Senate Bill No. 236
(By Senators Burdette, Mr. President, and Boley,
By Request of the Executive)
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[Introduced February 1, 1994; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article three, chapter
sixty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to authorizing the
alcohol beverage control commissioner to contract with a
private party for the purpose of operating the alcohol
beverage control commission warehouse.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article three, chapter sixty of the code
of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. SALES BY COMMISSIONER.
§60-3-3. Warehouses.
(a) The commission shall establish and manage as many
warehouses as the commissioner may deem to be necessary but no
more than four for the storage of alcoholic liquors and the
supply of state stores and agencies retail outlets authorized
under article three-a of this chapter: Provided, That effectivethe first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, the
commissioner is authorized to enter into a contract for warehouse
operations and wholesale distribution: Provided, however, That
only the lowest responsible competitive bidder may be granted
such a contract.
(b) For purposes of this section, "warehouse operations and
wholesale distribution" includes, but is not necessarily limited
to, the following functions:
(1) Obtaining, for the duration of the contract, warehouse
facilities of such capacity, quality and access as the
commissioner may specify;
(2) Receiving, unloading and storing shipments of alcoholic
liquors received from distilleries or their representatives;
(3) Assembling and preparing warehouse stock for delivery to
authorized retail outlets;
(4) Receiving and processing alcoholic liquors returned to
the warehouse by authorized retail outlets;
(5) Transporting alcoholic liquors between the warehouse and
facilities maintained by authorized retail outlets, and as
otherwise required by the commissioner;
(6) Inspecting, counting and auditing warehouse stock;
(7) Producing, obtaining, recording and/or storing such
information or documents as the commissioner may require;
(8) Providing equipment and qualified employees as necessary
to perform warehouse operations and wholesale distribution;
(9) Preserving, maintaining and securing the warehouse, itsgrounds and stock, and all equipment provided by the commission
for use in warehouse operations and wholesale distribution; and
(10) Insuring any equipment provided by the commission for
use in warehouse operations and wholesale distributions,
warehouse stock and against such risks and for such amounts as
the commissioner may require.
(c) Any private party responsible for warehouse operations
and wholesale distribution under this section shall:
(1) Assure that the warehouse is maintained in a safe and
clean condition;
(2) Assure full compliance with all requirements established
by federal and state law, and with the commission's rules and
regulations;
(3) Assure full compliance with all additional requirements
concerning warehouse operations and wholesale distribution that
are formulated by the commissioner; and
(4) Furnish sufficient equipment and employees to perform
fully the party's duties under the contract: Provided, That the
party shall use its best efforts to employ qualified former
commission employees who were employed at the warehouse
immediately prior to the party commencing its performance of the
contract.
(d) Before being awarded a contract that is authorized under
this section, a party shall furnish to the commissioner a bond,
which bond shall guarantee the payment of all amounts that under
the contract may be due the commission by the party. The bondshall be in cash or negotiable securities, or a surety bond
issued by a surety company authorized to do business with the
state, or an irrevocable letter of credit issued by a financial
institution acceptable to the commissioner. If the bond is
furnished in cash or negotiable securities, the same shall be
deposited without restriction in the state treasurer's office and
credited to the commissioner, but any income from said cash or
negotiable securities shall inure to the benefit of the party.
If the party is not awarded the contract, the bond shall be
returned to the party. If the party is awarded the contract, the
bond shall be released when the contract is fulfilled or in any
way terminated: Provided, That any and all lawful obligations of
the party to the commission that result from the party's
performance or nonperformance of its duties under the contract
must be satisfied in full before the bond is released.
(e) Before being awarded a contract that is authorized under
this section, a party shall obtain all licenses, permits or other
forms of approval that are required under federal and state law
in order lawfully to perform the duties required of the party
under the contract.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize the ABCC to
contract for the operation of its warehouse.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.