H. B. 2944
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegate Martin)
[Introduced February 26, 1999; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
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 state funds received by volunteer
and part volunteer fire companies and departments; allowing
funds to be expended on operating expenses; prohibiting the
commingling of state funds with other funds; requiring
cooperation with the legislative auditor; allowing the joint
committee on government and finance to determine the amount
of the annual expenditure filing fee; and requiring the tax
commissioner to audit state funds received by volunteer and
part volunteer fire companies and departments under certain
circumstances.
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 (j) (k) of this section. Such
Funds received from the state for volunteer and part
volunteer fire companies and departments, pursuant to sections
fourteen-d and thirty-three, article three, and section
sixteen-a, article twelve, all of chapter thirty-three of this
code, may not be commingled with funds received from any other
source. 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 of
the capital improvements;
(f) Retirement of debts;
(g) Payment of utility bills;
(h) Payment of the cost of immunizations, including any
laboratory work incident thereto to the immunizations, 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; and
(k) Operating expenses, which include, but are not limited
to, gasoline, bank fees, postage and accounting costs.
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 shall show that the funds or grants were spent for the
purposes intended when the grant was made. 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 prescribed by the joint
committee on government and finance, of no less than one hundred
fifty dollars, on or before the fourteenth day of February of
each year, if such the volunteer fire department elects not to be
audited. The sworn statement of expenditures must shall 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 audits per at the direction of
the legislative auditor of the disbursement of funds or grants to
volunteer fire departments. The volunteer fire department shall
cooperate with the legislative auditor, the legislative auditor's
employees and the tax commissioner in performing their duties
under this section. If the legislative auditor determines a
volunteer fire department is not cooperating, the legislative auditor shall notify the state treasurer who shall withhold
payment of any amount that would otherwise be distributed to the
fire department under the provisions of sections fourteen-d and
thirty-three, article three, and section sixteen-a, article
twelve, all of chapter thirty-three of this code, until the
legislative auditor informs the treasurer that the fire
department has cooperated as required by this section.
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 a state correctional
facility for a period of time not less than one year nor more
than five years, or both fined and imprisoned.
Whenever the tax commissioner performs an audit of a
volunteer fire department for any purpose the tax commissioner
shall also conduct an audit other state funds received by the
fire department pursuant to sections fourteen-d and thirty-three,
article three, and section sixteen-a, article twelve, all of chapter thirty-three of this code. The tax commissioner shall
send a copy of any such audit to the legislative auditor. The
legislative auditor may accept an audit performed by the tax
commissioner in lieu of performing an audit under this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to prohibit the
commingling of certain state funds received by volunteer and part
volunteer fire companies and departments with other funds, allow
certain funds to be expended for operating expenses, require
cooperation with the Legislative Auditor and Tax Commissioner in
performing audits, allow the Joint Committee on Government and
Finance to determine the amount of the annual expenditure filing
fee, and require the Tax Commissioner to audit state funds
received by volunteer and part volunteer fire companies and
departments under certain circumstances.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.