H. B. 4756
(By Delegates Barker, Eldridge,
Louisos and Hrutkay)
[Introduced
February 24, 2006
; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §11-1A-11 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to exempting owners, with the
exception of corporations or partnerships, of one hundred
acres or less of real property from valuation and assessment
as natural resources property; defining "small property
owner"; and, extending the exemption for an owner or owners of
two or more tracts of real property of one hundred acres or
less.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §11-1A-11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1A. APPRAISAL OF PROPERTY FOR PERIODIC STATEWIDE
REAPPRAISALS.
§11-1A-11. Valuation of certain classes or species of property;
reserve coal properties; oil producing properties; gas producing properties; timberland; active mining
mineral interest; commercial real property and
industrial land; commercial and industrial
furniture, fixtures, machinery and equipment;
intangible personal property; public utility
property; vehicles, watercraft and aircraft.
(a) On or before the first day of September, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-three, the Tax Commissioner shall propose a
legislative rule for submission to the Legislature pursuant to the
provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code,
which rule shall describe in detail the methods whereby the Tax
Commissioner will determine the market value, during the first
statewide reappraisal, of the following property:
(1) Active and reserve coal properties;
(2) Oil producing properties;
(3) Gas producing properties;
(4) Timberland;
(5) Active mining mineral interests including limestone,
fireclay, dolomite, sandstone and other actively mined minerals;
(6) Commercial real property and industrial land;
(7) Commercial and industrial furniture, fixtures, machinery
and equipment;
(8) Intangible personal property, including stock, accounts
receivable and stocks in banks and capital of savings and loan associations;
(9) Public utility property; and
(10) Vehicles, watercraft and aircraft.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, small property owners are exempt from natural resources
property valuation and assessment under the provisions of this
article: Provided, That for the purposes of this exemption "small
property owner" means an individual owner or joint individual
owners, excluding any corporate entity or partnership, of one
hundred acres or less of real property: Provided, however, That
this exemption shall extend to separate tracts of real property
owned by the same individual or individuals of one hundred acres or
less. For purposes of this exemption, each deed must be considered
separately in determining the acreage amount rather than the
acreage of contiguously connected land.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exempt owners, other
than corporations or partnerships, of one hundred acres or less of
real property from valuation and assessment as natural resources
property. Toward this end, the bill defines "small property owner"
as an owner of one hundred or less acres of real property that is
not a corporate entity or partnership.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.