H. B. 4015
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegate Trump)
[By Request of the Executive]
[Introduced January 12,2006; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §11B-2-20 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to funding of the Revenue Shortfall
Reserve Fund.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §11B-2-20 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. STATE BUDGET OFFICE.
§11B-2-20. Reduction of appropriations; powers of Governor;
Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund and permissible
expenditures therefrom.
(a) Notwithstanding any provision of this section, the
Governor may reduce appropriations according to any of the methods
set forth in sections twenty-one and twenty-two of this article.
The Governor may, in lieu of imposing a reduction in
appropriations, request an appropriation by the Legislature from the Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund established in this section.
(b) A Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund is hereby continued
within the State Treasury. The Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund
shall be funded
as set forth in continuously and on a revolving
basis in accordance with this subsection from surplus revenues, if
any, in the State Fund, General Revenue, as the surplus revenues
may accrue from time to time. Within sixty days of the end of each
fiscal year, the
Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund shall be funded in
accordance with the following:
(1) If the Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund is funded at an
amount less than ten percent of the State's General Revenue Fund
budget for the fiscal year just ended, then the secretary shall
cause to be deposited into the Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund the
first fifty percent of all surplus revenues, if any, determined to
have accrued during the fiscal year just ended
The revenue
shortfall reserve fund shall be funded continuously and on a
revolving basis in accordance with this subsection up to an
aggregate amount
not to exceed five percent of the total
appropriations from the State Fund, General Revenue, for the fiscal
year just ended. If at the end of any fiscal year the revenue
shortfall reserve fund is funded necessary to fund the Revenue
Shortfall Reserve Fund at an amount equal to
or exceeding five
ten percent of the State's General Revenue Fund budget for the
fiscal year just ended;
then there shall be no further obligation of the secretary under the provisions of this section to apply any
surplus revenues as set forth in this subsection until that time
the revenue shortfall reserve fund balance is less than five
percent of the total appropriations from the state fund general
revenue and
(2) If a deposit is made pursuant to subdivision (1) of this
subsection, the secretary shall cause to be deposited into the
Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund the first twenty-five percent of all
surplus revenues, if any, determined to have accrued during the
fiscal year just ended that are remaining immediately subsequent to
the deposit made pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection;
and
(3) If no deposit is made pursuant to subdivision (1) of this
subsection, the secretary shall cause to be deposited into the
Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund the first twenty-five percent of all
surplus revenues, if any, determined to have accrued during the
fiscal year just ended.
(c) Not earlier than the first day of November of each
calendar year, if the state's fiscal circumstances are such as to
otherwise trigger the authority of the Governor to reduce
appropriations under this section or section twenty-one or section
twenty-two of this article, then in that event the Governor may
notify the presiding officers of both houses of the Legislature in
writing of his or her intention to convene the Legislature pursuant to section nineteen, article VI of the Constitution of West
Virginia for the purpose of requesting the introduction of a
supplementary appropriation bill or to request a supplementary
appropriation bill at the next preceding regular session of the
Legislature to draw money from the surplus Revenue Shortfall
Reserve Fund to meet any anticipated revenue shortfall. If the
Legislature fails to enact a supplementary appropriation from the
Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund during any special legislative
session called for the purposes set forth in this section or during
the next preceding regular session of the Legislature, then the
Governor may proceed with a reduction of appropriations pursuant to
sections twenty-one and twenty-two of this article. Should any
amount drawn from the Revenue Shortfall Reserve Fund pursuant to an
appropriation made by the Legislature prove insufficient to address
any anticipated shortfall, then the Governor may also proceed with
a reduction of appropriations pursuant to sections twenty-one and
twenty-two of this article.
(d) Upon the creation of the fund, the Legislature is
authorized and may make an appropriation from the Revenue Shortfall
Reserve Fund for revenue shortfalls, for emergency revenue needs
caused by acts of God or natural disasters or for other fiscal
needs as determined solely by the Legislature.
(e) Prior to the thirty-first day of October, in any fiscal
year in which revenues are inadequate to make timely payments of the state's obligations, the Governor may by executive order, after
first notifying the presiding officers of both houses of the
Legislature in writing, borrow funds from the Revenue Shortfall
Reserve Fund. The amount of funds borrowed under this subsection
shall not exceed one and one-half percent of the general revenue
estimate for the fiscal year in which the funds are to be borrowed,
or the amount the Governor determines is necessary to make timely
payment of the state's obligations, whichever is less. Any funds
borrowed pursuant to this subsection shall be repaid, without
interest, and redeposited to the credit of the Revenue Shortfall
Reserve Fund within ninety days of their withdrawal.
NOTE: This legislation relates to the Revenue Shortfall
Reserve Fund.
Strike-throughs indicate existing language that would be
removed, and underscoring indicates new language that would be
added.