Senate Bill No. 624
(By Senator White)
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[Introduced March 17, 2009; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §11-1A-11 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to exempting owners, with the
exception of corporations or partnerships, of one hundred
acres or less of contiguously connected real property from
increased valuation and assessment as natural resources
property on reserve coal properties; defining "small property
owner"; extending the exemption for an owner or owners of two
or more tracts of contiguously connected real property of one
hundred acres or less; requiring an affidavit that coal will
not be mined or transferred; and providing for increased
assessment and payment of interest if coal is later mined.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §11-1A-11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1A. APPRAISAL OF PROPERTY FOR PERIODIC STATEWIDE REAPPRAISALS.
§11-1A-11. Valuation of certain classes or species of property;
reserve coal properties; oil producing properties;
gas producing properties; timberland; active mining
mineral interest; commercial real property and
industrial land; commercial and industrial
furniture, fixtures, machinery and equipment;
intangible personal property; public utility
property; vehicles, water craft and aircraft.
(a) On or before September 1, 1983, the Tax Commissioner shall
propose a legislative rule for submission to the Legislature
pursuant to the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a
of this code, which rule shall describe in detail the methods
whereby the Tax Commissioner will determine the market value,
during the first statewide reappraisal, of the following property:
(1) Active and reserve coal properties;
(2) Oil producing properties;
(3) Gas producing properties;
(4) Timberland;
(5) Active mining mineral interests including limestone,
fireclay, dolomite, sandstone and other actively mined minerals;
(6) Commercial real property and industrial land;
(7) Commercial and industrial furniture, fixtures, machinery
and equipment;
(8) Intangible personal property, including stock, accounts
receivable and stocks in banks and capital of savings and loan
associations;
(9) Public utility property; and
(10) Vehicles, water craft and aircraft.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, effective July 1, 2009, small property owners are exempt
from increased natural resources property valuation and assessment
under the provisions of this article on reserve coal properties
that increase the taxation on this interest: Provided, That for
the purposes of this exemption "small property owner" means an
individual owner or joint individual owners, excluding any
corporate entity or partnership, of one hundred acres or less of
contiguously connected real property: Provided, however, That this
exemption extends to separate contiguously connected tracts of real
property owned by the same individual or individuals of one hundred
acres or less. In order to obtain this exemption from increased
valuation and assessment, the small property owner must execute an
affidavit stating that the small property owner does not intend to
mine the coal or transfer any interest in the coal. If at a later
date the coal is mined, all of the previous taxes at the increased
rate shall be assessed and must be paid, together with interest,
before any coal mining operations may begin.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exempt owners, other
than corporations or partnerships, of one hundred acres or less of
contiguously connected real property from payment of increased
valuation and assessment as natural resources property on reserve
coal properties. The bill defines "small property owner" as an
owner of one hundred or less acres of real property that is not a
corporate entity or partnership. It also requires an affidavit
from the property owner that the coal will not be mined or the
interest therein transferred. If the coal is subsequently mined,
the owner will be assessed the increased rate plus interest before
mining may continue.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.