Senate Bill No. 668
(By Senator Sprouse, By Request)
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[Introduced February 20, 2006; referred to the Committee
on Government Organization; and then to the Committee on
Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §8-13-13 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to exempting state employees and
officers from user fees imposed by a municipality that are
required to be withheld by an employer from wages due an
employee.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §8-13-13 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 13. TAXATION AND FINANCE.
PART III. SPECIAL CHARGES FOR MUNICIPAL SERVICES.
§8-13-13. Special charges for municipal services.
Notwithstanding any charter provisions to the contrary, every
municipality which furnishes any essential or special municipal
service, including, but not limited to, police and fire protection,
parking facilities on the streets or otherwise, parks and
recreational facilities, street cleaning, street lighting, street maintenance and improvement, sewerage and sewage disposal, and the
collection and disposal of garbage, refuse, waste, ashes, trash and
any other similar matter,
shall have has plenary power and
authority to provide by ordinance for the installation,
continuance, maintenance or improvement of
such the service, to
make reasonable regulations with respect
thereto to the service and
to impose by ordinance upon the users of
such the service
reasonable rates, fees and charges to be collected in the manner
specified in the ordinance:
Provided, That any sewerage and sewage
disposal service and any service incident to the collection and
disposal of garbage, refuse, waste, ashes, trash and any other
similar matter
shall be is subject to the provisions of chapter
twenty-four of this code. The municipality
shall does not,
however, have a lien on any property as security for payments due
under
such the ordinance.
All employees and officers of the state
are exempt from any fee imposed under this section that is required
to be withheld by an employer from wages due an employee.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of section four, article
eleven of this chapter, any ordinance enacted or substantially
amended under the provisions of this section shall be published as
a Class II legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of
article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code, and the publication
area for
such the publication
shall be such is the municipality.
In the event thirty percent of the qualified voters of the
municipality by petition duly signed by them in their own
handwriting and filed with the recorder of the municipality within fifteen days after the expiration of
such the publication protest
against
such the ordinance as enacted or amended, the ordinance
shall may not become effective until it
shall be is ratified by a
majority of the legal votes cast
thereon on the ordinance by the
qualified voters of
such the municipality at a regular municipal
election or special municipal election, as the governing body
shall
direct directs. Voting
thereon shall on the ordinance may not take
place until after notice of
such the submission
shall have has been
given by publication as above provided for the publication of the
ordinance after it is adopted or substantially amended. The powers
and authority
hereby granted
by this section to municipalities and
to the governing bodies
thereof of the municipalities are in
addition and supplemental to the powers and authority named in any
charters thereof charter of a municipality. Notwithstanding any
other provisions of this section, in the event rates, fees and
charges
herein provided for shall be allowed by this section are
imposed by the governing body of any municipality for the purpose
of replacing and in amounts approximately sufficient to replace in
its general fund
such amounts
as shall be that are appropriated to
be paid out of ad valorem taxes upon property within the
municipality pursuant to an election duly called and held under the
constitution and laws of the state to authorize the issuance and
sale of general obligation bonds of the municipality for public
improvement purposes, in the call for which election it
shall be is
stated that the governing body of the municipality proposes to
impose rates, fees and charges in specified amounts under this section for the use of one or more of the services above specified,
which shall be related to the public improvement proposed to be
made with the proceeds of the bonds, no notice, publication of
notice, or referendum or election or other condition or
prerequisite to the imposition of
such the rates, fees and charges
shall be is required or necessary other than the legal requirements
for issuance and sale of
such the general obligation bonds.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exempt state employees
and officers from user fees imposed by a municipality that are
required to be withheld by an employer from wages due an employee.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.