H. J. R. 6
(By Delegates Longstreth, Caputo and Manchin)
[Introduced February 14, 2005; referred to the
Committee on Constitutional Revision then the Judiciary]
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, amending section one-b,
article ten thereof, relating to homestead exemption increase; numbering and designating
such proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the purpose of such
proposed amendment.
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two thirds of the members elected to each
house agreeing thereto:
That the question of ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State
of West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the State at the next general election to be held in the
year two thousand six, which proposed amendment is that section one-b, article ten thereof, be
amended to read as follows:
ARTICLE X. TAXATION AND FINANCE.
§1b. Property tax limitation and homestead exemption amendment of 1982.
Ad valorem property taxation shall be in accordance with this section and other applicable provisions of this article not inconsistent with this section.
Subsection A -- Value; Rate of Assessment; Exceptions
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Constitution and except as otherwise provided
in this section, all property subject to ad valorem taxation shall be assessed at sixty percent of its
value, as directed to be ascertained in this section, except that the Legislature may from time to time,
by general law agreed to by two thirds of the members elected to each house, establish a higher
percentage for the purposes of this paragraph, which percentage shall be uniform as to all classes of
property defined in section one of this article, but not more than one hundred percent of
such the
value.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, for the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred eighty-
two, and the first day of July of each year thereafter until the values may be fixed as a result of the
first statewide reappraisal hereinafter required, assessments shall be made under the provisions of
current statutory law, which is hereby validated for
such that purpose until and unless amended by
the Legislature. Assessment and taxation in accord with this section
shall be deemed to be is equal
and uniform for all purposes.
Subsection B -- Determination of Value
The Legislature shall provide by general law for periodic statewide reappraisal of all
property, which reappraisal shall be related for all property to a specified base year which, as to each
such reappraisal, shall be uniform for each appraisal for all classes of property and all counties. In
such law, the Legislature shall provide for consideration of: (1) Trends in market values over a fixed
period of years prior to the base year; (2) the location of the property; and (3)
such other factors and
methods as it may determine:
Provided, That with respect to reappraisal of all property upon the base year of one thousand nine hundred eighty,
such reappraisals are deemed to be valid and in
compliance with this section:
Provided, however, That with respect to farm property, as defined
from time to time by the Legislature by general law, the determination of value shall be according
to its fair and reasonable value for farming purposes, as may be defined by general law.
The results of each statewide appraisal shall upon completion be certified and published and
errors therein may be corrected, all as provided by general law. The first
such statewide appraisal
shall be completed, certified and published on or before the thirty-first day of March, one thousand
nine hundred eighty-five, for use when directed by the Legislature.
The Legislature shall further prescribe by general law the manner in which each statewide
reappraisal shall be employed to establish the value of the various separately assessed parcels or
interests in parcels of real property and various items of personal property subject to ad valorem
property taxation, the methods by which increases and reductions in value subsequent to the base
year of each statewide reappraisal shall be ascertained, and require the enforcement thereof.
Subsection C -- General Homestead Exemption
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Constitution to the contrary, the first
twenty
forty thousand dollars of assessed valuation of any real property, or of personal property in the form
of a mobile home, used exclusively for residential purposes and occupied by the owner or one of the
owners thereof as his
or her residence who is a citizen of this State and who is sixty-five years of age
or older or is permanently and totally disabled as that term may be defined by the Legislature, shall
be exempt from ad valorem property taxation, subject to
such the requirements, limitations and
conditions as shall be prescribed by general law.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Constitution to the contrary, the Legislature shall have the authority to provide by general law for an exemption from ad valorem property taxation in
an amount not to exceed the first
twenty forty thousand dollars of value of any real property, or of
personal property in the form of a mobile home, used exclusively for residential purposes and
occupied by the owner or one of the owners thereof as his
or her residence who is a citizen of this
State, and who is under sixty-five years of age and not totally and permanently disabled:
Provided,
That upon enactment of
such the general law, this exemption shall only apply to
such the property
in any county in which the property was appraised at its value as of the first day of January, one
thousand nine hundred eighty, or thereafter, as determined by the Legislature, and this exemption
shall be phased in over
such the period of time not to exceed five years from the date
such the
property was so appraised, or such longer time as the Legislature may determine by general law:
Provided, however, That in no event shall any one person and his
or her spouse, or one homestead
be entitled to more than one exemption under these provisions:
Provided further, That these
provisions are subject to
such the requirements, limitations and conditions as shall be prescribed by
general law.
The Legislature shall have the authority to provide by general law for property tax relief to
citizens of this State who are tenants of residential or farm property.
Subsection D -- Additional Limitations on Value
With respect to the first statewide reappraisal, pursuant to this section, the resulting increase
in value in each and every parcel of land or interest therein and various items of personal property
subject to ad valorem property taxation over and above the previously assessed value shall be
allocated over a period of ten years in equal amounts annually.
The Legislature may by general law also provide for the phasing in of any subsequent statewide reappraisal of property.
Subsection E -- Levies for Free Schools
In equalizing the support of free schools provided by state and local taxes, the Legislature
may require that the local school districts levy all or any portion of the maximum levies allowed
under section one of this article which has been allocated to
such the local school districts.
Within the limits of the maximum levies permitted for excess levies for schools or better
schools in sections one and ten of this article, the Legislature may, in lieu of the exercise of such
powers by the local school districts as heretofore provided, submit to the voters, by general law, a
statewide excess levy, and if it be approved by the required number of voters, impose
such the levy,
subject however to all the limitations and requirements for the approval of
such the levies as in the
case of a district levy. The law submitting the question to the voters shall provide, upon approval
of the levy by the voters, for the assumption of the obligation of any local excess levies for schools
then in force theretofore authorized by the voters of a local taxing unit to the extent of
such the
excess levies imposed by the State and so as to avoid double taxation of those local districts. The
Legislature may also by general law reserve to the school districts
such the portions of the power to
lay authorized excess levies as it may deem appropriate to enable local school districts to provide
educational services which are not required to be furnished or supported by the State. If a statewide
excess levy for the support of free schools is approved by the required majority, the revenue from
such a statewide excess levy shall be deposited in the State Treasury and be allocated first for the
local obligations assumed and thereafter for
such part of the State effort to support free schools, by
appropriation or as the law submitting the levy to the voters shall require, as the case may be.
The defeat of any
such proposed statewide excess levy for school purposes
shall may not in any way abrogate or impair any local existing excess levy for
such that purpose nor prevent the
adoption of any future local excess levy for
such that purpose.
Subsection F -- Implementation
In the event of any inconsistency between any of the provisions of this section and other
provisions of this Constitution, the provisions of this section shall prevail. The Legislature shall
have plenary power to provide by general law for the equitable application of this article and, as to
taxes to be assessed prior to the first statewide reappraisal, to make such laws retroactive to the first
day of July, one thousand nine hundred eighty-two, or thereafter.
Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article eleven, chapter three of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, such proposed
amendment is hereby numbered "Amendment No. 1" and designated as the "Homestead Exemption
Increase Amendment" and the purpose of the proposed amendment is summarized as follows: "The
purpose of this amendment is to increase the homestead exemption from twenty thousand dollars to
forty thousand dollars."
NOTE: The purpose of this resolution is to increase the homestead exemption from $20,000
to $40,000.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present Constitution, and
underscoring indicates new language that would be added.