Senate Bill No. 249
(By Senator Hunter)
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[Introduced January 24, 2006; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §37-6-31, relating to
making landlords more accountable for abating conditions of
garbage and litter which have been allowed to accumulate on
the leased premises; prescribing a civil penalty for owner
violators; and providing a civil action against lessees or
tenants by the owner for expenses the owner incurred as the
result of his or her obligations imposed hereunder.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §37-6-31, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 6. LANDLORD AND TENANT.
§37-6-31. Owners', lessees' and tenants' obligations as to
abatement of trash or litter on the premises.
(a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the
owner, lessee or tenant of any leased premises have the duty to
abate any persistent and substantial accumulation of garbage or
litter existing on the leased premises, whether or not directly
resulting from the actions of others, including any tenant or
lessee of the premises. Upon notice from any authorized
governmental office or agency, an owner, lessee or tenant must take
prompt and sufficient action to abate an accumulation of garbage or
litter on the leased premises.
(b) Any owner who violates the provisions of this section
after official notification by a governmental office or agency, may
be assessed a civil penalty of not more than twenty-five dollars
for each day subsequent to official notification that abatement is
not meaningfully addressed. In the event an owner is required to
incur expenses or pay any civil fine as the result of his or her
obligations under the provisions of this section, he or she shall
have a cause of action against any lessee or tenant who possessed
the leased premises at the time any garbage or litter accumulation
occurred.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to make landlords more
accountable for trash and litter allowed to accumulate on the
leased premises. The bill authorizes municipalities, counties and
state agencies to notify owners of trash accumulations and to
assess civil penalties if, after notification an owner fails to
sufficiently abate an accumulation of garbage or litter on the
premises. The owner may maintain a civil action against the
possessor of the leased premises in the event he or she must pay expenses or civil penalties as a result of the obligations imposed
under the provisions of the bill.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.
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