WEST virginia
legislature
2017 regular session
By
[
Referred to the Committee on Finance then Judiciary
Proposing an amendment to
the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, amending section one‑b,
article ten, relating to homestead exemption increase; numbering and
designating such proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of
the purpose of such proposed amendment.
Resolved by the
Legislature of West Virginia, two-thirds of the members elected to each house
agreeing thereto:
That the question of
ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State of
West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the state at the next general
election to be held in the year 2018
ARTICLE
X. TAXATION AND FINANCE.
§1b. Property
tax limitation and homestead exemption amendment 1982.
Ad valorem property
taxation shall be in accordance with this section and other applicable
provisions of this article not inconsistent with this section.
Subsection A ‑‑
Value; Rate of Assessment; Exceptions
Notwithstanding any other
provisions of this Constitution and except as otherwise provided in this section,
all property subject to ad valorem taxation shall be assessed at sixty percent
of its value, as directed to be ascertained in this section, except that the
Legislature may from time to time, by general law agreed to by two-thirds of
the members elected to each house, establish a higher percentage for the
purposes of this paragraph, which percentage shall be uniform as to all classes
of property defined in section one of this article, but not more than one
hundred percent of such value.
Notwithstanding the
foregoing, for the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred eighty-two and the
first day of July of each year thereafter until the values may be fixed as a
result of the first statewide reappraisal hereinafter required, assessments
shall be made under the provisions of current statutory law, which is hereby
validated for such purpose until and unless amended by the Legislature. Assessment and taxation in accord with this
section shall be deemed to be are equal and uniform for all
purposes.
Subsection B ‑‑
Determination of Value
The Legislature shall
provide by general law for periodic statewide reappraisal of all property,
which reappraisal shall be related for all property to a specified base year
which, as to each such reappraisal, shall be uniform for each appraisal for all
classes of property and all counties. In
such law, the Legislature shall provide for consideration of: (1) Trends in market values over a fixed
period of years prior to the base year; (2) the location of the property; and
(3) such other factors and methods as it may determine. Provided, That With
respect to reappraisal of all property upon the base year of one thousand nine
hundred eighty, such the reappraisals are deemed to be
valid and in compliance with this section.
Provided, however, That With respect to farm
property, as defined from time to time by the Legislature by general law, the
determination of value shall be according to its fair and reasonable value for
farming purposes, as may be defined by general law.
The results of each
statewide appraisal shall upon completion be certified and published and errors
therein may be corrected, all as provided by general law. The first such statewide appraisal
shall be completed, certified and published on or before the thirty-first day
of March, one thousand nine hundred eighty-five, for use when directed by the
Legislature.
The Legislature shall
further prescribe by general law the manner in which each statewide reappraisal
shall be is employed to establish the value of the various
separately assessed parcels or interests in parcels of real property and
various items of personal property subject to ad valorem property taxation, the
methods by which increases and reductions in value subsequent to the base year
of each statewide reappraisal shall be are ascertained and
require the enforcement thereof.
Subsection C ‑‑
General Homestead Exemption
Notwithstanding any other
provisions of this Constitution to the contrary, the first twenty forty
thousand dollars of assessed valuation of any real property or of
personal property in the form of a mobile home used exclusively for residential
purposes and occupied by the owner or one of the owners thereof as his or
her residence who is a citizen of this state and who is sixty‑five
years of age or older or is permanently and totally disabled as that term may
be defined by the Legislature, shall be is exempt from ad valorem
property taxation, subject to such requirements, limitations and conditions as shall
be prescribed by general law.
Notwithstanding any other
provision of this Constitution to the contrary, the Legislature shall have
has the authority to provide by general law for an exemption from ad
valorem property taxation in an amount not to exceed the first twenty forty
thousand dollars of value of any real property or of personal property
in the form of a mobile home used exclusively for residential purposes and
occupied by the owner or one of the owners thereof as his or her
residence who is a citizen of this state, and who is under sixty‑five
years of age and not totally and permanently disabled. Provided, That Upon
enactment of such general law, this exemption shall only apply only
applies to such property in any a county in which the
property was appraised at its value as the first day of January, one thousand
nine hundred eighty, or thereafter, as determined by the Legislature. and
This exemption shall be phased in over such a period of time not
to exceed five years from the date such the property was so
appraised or such longer time as the Legislature may determine by general
law. Provided, however,
That In no event shall may any one person and his or her
spouse or one homestead be entitled to more than one exemption under these
provisions. Provided further,
That These provisions are subject to such requirements, limitations and
conditions as shall be prescribed by general law.
The Legislature shall
have has the authority to provide by general law for property tax
relief to citizens of this state who are tenants of residential or farm
property.
Subsection D ‑‑
Additional Limitations on Value
With respect to the first
statewide reappraisal pursuant to this section, the resulting increase in value
in each and every parcel of land or interest therein and various items
of personal property subject to ad valorem property taxation over and above
the previously assessed value shall be allocated over a period of ten years in
equal amounts annually.
The Legislature may by
general law also provide for the phasing in of any subsequent statewide
reappraisal of property.
Subsection E ‑‑
Levies for Free Schools
In equalizing the support
of free schools provided by state and local taxes, the Legislature may require
that the local school districts levy all or any portion of the maximum levies
allowed under section one of this article which has been allocated to such
local school districts.
Within the limits of the
maximum levies permitted for excess levies for schools or better schools in
sections one and ten of this article, the Legislature may, in lieu of the
exercise of such powers by the local school districts as heretofore provided,
submit to the voters, by general law, a statewide excess levy, and if it be
approved by the required number of voters, impose such levy, subject however
to all the limitations and requirements for the approval of such levies as in
the case of a district levy. The law
submitting the question to the voters shall provide, upon approval of the levy
by the voters, for the assumption of the obligation of any local excess levies
for schools then in force theretofore authorized by the voters of a local
taxing unit to the extent of such excess levies imposed by the state and so
as to avoid double taxation of those local districts. The Legislature may also by general law
reserve to the school districts such portions of the power to lay authorized
excess levies as it may deem appropriate to enable local school
districts to provide educational services which are not required to be
furnished or supported by the state. If
a statewide excess levy for the support of free schools is approved by the
required majority, the revenue from such a statewide excess levy shall
be deposited in the State Treasury and be allocated first for the local
obligations assumed and thereafter for such part of the state effort to support
free schools by appropriation or as the law submitting the levy to the voters shall
require, requires, as the case may be.
The defeat of any such
a proposed statewide excess levy for school purposes shall does
not in any way abrogate or impair any local existing excess levy for such purpose
nor prevent the adoption of any future local excess levy for such purpose.
Subsection F ‑‑
Implementation
In the event of any an
inconsistency between any of the provisions of this section and other
provisions of this Constitution, the provisions of this section shall
prevail. prevails. The
Legislature shall have has plenary power to provide by general
law for the equitable application of this article and, as to taxes to be
assessed prior to the first statewide reappraisal, to make such laws retroactive
to the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred eighty-two, or thereafter."
Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article
eleven, chapter three of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, such
amendment is hereby numbered “Amendment No. 1” and designated as the “
NOTE: The purpose of this
resolution is to increase the homestead exemption from $20,000 to $40,000.
Strike-throughs indicate language
that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring
indicates new language that would be added.