Senate Bill No. 475
(By Senators Buckalew and McKenzie)
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[Introduced February 12, 1998; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section four, article seven, chapter
sixty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to licenses for
private liquor clubs; and requiring liability insurance for
private liquor clubs or taverns.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section four, article seven, 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 7. LICENSES TO PRIVATE CLUBS.
§60-7-4. Application for license; information required;
verification; application to be accompanied by
fees; liability insurance and bond; college
fraternities and sororities ineligible for license; racial discrimination by applicants.
(a) Application for a license to operate a private club
shall be made on such form as may be prescribed by the
commissioner and shall include:
(1) The name of the applicant;
(2) If such applicant be an unincorporated association, the
names and addresses of the members of its governing board;
(3) If such applicant be a corporation, the names and
addresses of its officers and directors;
(4) The place at which such applicant will conduct its
operations and whether the same is owned or leased by the
applicant;
(5) The number of members of the applicant;
(6) The name or names of any national organizations with
which applicant is affiliated and the nature of such affiliation;
(7) The size and nature of the dining and kitchen facilities
operated by applicant; and
(8) Such other information as the commissioner may
reasonably require which shall include, but not be limited to,
the criminal records, if any, of each member of the applicant's
governing board and/or its officers and directors who have been
convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude.
(b) Such application shall be verified by each member of the governing board of the applicant if an unincorporated association
or, if the applicant be a corporation, by each of its officers
and all members of its board of directors. Such application
shall be accompanied by the license fee hereinafter prescribed,
a certificate of insurance from an insurance carrier duly
authorized to transact business in this state indicating that the
place at which such applicant will conduct its operations is
insured against loss from liability imposed by law for damages
arising out of the ownership, operation, maintenance or use of
such business in a minimum amount of not less than one hundred
thousand dollars and by a bond of the applicant in the penal sum
of five thousand dollars with a corporate surety authorized to
transact business in the state of West Virginia, payable to the
state of West Virginia, which bond shall be conditioned on the
payment of all fees herein prescribed and on the faithful
performance of and compliance with the provisions of this
article.
(c) Under no circumstance shall any college fraternity or
sorority be issued a license to operate a private club.
(d) No license to operate a private club will be issued to
applicants who discriminate against any person or group of
persons because of race or color of such person or group of
persons except clubs as defined in clauses (1) and (2), subdivision (a), section two of this article.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require private clubs
to maintain liability insurance.
Strike-through indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that
would be added.