SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 10
(By Senator Blatnik)
[Introduced February 16, 1994;
referred to the Committee on Finance.]
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West
Virginia, amending sections one and one-b, article ten
thereof, and further amending article ten, by adding thereto
a new section, designated section eleven, all relating to
reducing the rate of property tax and providing an exemption
for personal income tax; 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 one thousand nine hundred ninety-four,
which proposed amendment is that sections one and one-b, article
ten thereof be amended, and that article ten be further amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated section eleven, all
to read as follows:
ARTICLE X. TAXATION AND FINANCE.
§1. Taxation and finance.
Subject to the exceptions in this section contained,
taxation shall be equal and uniform throughout the state, and all
property, both real and personal, shall be taxed in proportion to
its value to be ascertained as directed by law. No one species
of property from which a tax may be collected shall be taxed
higher than any other species of property of equal value; except
that improvements to property shall be taxed at a reduced rate
from the rate set for land and minerals, such that the rate on
improvements shall not be greater than one-half the rate set on
land and minerals, and at no time shall the aggregate of taxes
assessed in any one year upon personal property employed
exclusively in agriculture, including horticulture and grazing,
products of agriculture as above defined, including livestock,
while owned by the producer, and money, notes, bonds, bills and
accounts receivable, stocks and other similar intangible personal
property shall not exceed fifty twenty-five cents on each one
hundred dollars of value thereon and upon all property
improvements owned, used and occupied by the owner thereof
exclusively for residential purposes and upon farms occupied and
cultivated by their owners or bona fide tenants, one dollar fifty
cents; and upon all other property improvements situated outside
of municipalities, one dollar and fifty cents seventy-five cents;
and upon all other property improvements situated within
municipalities, two dollars one dollar; and the Legislature shall
establish by law the rate set on land and minerals, and furtherprovide by general law for increasing the maximum rates,
authorized to be fixed, by the different levying bodies upon all
classes of property, by submitting the question to the voters of
the taxing units affected, but no increase shall be effective
unless at least sixty percent of the qualified voters shall favor
such increase, and such increase shall not continue for a longer
period than three years at any one time, and shall never exceed
by more than fifty percent the maximum rate herein provided and
prescribed by law; and the revenue derived from this source shall
be apportioned by the Legislature among the levying units of the
state in proportion to the levy laid in said units upon real and
other personal property; but property used for educational,
literary, scientific, religious or charitable purposes, all
cemeteries, public property, the personal property, including
livestock, employed exclusively in agriculture as above defined
and the products of agriculture as so defined while owned by the
producers may by law be exempted from taxation; household goods
to the value of two hundred dollars shall be exempted from
taxation. The Legislature shall have authority to tax
privileges, franchises, and incomes of persons and corporations
and to classify and graduate the tax on all incomes according to
the amount thereof and to exempt from taxation, incomes below a
minimum to be fixed from time to time, and such revenues as may
be derived from such tax may be appropriated as the Legislature
may provide. After the year nineteen hundred thirty-three, the
rate of the state tax upon property shall not exceed one centupon the hundred dollars valuation, except to pay the principal
and interest of bonded indebtedness of the state now existing.
§1b. Property tax limitation and homestead exemption amendment
of 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 equal anduniform 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 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 employed toestablish 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 ascertained,
and require the enforcement thereof.
Subsection C -- General Homestead Exemption
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Constitution to
the contrary, the first twenty thousand dollars of assessed
valuation of any real property, or of personal property in the
form of a mobile home, used exclusively for residential or
farming purposes and occupied by the majority owner or one of the
owners thereof as his 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 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 the authority to provide
by general law for an exemption from ad valorem property taxation
in an amount not to exceed the first twenty 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
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 to such property in any county in which the
property was appraised at its value as of 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 period of time not to exceed five years from the
date such property was so appraised, or such longer time as the
Legislature may determine by general law: Provided, however,
That in no event shall any one person and his 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: And provided further, That the above
mentioned phase-in of this homestead exemption to people under
sixty-five years of age who are not disabled shall begin no later
than the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-
five.
The Legislature shall have 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 abovethe 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 authorizedexcess 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, as the case
may be.
The defeat of any such proposed statewide excess levy for
school purposes shall 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 inconsistency between any of the
provisions of this section and other provisions of this
Constitution, the provisions of this section shall prevail. The
Legislature shall have 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.
§11. Income tax exemption
The first five thousand dollars for a single household
income tax return and the first seven thousand five hundreddollars for a joint income tax return shall be exempt from state
income taxation. The Legislature may determine by law to raise
the amount of this exemption, but may not lower the exemption
without constitutional amendment.
Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of
article eleven, chapter three of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, such proposed
amendment is hereby numbered "Amendment No. 1" and designated as
the "Property and Income Tax Amendment," and the purpose of the
proposed amendment is summarized as follows: "To provide a
property tax and income tax amendment which will reduce the tax
rate for property improvements from the standard rate set for
land and minerals, and also allow for a five thousand dollar
deduction from personal income tax for single household income
and a seven thousand dollar deduction from personal income tax
for joint income households.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide a property tax
and income tax amendment which will reduce the tax rate for
property improvements from the standard rate set for land and
minerals, and also allow for a five thousand dollar deduction
from personal income tax for single household income and a seven
thousand dollar deduction for joint income households.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present Constitution, and underscoring indicates new
language that would be added.
Section eleven, article ten is new; therefore, strike-
throughs and underscoring have been omitted.