COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

H. B. 4100

(By Delegates Love, Pettit and Thomas)


(Originating in the Committee on Government Organization)

[February 9, 1996]


A BILL to amend and reenact section eight-b, article fifteen, chapter eight of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section fourteen, article four, chapter twelve of said code, all relating to volunteer fire companies; authorizing expenditure of state funds or grants for certain filing fees required by the legislative auditor's office and for certain insurance premiums; requiring deposit of filing fees in special revenue account; and authorizing expenditures from said account for payment of costs associated with conducting audits.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section eight-b, article fifteen, chapter eight of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section fourteen, article four, chapter twelve of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 8. MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS.

ARTICLE 15. FIRE FIGHTING; FIRE COMPANIES AND DEPARTMENTS; CIVIL SERVICE FOR PAID FIRE DEPARTMENTS.

§8-15-8b. Authorized expenditures of revenues from the municipal pensions and protection fund and the fire protection fund.
Revenues allocated to volunteer and part volunteer fire companies and departments may be expended only for the items listed in subdivisions (a) through (h) (j) of this section. Such expenditures may be made for the following:
(a) Personal protective equipment, including protective head gear, bunker coats, pants, boots, combination of bunker pants and boots, coats and gloves;
(b) Equipment for compliance with the national fire protection standard or automotive fire apparatus, NFPA-1901;
(c) Compliance with insurance service office recommendations relating to fire departments;
(d) Rescue equipment, communications equipment and ambulance equipment: Provided, That no moneys received from the municipal pensions and protection fund or the fire protection fund may be used for equipment for personal vehicles owned or operated by volunteer fire company or department members;
(e) Capital improvements reasonably required for effective and efficient fire protection service and maintenance thereof;
(f) Retirement of debts;
(g) Payment of utility bills; and
(h) Payment of the cost of immunizations, including any laboratory work incident thereto, for firefighters against hepatitis-b and other blood borne pathogens: Provided, That the vaccine shall be purchased through the state immunization program or from the lowest cost vendor available: Provided, however, That volunteer and part volunteer fire companies and departments shall seek to obtain no cost administration of the vaccinations through local boards of health: Provided further, That in the event any volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department is unable to obtain no cost administration of the vaccinations through a local board of health, the company or department shall seek to obtain the lowest cost available for the administration of the vaccinations from a licensed health care provider;
(i) Any filing fee required to be paid to the legislative auditor's office under section fourteen, article four, chapter twelve of this code relating to sworn statements of annual expenditures submitted by volunteer or part volunteer fire companies or departments that receive state funds or grants; and
(j) Property/casualty insurance premiums for protection and indemnification against loss or damage or liability.
CHAPTER 12. PUBLIC MONEYS AND SECURITIES.

ARTICLE 4. ACCOUNTS, REPORTS AND GENERAL PROVISIONS.

§12-4-14. Audits of corporations, associations or other
organizations which receive state funds or
grants.
Any corporation, association or other organization in West Virginia, whether nonprofit or for profit, which receives state funds or grants in the amount of fifteen thousand dollars or more shall file an audit of the disbursement of funds with the legislative auditor's office. The audit shall be filed within two years of the disbursement of funds or grants by the grantee and shall be made by an independent certified public accountant at the cost of the corporation, association or other organization and must show that the funds or grants were spent for the purposes intended when the grant was made. State funds or audits Audits of state funds or grants under fifteen thousand dollars may be authorized by the joint committee on government and finance to be conducted by the legislative auditor's office, at no cost to the grantee: Provided, That volunteer fire departments will satisfy the audit requirements of this section by submitting a sworn statement of annual expenditures to the legislative auditor's office, along with a filing fee of seventy- five dollars, on or before the fourteenth day of February of each year, if such volunteer fire department elects not to be audited. The sworn statement of expenditures must be signed by the chief or director of the volunteer fire department, and shall be made under oath and acknowledged before a notary public. The office of the legislative auditor may assign an employee or employees to perform random audits per the direction of the legislative auditor of the disbursement of funds or grants to volunteer fire departments. Filing fees paid by volunteer fire departments pursuant to this section shall be paid into a special revenue account created in the state treasury known as the "Special Legislative Audit Fund". Expenditures from the fund are authorized to be made by the legislative auditor's office solely for the purposes of payment of costs associated with the audits conducted pursuant to this section. Any person who files a fraudulent sworn statement of expenditures under this section is guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one thousand dollars nor more than five thousand dollars, or imprisoned in the state penitentiary for a period of time not less than one year nor more than five years, or both fined and imprisoned.

NOTE: The purpose of this committee substitute is to permit volunteer or part volunteer fire departments that receive state funds or grants to use specified state funds to pay filing fees to the Legislative Auditor's Office in connection with certain required sworn statements of annual expenditures and for payment of certain insurance premiums. The bill also allows audits of volunteer fire departments to be conducted at the direction of the Legislative Auditor and authorizes the Legislative Auditor to use the filing fees, which will be placed in the newly-created "Special Legislative Audit Fund," solely for the purpose of conducting the audits of the volunteer fire departments.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.