ENGROSSED
Senate Bill No. 645
(By Senator Minard)
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[Introduced February 22, 1999;
referred to the Committee on Natural Resources.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section two, article thirteen-b,
chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to defining
storm water for purposes of the community improvement act;
including storm water within the terms wastewater project
and wastewater facility; and enabling a governing body to
impose an assessment fee for the planning, acquisition,
construction, improvement or extension of facilities
necessary or incident to the transportation of storm water.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section two, article thirteen-b, chapter sixteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 13B. COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT ACT.
§16-13B-2. Definitions.
For purposes of this article:
(a) "Assessment certificate" means a certificate issued by
a board pursuant to section fifteen of this article to evidence
an assessment levied against property abutting a wastewater or
water project, or on which a flood relief project is completed or
protects.
(b) "Assessment district" means a community improvement
assessment district created by a governing body pursuant to
section seven of this article.
(c) "Assessment fee" means the fee paid by a person or
governmental agency owning property located within an assessment
district, based on the assessment levied against the property
pursuant to section ten of this article, to pay for the cost of
a project abutting, constructed upon or protecting such property.
(d) "Board" means the community improvement board of each
assessment district provided under section eight of this article.
(e) "Code" means the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended.
(f) "Cost" means, as applied to each wastewater, water or flood relief project financed, in whole or in part, with the
proceeds from assessment certificates, all costs and expenses
incurred by a county or municipality, and the respective
assessment districts created under this article, that are reasonable and necessary for the planning, development,
construction and carrying out of all works and undertakings
necessary or incident to the completion of a project, including,
without limitation, the cost and expense of all labor, work,
supervision, inspection, equipment leased and materials furnished
and used in completing the project, any interest charged on funds
borrowed to finance the construction of a project, advertising
expenses, and any engineering, legal, surveying, accounting or
other professional fees incurred in connection with or otherwise
relating to a project.
(g) "Flood relief project" means a project involving one or
more of the following activities: (1) The moving, removing,
renovating, relocation or demolition of, or any other actions
taken to provide protection from flooding to, one or more
buildings, structures and other permanent improvements located on
property owned by any person, which the governing body of the
county or municipality in which the project is completed, or any
other governmental agency, has determined is within an area
threatened by flooding; or (2) the acquisition of property which
is located outside of an area threatened by flooding to serve as a site on which one or more buildings, structures and other
permanent improvements which are located within an area that is
threatened by flooding may be relocated, or on which new
buildings, structures and other permanent improvements may be
constructed, and the construction of such new buildings,
structures and improvements if relocating existing buildings,
structures and improvements is not feasible; or (3) the
construction of levies or stream channel improvements to provide
flood protection to specifically identified lots or parcels of
land located within an area which a governing body or other
governmental agency has determined is threatened by flooding, all
so as to protect the health and safety of persons residing or
engaged in business on such threatened property and to eliminate
or minimize the risk of damage caused by flooding to such
buildings, structures and permanent improvements.
(h) "Governing body" means, in the case of a county, the
county commission, and in the case of a municipality, the mayor
and council together, the council, the board of directors or
other board or body of any municipality, by whatever name called,
as the case may be, charged with the responsibility of enacting ordinances and determining the public policy of such
municipality.
(i) "Governmental agency" means the state government or any
agency, department, division or unit thereof; counties;
municipalities; any watershed improvement districts, soil
conservation districts, sanitary districts, public service
districts, drainage districts, urban renewal authorities or
regional governmental authorities established pursuant to this
code and any other governmental agency, entity, political
subdivision, public corporation or agency having the authority to
acquire, construct, maintain or operate wastewater facilities;
the United States government or any agency, department, division
or unit thereof; and any agency, commission or authority
established pursuant to an interstate compact or agreement.
(j) "Municipality" means a municipality as defined in
section two, article one, chapter eight of this code.
(k) "Person" means an individual, firm, partnership,
corporation, voluntary association or any other type of entity.
(l) "Project" means a flood relief project, wastewater
project, water project or any combination thereof.
(m) "Public way" means any street, alley, right-of-way,
easement or other interest in real estate, or any portion or
combination thereof, along or across which a wastewater or water
project is constructed.
(n) "Public service commission" means the public service
commission established under article one, chapter twenty-four of
this code.
(o) "Recorder" means the recorder, clerk or other municipal
officer, by whatever name called, charged with the responsibility
of keeping the journal of the proceedings of the governing body
of the municipality and other municipal records.
(p) "Storm water" means water that is the result of a heavy
fall of rain, snow, hail or sleet.
(p) (q) "Utility" means a public utility as defined in
article one, chapter twenty-four of this code.
(q) (r) "Wastewater project" means the planning,
acquisition, construction, improvement or extension of new or
existing sewer lines, pumps and related equipment and facilities,
and any land, public ways or other interests in real estate,
whether located within or outside of an assessment district, necessary or incident to the transportation of sewage, industrial
wastes or other wastes, wastewater,
including, without
limitation, storm water, and the residue thereof, from property
located within an assessment district to a wastewater facility
located within or outside of an assessment district.
(r) (s) "Wastewater facility" means all facilities used for
or in connection with treating, neutralizing, disposing of,
stabilizing, cooling, segregating or holding wastewater,
including, without limitation, facilities for the treatment and
disposal of sewage, industrial wastes or other wastes,
wastewater, and the residue thereof, facilities for the temporary
or permanent impoundment of wastewater,
including, without
limitation, storm water, both surface and underground; and
sanitary sewers or other collection systems, whether on the
surface or underground, designed to transport wastewater together
with the equipment and furnishings thereof and their
appurtenances and systems, whether on the surface or underground
including force mains and pumping facilities therefor.
(s) (t) "Water project" means the planning, acquisition,
construction, improvement or extension of water lines, pumps and related equipment and facilities, and any land, public ways or
other interests in real estate, whether located within or outside
of an assessment district, necessary or incident to the
transportation and distribution of water from a water facility
located within or outside of an assessment district to property
located within an assessment district, all for the purpose of
providing potable, sanitary water suitable for human consumption
and use.
(t) (u) "Water facility" means all facilities, land and
equipment used for or in connection with the collection of water,
both surface and underground, transportation of water, treatment
of water and distribution of water all for the purpose of
providing potable, sanitary water suitable for human consumption
and use.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide a definition
of "storm water".
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.)
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NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
On page seven, section two, line three, after the word
"wastewater," by inserting the words "including, without
limitation, storm water,";
And,
On page seven, section two, line twelve, after the word
"wastewater," by inserting the words "including, without
limitation, storm water,".
And,
oOn page one, by striking out the title and substituting
therefor a new title, to read as follows:
Eng. Senate Bill No. 645--A Bill to amend and reenact
section two, article thirteen-b, chapter sixteen of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
relating to defining storm water for purposes of the community
improvement act; including storm water within the terms
wastewater project and wastewater facility; and enabling a
governing body to impose an assessment fee for the planning,
acquisition, construction, improvement or extension of facilities
necessary or incident to the transportation of storm water.
Adopted
Rejected