ENROLLED
REVISED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 79
(Senators Craigo, Ball, Kessler, Bowman, Anderson, Dittmar, Ross, Plymale
and Sharpe, original sponsors)
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[Passed March 11, 2000; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AN ACT to amend and reenact section one-b, article three, chapter
eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to specifying a
fair methodology for the appraisal of real property
undergoing development; setting forth definitions;
establishing factor for valuation; providing that the sale
or development of one lot within a recorded plan shall not
be the sole factor in valuing the remaining property for ad
valorem real property tax purposes; and setting effective
dates.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one-b, article three, chapter eleven of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. ASSESSMENTS GENERALLY.
ยง11-3-1b. Recordation of plat or designation of land use not to
be basis for assessment; factors for valuation; legislative
rule; effective dates.
(a) The recordation of a plan or plat, or the designation
of proposed land use by a county or municipal planning authority,
shall not be used by the assessor as a basis in the valuation or
assessment of real property for the purposes of taxation, except
as hereafter provided. The valuation of real property contained
in a recorded plan or plat is as follows:
(1) When a lot or parcel within a recorded plan or plat is
sold, that lot shall be revalued by the county assessor or tax
commissioner. In no event may the remaining lots within the
recorded plan or plat be automatically revalued solely based upon
the sale of other lots within the recorded plan or plat.
(2) When land contained within a recorded plan or plat is
first developed and actually used for a commercial, residential
or industrial purpose, the land shall be revalued by the county
assessor or the tax commissioner, depending upon whoever has
authority over the land, but in no event may the remaining lots within the recorded plan or plat be automatically revalued solely
based upon the sale of other lots within the recorded plan or
plat.
(b) For valuation of the remaining lots or parcels or
undeveloped portion within the recorded plan or plat, the
following factors shall be taken into consideration in
determining the valuation: (1) Availability of improved roads;
(2) availability of sewage disposal and drinking water supply,
including, but not limited to, the use of such factors as
availability of public water and sewage systems, private water
systems, water wells, private sewage and septic systems or
potential private sewage and septic systems; (3) availability of
electrical, telephone and other utility services; and (4)
percentage of completion of improvements and infrastructure
development. The assessor shall annually determine the
percentage of completion of improvements and infrastructure
development. The tax commissioner shall propose a legislative
rule for submission to the Legislature pursuant to the provisions
of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, which rule
shall describe in detail the methodology and use of the factors
set out above, as well as any other factors determined by the tax
commissioner to be applicable, for valuation of percentage of
completion of improvements and infrastructure development. The remaining lots or parcels or undeveloped portion within the
recorded plan or plat are not managed timberland for purposes of
valuation of management timberland under section eleven and
eleven-a, article one-c, of this chapter. For purposes of
classification of property for levy purposes under section five,
article eight of this chapter, developed lots or parcels shall
not be reclassified from Class III to Class II or from Class IV
to Class II until the developed lot or parcel is used and
occupied by the owner thereof exclusively for residential
purposes as defined in section three, article four of this
chapter.
(c) The designation of proposed land use by a county or
municipal planning authority may not be used or considered by an
assessor in determining the appraised value of property included
under a designation of proposed land use by a county or municipal
planning authority until such time as the actual use of the real
property has changed to correspond to the proposed use. For
purposes of this subsection, the actual use of real property
shall be treated as having changed to correspond to the proposed
use as improvements on the property necessary for the proposed
use are completed: Provided, That in valuing the property before
its change to actual use, the assessor may consider the factors
described in subsection (b) of this section.
(d) The amendments made to this section by the Legislature
in two thousand shall become effective on the first day of July,
two thousand, and shall be effective as to all plans or plats
filed after the thirtieth day of June, two thousand. The
provisions of the amendments made to this section in two thousand
do not apply to unsold lots or parcels or undeveloped land
contained within recorded plans or plats which were recorded
prior to the first day of July, two thousand: Provided, That in
no event may the appraised value of unsold lots or parcels or
undeveloped land contained within these recorded plans or plats
be less than their appraised value as of first day of July, two
thousand.