
The registered greyhound owner of accredited West Virginia
whelped greyhounds that earn points at any West Virginia meet will
receive a bonus award calculated at the end of each month as a
percentage of the fund dedicated to the owners as purse
supplements, which shall be a minimum of fifty percent of the total
moneys deposited into the West Virginia greyhound breeding
development fund monthly.
The total amount of the fund available for the owners' awards
shall be distributed according to the ratio of points earned by an
accredited greyhound to the total amount earned in races by all accredited West Virginia whelped greyhounds for that month as a
percentage of the funds dedicated to the owners' purse supplements.
The point value at all greyhound tracks shall be the same as
approved by the racing commission to be effective April 1, 2007.
The state shall not require anyone to be a member of an association
in order to participate in the breeder development fund.
The registered greyhound owner of an accredited West Virginia
whelped greyhound shall file a purse distribution form with the
racing commission for a percentage of his or her dog's earnings to
be paid directly to the registered greyhound owner or owners of the
greyhound. Distribution shall be made on the fifteenth day of each
month for the preceding month's achievements.
In no event shall points earned at a meet held at a track
which did not make contributions to the West Virginia greyhound
breeder's development fund out of the daily pool on the day the
meet was held qualify or count toward eligibility for supplemental
purse awards.
Any balance in the purse supplement funds after all
distributions have been made for the year revert to the general
account of the fund for distribution in the following year:
Provided, That not more than
one two million dollars from the
balance in the purse supplemental fund shall be used for the
construction and maintenance of
a two dog training track
s and
facilities if such be approved by the West Virginia Racing
Commission. The West Virginia Racing Commission shall be authorized to promulgate rules governing dog training tracks.
In an effort to further promote the breeding of quality West
Virginia whelped greyhounds, a bonus purse supplement shall be
established in the amount of fifty thousand dollars per annum, to
be paid in equal quarterly installments of twelve thousand five
hundred dollars per quarter using the same method to calculate and
distribute these funds as the regular supplemental purse awards.
This bonus purse supplement is for three years only, commencing on
the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, and
ending the thirtieth day of June, one thousand nine hundred ninety-
six. This money would come from the current existing balance in the
greyhound development fund.
Each pari-mutuel greyhound track shall provide stakes races
for accredited West Virginia whelped greyhounds:
Provided, That
each pari-mutuel track shall have one juvenile and one open stake
race annually. To assure breeders of accredited West Virginia
whelped greyhounds an opportunity to participate in the West
Virginia Greyhound Breeding Development Fund the West Virginia
Racing Commission by the first day of July each year shall
establish and announce the minimum number of accredited West
Virginia whelped greyhounds that greyhound racing kennels at West
Virginia dog tracks must have on their racing active list during
the calendar year following such action. The minimum number may
vary from dog track to dog track. The minimum number shall be
established after consultation with the West Virginia Greyhound Owners and Breeders Association and kennel owners and operators.
Factors to be considered in establishing this minimum number shall
be the number of individually registered accredited West Virginia
whelped greyhounds whelped in the previous two years. The number of
all greyhounds seeking qualification at each West Virginia dog
track, the ratio of active running greyhounds to housed number of
greyhounds at each West Virginia dog track, and the size and number
of racing kennels at each West Virginia dog track. Any greyhound
racing kennel not having the minimum number of accredited West
Virginia whelped greyhounds determined by the West Virginia Racing
Commission on their active list shall only be permitted to race the
maximum allowable number on the active list less the number of
accredited West Virginia whelped greyhounds below the established
minimum number. Consistent violations of this minimum requirement
may for review by the Racing Commission and may constitute cause
for denial or revocation of a kennel's racing license. The racing
commission shall oversee and approve racing schedules and purse
amounts.
Ten percent of the deposits into the greyhound breeding
development fund beginning the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-three and continuing each year thereafter, shall be
withheld by the racing commission and placed in a special revenue
account hereby created in the State Treasury called the
"administration, promotion and educational and capital improvement
account". The racing commission is authorized to expend the moneys deposited in the administration, promotion and educational and
capital improvement account at such times and in such amounts as
the commission determines to be necessary for purposes of
administering and promoting the greyhound development program:
Provided, That beginning with fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
ninety-five and in each fiscal year thereafter in which the
commission anticipates spending any money from the account, the
commission shall submit to the executive department during the
budget preparation period prior to the Legislature convening before
that fiscal year for inclusion in the executive budget document and
budget bill, the recommended expenditures, as well as requests of
appropriations for the purpose of administration, promotion and
education. The commission shall make an annual report to the
Legislature on the status of the administration, promotion and
education account, including the previous year's expenditures and
projected expenditures for the next year.
The racing commission, for the fiscal year one thousand nine
hundred ninety-four only, may expend up to thirty-five thousand
dollars from the West Virginia greyhound breeding development fund
to accomplish the purposes of this section without strictly
following the requirements in the previous paragraph.
(e) All daily license and pari-mutuel pools tax payments
required under the provisions of this section shall be made to the
racing commission or its agent after the last race of each day of
each horse or dog race meeting, and the pari-mutuel pools tax payments shall be made from all contributions to all pari-mutuel
pools to each and every race of the day.
(f) Every association or licensee subject to the provisions of
this article, including the changed provisions of sections nine and
ten of this article, shall annually submit to the racing commission
and the Legislature financial statements, including a balance
sheet, income statement, statement of change in financial position
and an audit of any electronic data system used for pari-mutuel
tickets and betting, prepared in accordance with generally accepted
auditing standards, as certified by an experienced public
accountant or a certified public accountant.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.