Introduced Version
Senate Bill 483 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
Senate Bill No. 483
(By Senators Plymale, Stollings, Unger, Beach and Tucker)
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[Introduced March 7, 2013; referred to the Committee on Banking
and Insurance; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §33-3-33 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to taking back the surcharge on
fire and casualty insurance policies to one percent and have
this surcharge benefit volunteer and part-volunteer fire
departments.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §33-3-33 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. LICENSING, FEES AND TAXATION OF INSURERS.
§33-3-33. Surcharge on fire and casualty insurance policies to
benefit volunteer and part-volunteer fire
departments; special fund created; allocation of
proceeds; effective date.
(a) (1) For the purpose of providing additional revenue for
volunteer fire departments, part-volunteer fire departments, and
certain retired teachers and the teachers retirement reserve fund,
there is hereby authorized and imposed on and after July 1, 1992,
on the policyholder of any fire insurance policy or casualty
insurance policy issued by any insurer, authorized or unauthorized,
or by any risk retention group, a policy surcharge equal to one
percent of the taxable premium for each such policy. After June
30, 2005, the surcharge shall be imposed as specified in
subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection.
(2) After June 30, 2005, through December 31, 2005, for the
purpose of providing additional revenue for volunteer fire
departments, part-volunteer fire departments and to provide
additional revenue to the Public Employees Insurance Agency and
municipal pension plans, there is hereby authorized and imposed on
and after July 1, 2005, on the policyholder of any fire insurance
policy or casualty insurance policy issued by any insurer,
authorized or unauthorized, or by any risk retention group, a
policy surcharge equal to one percent of the taxable premium for
each such policy.
(3) (1) After December 31, 2005 For the purpose of providing
additional revenue for volunteer fire departments and
part-volunteer fire departments, there is hereby authorized and imposed on the policyholder of any fire insurance policy or
casualty insurance policy issued by any insurer, authorized or
unauthorized, or by any risk retention group, a policy surcharge
equal to fifty-five one hundredths of one percent of the taxable
premium for each such policy.
(4) (2) For purposes of this section, casualty insurance may
not include insurance on the life of a debtor pursuant to or in
connection with a specific loan or other credit transaction or
insurance on a debtor to provide indemnity for payments becoming
due on a specific loan or other credit transaction while the debtor
is disabled as defined in the policy. The policy surcharge may not
be subject to premium taxes, agent commissions or any other
assessment against premiums.
(b) The policy surcharge shall be collected and remitted to
the commissioner by the insurer, or in the case of surplus lines
coverage, by the surplus lines licensee, or if the policy is issued
by a risk retention group, by the risk retention group. The amount
required to be collected under this section shall be remitted to
the commissioner on a quarterly basis on or before the twenty-fifth
day of the month succeeding the end of the quarter in which they
are collected, except for the fourth quarter for which the
surcharge shall be remitted on or before March 1 of the succeeding
year.
(c) Any person failing or refusing to collect and remit to the
commissioner any policy surcharge and whose surcharge payments are
not postmarked by the due dates for quarterly filing is liable for
a civil penalty of up to $100 for each day of delinquency, to be
assessed by the commissioner. The commissioner may suspend the
insurer, broker or risk retention group until all surcharge
payments and penalties are remitted in full to the commissioner.
(d) (1) All money from the policy surcharge shall be collected
by the commissioner who shall disburse the money received from the
surcharge into a special account in the State Treasury, designated
the Fire Protection Fund. The net proceeds of this portion of the
tax and the interest thereon, after appropriation by the
Legislature, shall be distributed quarterly on January 1, April 1,
July 1 and October 1, to each volunteer fire company or department
on an equal share basis by the State Treasurer. After June 30,
2005, the money received from the surcharge shall be distributed as
specified in subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection.
(2)(A) After June 30, 2005, through December 31, 2005, all
money from the policy surcharge shall be collected by the
Commissioner who shall disburse one half of the money received from
the surcharge into the Fire Protection Fund for distribution as
provided in subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(B) The remaining portion of moneys collected shall be transferred into the fund in the state Treasury of the Public
Employees Insurance Agency into which are deposited the
proportionate shares made by agencies of this state of the Public
Employees Insurance Agency costs of those agencies, until November
1, 2005. After the October 31, 2005, through December 31, 2005,
the remain portion shall be transferred to the special account in
the state Treasury, known as the Municipal Pensions and Protection
Fund.
(3) After December 31, 2005, all money from the policy
surcharge shall be collected by the Commissioner who shall disburse
all of the money received from the surcharge into the Fire
Protection Fund for distribution as provided in subdivision (1) of
this subsection.
(4) (2) Before each distribution date to volunteer fire
companies or departments, the State Fire Marshal shall report to
the State Treasurer the names and addresses of all volunteer and
part-volunteer fire companies and departments within the state
which meet the eligibility requirements established in section
eight-a, article fifteen, chapter eight of this code.
(e) The allocation, distribution and use of revenues provided
in the Fire Protection Fund are subject to the provisions of
sections eight-a and eight-b, article fifteen, chapter eight of
this code.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to take the fire or casualty
insurance surcharge to one percent and dedicate the money to the
Fire Protection Fund, which goes to volunteer and part-volunteer
fire departments.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.