Senate Bill No. 66
(By Senators Ross, Sharpe and Sprouse)
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[Introduced January 14, 1998; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section fifteen, article ten, chapter
sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to pecuniary
interest of county and district officers, teachers and
school officials in contracts; offering or giving
compensation; violations; criminal penalties; and providing
section inapplicable with regard to individuals who, but for
their status as employees of a vendor or supplier under
contract with the county, would not be in violation of this
section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section fifteen, article ten, chapter sixty-one of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 10. CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC POLICY.
§61-10-15. Pecuniary interest of county and district officers,
teachers and school officials in contracts;
exceptions; offering or giving compensation;
penalties.
It shall be is unlawful for any member of a county
commission, overseer of the poor, district school officer,
secretary of a board of education, supervisor or superintendent,
principal or teacher of public schools, or any member of any
other county or district board, or for any county or district
officer to be or become pecuniarily interested, directly or
indirectly, in the proceeds of any contract or service, or in the
furnishing of any supplies in the contract for, or the awarding
or letting of a contract, which if, as such a member, officer,
secretary, supervisor, superintendent, principal, or teacher, he
or she may have any voice, influence or control: Provided,
however, That nothing herein shall in this section may be
construed to prevent or make unlawful the employment of the
spouse of a any such member, officer, secretary, supervisor,
superintendent, principal or teacher as a principal or teacher,
or auxiliary or service employee in the public schools of any
county, nor to prevent or make unlawful the employment by any
joint county and circuit clerk of his or her spouse. Any person
or officer named in this section who shall violate violates any of the foregoing provisions of this section shall be is guilty of
a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not
less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars, and may, in
the discretion of the court, be imprisoned for a period not to
exceed one year. In addition to the foregoing these penalties,
any such officer convicted of violating the provisions of this
section shall be removed from his or her office and the
certificate or certificates of any teacher, principal, supervisor
and or superintendent who violates any provision of this section
shall, upon conviction thereof, be revoked immediately. Any
person, firm or corporation that offers or gives any compensation
or thing of value, or who forebears to perform any an act
whatever to any of the officers or persons hereinbefore named in
this section or to or for any other person, with the intent to
secure the influence, support or vote of such the officer or
person for any contract, service, award or other matter as to
which any county or school district shall becomes or may become
the paymaster, shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five hundred,
nor more than twenty-five hundred dollars, and, at in the court's
discretion, of the court, such the person or any member of such
the firm, or, if it be is a corporation, any agent or officer
thereof of the corporation so offering or giving such
compensation or other thing of value, may, in addition to such a fine, be imprisoned for a period not to exceed one year.
The provisions of this section shall do not apply to
publications in newspapers required by law to be made. by law
The provisions of this section do not apply with respect to
any person who, but for his or her status as an employee of a
vendor or supplier under a contract subject to the provisions of
this section, would not otherwise be in violation of this
section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that mere
employment with a vendor or supplier under contract with a county
agency will not constitute a violation of the prohibition that
county officers, including school board members, may not be
pecuniarily interested in purchasing decisions over which he or
she has some voice, influence or control.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.