H. B. 2753
(By Delegates D. Miller and Beach)
[Introduced March 27, 1993; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
A BILL to repeal sections three, six, six-a, seven and eight,
article twelve-a, chapter nineteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended;
and to amend and reenact sections one, two, four and five,
article twelve-a of said chapter, relating to definitions
and the transfer of institutional farms; farm equipment,
farm facilities, inventories, facilities, real property,
personal property, agricultural products, revenue accounts,
moneys and all other assets both tangible and intangible
from the farm management commission to the department of
agriculture, land division and will provide for the
uninterrupted operation of said facilities.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections three, six, six-a, seven and eight, article
twelve-a, chapter nineteen of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be repealed; and
that sections one, two, four and five, article twelve-a of saidchapter be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 12A. FARM MANAGEMENT COMMISSION.
§19-12A-1. Legislative findings and declarations.
The Legislature hereby finds and declares that in order to
ensure economic and efficient land use, increase and improve
agricultural production and provide food for residents of state-
operated institutions, and provide a means of delivering a
therapeutic work incentive program for inmates and serve as
stewards and caretakers for West Virginia agricultural and
forested lands, state-owned farms should be transferred to from
the farm management commission as is provided by this article, to
the department of agriculture. The Legislature also finds and
declares that the operation of all institutional farms under one
management system with a single integrated farm plan is the most
efficient method of providing the food needs of residents of
state-operated institutions and will promote the health and
welfare of all citizens of this state. The Legislature finds
that the department of agriculture has sufficient personnel and
manpower to oversee the operation of all of these institutional
farms and that the operation of these farms under the department
of agriculture is in the best interest of the citizens of the
state.
§19-12A-2. Definitions.
For the purpose of this article:
"Agricultural products" means livestock and livestock
products, poultry and poultry products, fruits and fruitproducts, vegetables and vegetable products, grains and hays and
the products derived therefrom, tobacco, syrups, honey and other
products derived from the business of farming; including such
other products as may be manufactured, derived, or prepared from
agricultural products, raw or processed, which are used as food
for man or animals.
"Commission" means the farm management commission as
established by this article.
"Farm equipment" means any equipment used for agricultural
production, owned by an institution and transferred to the
commission as or controlled by the farm management commission and
transferred to the department of agriculture, land division as
provided for in this article.
"Farm facility" means any processing plant, milking parlor,
farm equipment storage building, barn, silo, grain storage
building, swinery or any other building owned by an institution,
used in its farming operations and transferred to the commission
department of agriculture land division, as provided in this
article.
"Institution" means any facility operated by the department
of mental health or the state commissioner of public institutions
for care, treatment, confinement or rehabilitation of residents.
"Institutional farm" means any land owned by the department
of mental health or the state commissioner of public institutions
which was formerly operated as a farm, is now being operated as
a farm or could be converted to agricultural production, and istransferred to the commission farm management commission which
has formerly been operated as a farm, is now being operated as a
farm, or could be converted to agriculture production, and is
transferred to the department of agriculture, land division, as
provided in this article.
§19-12A-4. Transfer of institutional farms, farm equipment,
farm facilities, inventories and agricultural
products to the department of agriculture, land
division; utility continuance; provisions for
uninterrupted operation; transfer of funds.
(a) On the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-three, the farm management commission shall transfer all
institutional farms and all easements, mineral rights,
appurtenances, farm equipment, agricultural products, inventories
and farm facilities thereon, or attached thereto, to the
department of agriculture, land division, as set forth below:
(1) The Lakin State Hospital institutional farm, located at
Lakin, Mason County, which shall include not less than nine
hundred fifty acres;
(2) The Weston State Hospital institutional farm, located at
Weston, Lewis County, which shall include not less than five
hundred seventy acres;
(3) The Huttonsville Correctional Center institutional farm,
located at Huttonsville, Randolph County, which shall include not
less than five thousand and two hundred acres, including all of
the tract of land commonly known as Becky's Creek Farm;
(4) The Hopemount State Hospital institutional farm, located
at Terra Alta, Preston County, which shall include not less than
five hundred acres;
(5) The West Virginia Industrial School for Boys
institutional farm, located at Pruntytown, Taylor County, which
shall include not less than one thousand five hundred eighty-
seven acres;
(6) The Pinecrest State Hospital institutional farm, located
at Beckley, Raleigh County, which shall include not less than two
hundred twenty acres;
(7) The West Virginia Penitentiary institutional farm,
located at Moundsville, Marshall County, which shall contain not
less than one hundred forty-two acres;
(8) The Andrew S. Rowan Memorial Home institutional farm,
located at Sweet Springs, Monroe County, which shall include not
less than six hundred fifty acres;
(9) The West Virginia Children's Home institutional farm,
located at Elkins, Randolph County, which shall include not less
than one hundred fifty acres.
(b) On the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-three, all other assets, money, bank accounts and funds
held or under the control of the farm management commission,
including the special revenue account originally provided for
under section six-a, article twelve-a, chapter nineteen of this
code, shall be transferred to the department of agriculture
special revenue account.
§19-12A-5. Powers, duties and responsibilities of the
department of agriculture.
(a) On or before the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred ninety, the commission shall meet and confer with respect
to the development of a management plan to determine the optimum
use or disposition of all institutional farms, at which time the
farm management director shall provide the commission with a
complete inventory of all institutional farms, and such
information relating to easements, mineral rights, appurtenances,
farm equipment, agricultural products, livestock, inventories and
farm facilities as may be necessary to develop such management
plan. The commission shall complete and provide to the governor
a management plan, which plan shall set forth the objectives of
the commission with respect to institutional farms, the criteria
by which the commission shall determine the optimum use or
disposition of such property, and determinations as to whether
each institutional farm shall be used in production, sold, or
leased, in whole or in part. Prior to the adoption of any plan,
the commission shall consult with the secretaries of the various
departments of state government and shall request from such
secretaries suggestions for land use and resource development on
farm commission lands. On or before the first day of December,
one thousand nine hundred ninety, such management plan shall be
presented to the Legislature, by providing a copy to the
president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
Delegates. The commission may confer with any other agency orindividual in implementing and adjusting its management plan.
The management plan established pursuant to this subsection may
be amended, from time to time, as may be necessary.
(b) The commission shall manage its institutional farms,
equipment and other property in order to most efficiently produce
food products for state institutions and shall implement the
intent of the Legislature as set forth by this article. From the
total amount of food, milk and other commodities produced on
institutional farms, the commission shall sell, at prevailing
wholesale prices, and each of the institutions under the control
of the division of health and the division of corrections shall
purchase, a proportionate amount of these products based on the
dietary needs of each institution.
(c) If requested by the commissioner of corrections, the
commission may authorize the division of corrections to operate
a farm or other enterprise using inmates as labor on such lands.
The commissioner of corrections shall be responsible for the
selection, direction and supervision of the inmates and shall
assign the work to be performed by inmates.
(d) The commission is hereby authorized and empowered to:
(a) The department of agriculture, land division, shall
manage its institutional farms, equipment and other property in
order to most efficiently produce food products for state
institutions, and shall implement the intent of the Legislature
as set forth by this article.
(b) The commissioner of the department of agriculture isspecifically authorized and empowered, in addition to all other
powers and authority provided elsewhere, to:
(1) Lease to public or private parties, for purposes
including agricultural production or experimentation, public
necessity, or other purposes permitted by the management plan,
any land, easements, equipment, or other property, except that
property may not be leased for any use in any manner that would
render the land toxic for agricultural use, nor may toxic or
hazardous materials as identified by the commissioner of
agriculture be used or stored upon such the property unless all
applicable state and federal permits necessary are obtained. Any
lease for an annual consideration of one thousand dollars or more
shall be by sealed bid auction and the commission shall give
notice of such the auction by publication thereof as a Class II-
0 legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of
article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code, and the
publication area for such publication shall be the county in
which the property to be leased is located;
(2) Transfer to the public land corporation land designated
in its management plan as land to be disposed of, which land
shall be sold, exchanged or otherwise transferred pursuant to
sections four and five, article one-a, chapter twenty of this
code:
Provided,
That the net proceeds of the sale of farm
commission department of agriculture lands shall be deposited in
the general revenue fund of the state:
Provided, however,
That
no a sale may not be concluded until on or after the fifteenthday of March, one thousand nine hundred ninety-one ninety-three,
except with respect to: (A) Properties located at institutions
closed on or before the effective date of this section, the tenth
day of March, one thousand nine hundred ninety ninety-three; or
(B) properties conveyed to or from the farm management commission
department of agriculture to or from any other entity in order to
facilitate the construction of a regional jail or correctional
facility by the regional jail and correctional facilities
authority or the state building commission, with the decision to
execute any such conveyance being solely within the discretion
of, and at the direction of, the regional jail and correctional
facilities authority;
(3) Develop lands to which it has title for the public use
including forestation, recreation, wildlife, stock grazing,
agricultural production, rehabilitation and/or other conservation
activities and may contract or lease for the proper development
of timber, oil, gas or mineral resources, including coal by
underground mining or by surface mining where reclamation as
required by specifications of the division of energy will
increase the beneficial use of such property. Any such contract
or lease shall be by sealed bid auction as provided for in
subdivision (1) above;
(4) Exercise all other powers and duties necessary to
effectuate the purposes of this article.
(e) (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (d)
herein, no timberland may be leased, sold, exchanged or otherwisedisposed of unless the division of forestry of the department of
commerce, labor and environmental resources certifies that there
is no commercially salable timber on the timberland, an inventory
is provided, an appraisal of the timber is provided, and the
sale, lease, exchange or other disposition is accomplished by the
sealed bid auction procedure provided above in subdivisions (1)
or (2), as applicable.
(f) (d) The commission department of agriculture shall
promulgate, pursuant to chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, rules
and regulations relating to the powers and duties of the
commission as enumerated in this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to transfer all
institutional farms, farm equipment, farm facilities,
inventories, facilities, real property, personal property,
agricultural products, revenue accounts, moneys and all other
assets both tangible and intangible from the Farm Management
Commission to the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, Land
Division, and will provide for the uninterrupted operation of
said facilities.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.
§19-12A-4 is completely rewritten; therefore, strike-
throughs and underscoring have been omitted.