Senate Bill No. 273
(By Senators Dittmar, Ross, Helmick and Bailey)
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[Introduced February 7, 1995; referred to the Committee
on Pensions; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact sections fourteen-d and thirty-three,
article three, chapter thirty-three of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
relating to the allocation of proceeds from the premium tax
on fire and casualty insurance policies to volunteer and
part volunteer fire departments; providing for a quarterly
disbursement of such proceeds; reducing the premium tax; and
eliminating allocation to the teachers retirement system.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections fourteen-d and thirty-three, article three,
chapter thirty-three of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. LICENSING, FEES AND TAXATION OF INSURERS.
§33-3-14d. Additional fire and casualty insurance premium tax;
allocation of proceeds; effective date.
(a) For the purpose of providing additional revenue for
municipal policemen's and firemen's pension and relief funds and
the teachers retirement system reserve fund and for volunteer and
part volunteer fire companies and departments, there is hereby
levied and imposed, on and after the first day of January, one
thousand nine hundred eighty-two, an additional premium tax equal
to one percent of gross direct premiums collected, less premiums
returned to policyholders because of cancellation of policies,
for fire insurance and casualty insurance policies. For purposes
of this section, casualty insurance shall 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. Except as otherwise provided
in this section, all provisions of this article relating to the
levy, imposition and collection of the regular premium tax are applicable to the levy, imposition and collection of the
additional tax.
All moneys collected from this additional tax shall be
received by the commissioner and paid by him into a special
account in the state treasury, designated the municipal pensions
and protection fund. The net proceeds of this tax after
appropriation thereof by the Legislature shall be distributed in
accordance with the provisions of this section.
(b)
(1) Before the first day of August, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-three, and before the first day of August of each
calendar year thereafter, the treasurer of each municipality in
which a municipal policemen's or firemen's pension and relief
fund has been established shall report to the state treasurer the
average monthly number of members who worked at least one hundred
hours per month of municipal policemen's or firemen's pension
systems during the preceding fiscal year.
Before the first day
of August, one thousand nine hundred eighty-three, and before the
first day of August of each calendar year thereafter, 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.
(2) Before the first day of September, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-three, and before the first day of September of
each calendar year thereafter, the state treasurer shall allocate
and authorize for distribution the revenues in the municipal
pensions and protection fund which were collected during the
preceding calendar year for the purposes set forth in this
section. Sixty-five percent of the aforementioned revenues
allocated shall be allocated to municipal policemen's and
firemen's pension and relief funds; twenty-five percent of such
allocated revenues shall be allocated to volunteer and part
volunteer fire companies and departments, and ten percent of such
allocated revenues shall be allocated to the teachers retirement
system reserve fund created by section eighteen, article seven-a,
chapter eighteen of this code:
Provided, That in any year the
actuarial report required by section twenty, article twenty-two,
chapter eight of this code indicates no actuarial deficiency in
the municipal policemen's or firemen's pension and relief fund,
no revenues may be allocated from the municipal pensions and
protection fund to that fund. The revenues from the municipal pensions and protection fund shall then be allocated to all other
pension funds which have an actuarial deficiency.
(3) The moneys, and the interest earned thereon, in the
municipal pensions and protection fund allocated to volunteer and
part volunteer fire companies and departments shall be allocated
and distributed quarterly to the volunteer fire companies and
departments. Before each distribution date, 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.
(c) (1) Each municipal pension and relief fund shall have
allocated and authorized for distribution a pro rata share of the
revenues allocated to municipal policemen's and firemen's pension
and relief funds based upon the corresponding municipality's
average monthly number of members who worked at least one hundred
hours per month during the preceding fiscal year. All moneys
received by municipal pension and relief funds under this section
may be expended only for the purposes described in sections
sixteen through twenty-eight, article twenty-two, chapter eight of this code.
(2) Each volunteer fire company or department shall receive
an equal share of the revenues allocated for volunteer and part
volunteer fire companies and departments.
(3) In addition to the share allocated and distributed in
accordance with subdivision (1) of this subsection, each
municipal fire department composed of full-time paid members and
volunteers and part volunteer fire companies and departments
shall receive a share equal to the share distributed to volunteer
fire companies under subdivision (2) of this subsection reduced
by an amount equal to such share multiplied by the ratio of the
number of full-time paid fire department members who are also
members of a municipal firemen's pension system to the total
number of members of such fire department.
(d) The allocation and distribution of revenues provided for
in this section are subject to the provisions of section twenty,
article twenty-two, and sections eight-a and eight-b, article
fifteen, chapter eight of this code.
§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) For the purpose of providing additional revenue for
volunteer and part volunteer fire departments, certain retired
teachers and the teachers retirement reserve fund, there is
hereby authorized and imposed on and after the first day of July,
one thousand nine hundred
ninety-two ninety-five, on the
policyholder of any fire and casualty insurance policy, a policy
surcharge equal to
one percent one half of one percent of gross
direct premium paid by the policyholder for each such policy.
For purposes of this section, casualty insurance shall 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 shall not be subject to premium taxes, agent
commissions or any other assessment against premiums.
The policy surcharge shall be collected and remitted by the
insurer to the commissioner on forms prescribed by the
commissioner on a quarterly basis and are due on 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 due and payable on or before the first day of
March of the succeeding year. All forms required by the
commissioner shall be submitted under the oath of the president
and secretary of the insurer.
Any insurer 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 one hundred dollars for each
day of delinquency, to be assessed by the commissioner. The
commissioner may suspend the insurer until all surcharge payments
and penalties, should any penalty be imposed, are remitted in
full to the commissioner.
The insurer shall notify each policy
holder in writing that the one percent policy surcharge
previously enacted by the Legislature has been reduced to a
one-half percent policy surcharge which will be paid into the
fire protection fund.
All money from the policy surcharge shall be collected by
the commissioner and he or she shall disburse the money received
from the surcharge as follows:
(1) Fifty percent of the moneys collected shall be paid into
a special account in the state treasury, designated the fire protection fund. The net proceeds of this portion of the tax
after appropriation by the Legislature shall be distributed in
accordance with the provisions of subsection (c) of this section.
(2) The remaining fifty percent of the moneys collected
shall be transferred to the teachers retirement system to be
disbursed according to the provisions of sections twenty-six-j,
twenty-six-k and twenty-six-l, article seven-a, chapter eighteen
of this code. Any balance remaining after the disbursements
authorized by this subdivision have been paid shall be paid by
the teachers retirement system into the teachers retirement
system reserve fund.
(b) Before the first day of September, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-three, and before the first day of September of
each calendar year thereafter, the state treasurer shall allocate
and authorize for distribution the revenues in the fire
protection fund that were collected during the preceding calendar
year, and the interest earned thereon.
All money from the policy surcharge shall be collected by
the commissioner and he or she 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 after appropriation by the Legislature shall
be distributed in accordance with the provisions of subsection
(c) of this section.
(b) The moneys, and the interest earned thereon, in the fire
protection fund shall be allocated among and distributed
quarterly to all volunteer and part volunteer fire departments by
the state treasurer. Before each distribution date, 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.
(c) Each volunteer fire company or department shall receive
on an equal share basis the revenues allocated for volunteer and
part volunteer fire companies and departments under subdivision
(1), subsection (a) of this section.
(d) 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 provide for the
allocation of proceeds from the premium tax on fire and casualty
insurance policies to volunteer and part volunteer fire
departments; and to provide for a quarterly disbursement of such
proceeds. The bill eliminates the 1\2% of the premium tax that
was collected and disbursed to the teachers retirement system.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.