ENROLLED
H. B. 2919
(By Delegates Mezzatesta, Williams, Stemple,
Ennis, Romine, Shelton and Fletcher)
[Passed March 10, 1999; in effect ninety days from passage.]
AN ACT to amend chapter twelve of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article four-a, relating
to the powers and duties of the state auditor; legislative
findings; the continued use by public schools, juvenile
detention centers, and municipal and county public safety
offices of certain computers, telecommunications devices and
other technological equipment following their use by the
state auditor's office; creation of the computer donation
program; program administration; and legislative rules.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter twelve of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by
adding thereto a new article, designated article four-a, to read
as follows:
ARTICLE 4A. COMPUTER DONATION PROGRAM.
§12-4A-1. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds that:
(a) Public schools, juvenile detention centers, and
municipal and county public safety offices are always in need of
computers, telecommunications devices and other technological
equipment, while the acquisition of such is a costly enterprise;
(b) The state auditor must frequently purchase such
computers, telecommunications devices and other technological
equipment as is necessary for their interaction with national and
international financial services industries;
(c) The purchase by the state auditor of modern computers,
telecommunications devices and other technological equipment
frequently results in the surplus of such existing equipment;
(d) Surplus equipment is generally obsolete and as such may
no longer be used effectively by agency employees;
(e) Although the computers, telecommunications devices or
other technological equipment is no longer useful in interacting
with the financial services industry, they may still be useful
items for a less complex and less high-speed dependent use;
(f) Heretofore, the state auditor has stripped the equipment
for spare parts for other machines, and that this continued
practice does not necessarily result in the equipment's highest
and best remaining use; and
(g) Rather than break down the equipment for spare parts or
send obsolete machines to the surplus property unit of the state purchasing division where they may languish with lack of use, it
would be in the best interest of the state that any obsolete
computers, telecommunications devices or technological equipment
be donated by the state auditor's office to public schools,
juvenile detention centers, and municipal and county public
safety offices.
§12-4A-2. Computer donation program created.
(a)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, the state auditor is hereby authorized within his or
her agency to create a computer donation program for public
schools, juvenile detention centers, and municipal and county
public safety offices in this state. This program authorizes the
state auditor's office to donate equipment to those entities
which would otherwise be transferred to the surplus property unit
of the purchasing division.
(b) The program shall be administered by a director as
appointed or employed by the state auditor. The auditor may
either appoint the director from existing staff from his or her
office, or may employ a director from existing funds.
(c) The director shall keep records and accounts that
indicate the equipment donated, the age of the equipment, the
reasons for declaring it obsolete, and to which public school,
juvenile detention center, or municipal or county public safety
office the equipment was donated.
§12-4A-3. Legislative rules.
The state auditor shall propose legislative rules in
accordance with the provisions of article three-a, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code which shall detail the regulations for
the public notice of the program, the method of receiving
requests for participation in the program, any compliance and
reporting information required of participants in the program,
and the method of selecting recipients of equipment. The rules
shall provide for fair and impartial selection of equipment
recipients. The rules shall be presented for approval to the
legislative oversight commission on education accountability by
the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine.
§12-4A-4. Severability.
If any provision or application of this article is held
invalid, the invalidity does not affect any other provision or
application of this article which can be given effect without the
invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions
of this chapter are severable.