ENROLLED
H. B. 2034
(By Delegates Damron, Coleman, Leach, Dempsey and Hubbard)
[Passed March 13, 1999; in effect ninety days from passage.]
AN ACT to amend article five, chapter eleven of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section
fourteen, relating to assessment of personal property; and
providing for the apportionment of the assessment of taxes
on motor vehicles previously titled jointly by a married
couple, but awarded to one of the spouses in a final divorce
order; duties of assessor, county commission, clerk of the
county commission and sheriff; and payment of tax.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article five, chapter eleven of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
fourteen, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. ASSESSMENT OF PERSONAL PROPERTY.
§11-5-14. Assessment of motor vehicles previously titled jointly
by married couples following final divorce order.
Beginning the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-nine, upon the presentment to the assessor of a certified
copy of a final divorce order, entered under the provisions of
section fifteen, article two, chapter forty-eight of this code,
which grants the possession of a jointly titled motor vehicle to
one of the parties of the divorce, the assessor shall list and
assess that motor vehicle in the name of the person awarded
possession of the vehicle in the final divorce order. If two
jointly owned motor vehicles are involved in the divorce order
and the vehicles are awarded exclusively to be titled one in the
name of the husband and one in the name of the wife, the assessor
shall apportion the assessment of the taxes owed on the vehicles
between the husband and wife for the purposes of taxation on the
vehicles so that the husband or wife will be responsible for the
payment of taxes only on the vehicle awarded to him or her by the
final divorce order. The assessor shall file notice of the
apportionment with the county commission. Upon receipt of the
notice, the county commission shall order that the taxes on the
vehicles be apportioned in accordance with the apportionment set forth in the notice. The clerk of the county commission shall
certify a copy of the order to the sheriff. Upon receipt of the
order, the sheriff shall accept payment of the amount of tax
apportioned to the motor vehicle awarded to the former spouse
determined in the county commission's order, and the receipt
issued by the sheriff for such payment shall constitute payment
in full of the taxes due for the motor vehicle. No provision of
this section may be construed to relieve the former spouse from
liability for payment of any tax imposed on any other property of
the former spouse.