Senate Bill No. 291
(By Senators Ross, Dittmar, Love, Wiedebusch, Ball, McKenzie and
Buckalew)
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[Originating in the Committee on Transportation;
reported March 11, 1997.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section twenty-three, article
seventeen, chapter seventeen of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to further
amend said article by adding thereto a new section, designated
section thirty-five, all relating to toll bridges; authorizing
municipalities to maintain ownership of toll bridges under
certain circumstances; and establishing permissible uses of
tolls collected.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twenty-three, article seventeen, chapter
seventeen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said
article be further amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section thirty-five, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 17. TOLL BRIDGES.
§17-17-23. When tolls to cease.
Except as otherwise provided in section thirty-five of this
article, when the particular bonds issued for any bridge or bridges
and the interest thereon shall have been paid, or a sufficient
amount shall have been provided for their payment and shall
continue to be held for that purpose, and there are no operating or
maintenance expenses outstanding, and any advances made from the
state road fund toward the construction, operation and maintenance
of such bridge or bridges shall have been repaid, the authority
operating such bridge or bridges shall cease the collection of
tolls for the use thereof: Provided, however, That the
commissioner may, in his discretion, continue thereafter tolls for
a period sufficient to accumulate sufficient funds to pay for major
maintenance and repairs foreseeable as being needed on such bridge
or bridges in the immediate future: And provided further Provided,
however, That tolls may be imposed or reimposed on any such bridge
or bridges in the manner provided in section twenty-three-b of this
article. Thereafter, and as long as the cost of maintaining,
repairing and operating such bridge or bridges is being provided
for through means other than tolls, no tolls shall be charged for transit thereover and such bridge or bridges shall be free:
Provided, however further, That notwithstanding any other provision
of law, if any portion of the cost of construction of a toll bridge
is financed, with the aid of federal funds under federal-aid road
legislation and the share of the cost of such bridge borne by the
state or its subdivisions shall have been repaid from tolls, or a
fund sufficient for such repayment shall have been provided or set
aside for that purpose, tolls for the use of such bridge shall
cease and such bridge shall thereafter be maintained and operated
as a free bridge.
§17-17-35. Authorization for municipalities to maintain ownership
of and continue charging tolls for toll bridges upon the
payment of all bonds issued to acquire and construct or
refinance the bridge and the interest thereon; permitted use
of tolls collected.
Any municipality which owns and operates a toll bridge as of
the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-seven, may,
at the sole discretion of the municipality, and upon adoption of a
resolution to such effect by the council of such municipality,
retain ownership of the toll bridge and may establish and retain
toll charges for the use thereof after all bonds issued for the
acquisition and construction of the bridge, all bonds issued to refinance such bonds and all interest on such bonds have been paid
or such payment has been provided for by defeasement or otherwise.
All such tolls collected after a municipality determines to
maintain ownership of a toll bridge and the bonds issued for the
acquisition and construction of such bridge or issued to refinance
such bonds and all interest thereon have been paid or such payment
has been provided for by defeasement or otherwise, shall be applied
first to provide a fund sufficient to pay the cost of maintaining,
repairing, operating and demolishing such bridge, and thereafter,
for any legal purpose of the municipality. Collected tolls
remaining after providing for the payment of the cost of
maintaining, repairing, operating and demolishing such bridge may
be pledged or otherwise encumbered to effectuate any municipal
purpose.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize
municipalities to continue to collect bridge tolls after the
retirement of bonds issued for the bridge's construction.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
§17-17-35 is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring
have been omitted.)
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