ENGROSSED
Senate Bill No. 402
(By Senators Craigo, Jackson and Tomblin, Mr. President)
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[Introduced March 6, 2001; referred to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section one, article six, chapter
eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended; and to further amend said article by
adding thereto two new sections, designated sections seven-c
and twenty-seven, all relating to imposing an ad valorem tax
upon nonresident owners or operators of commercial vessels
used on the navigable waterways of the state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one, article six, chapter eleven of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended and reenacted; and that said article be further amended by
adding thereto two new sections, designated sections seven-c and
twenty-seven, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 6. ASSESSMENT OF PUBLIC SERVICE BUSINESSES.
§11-6-1. Returns of property to board of public works.
(a) On or before the first day of May in each year a return in
writing shall be filed with the board of public works: (1) By the
owner or operator of every railroad, wholly or in part, within this
state; (2) by the owner or operator of every railroad bridge upon
which a separate toll or fare is charged; (3) by the owner or
operator of every car or line of cars used upon any railroad within
the state for transportation or accommodation of freight or
passengers, other than the owners or operators as may own or
operate a railroad within the state; (4) by the owner or operator
of every express company or express line, wholly or in part, within
this state used for the transportation by steam or otherwise of
freight and other articles of commerce; (5) by the owner or
operator of every pipeline, wholly or in part, within this state
used for the transportation of oil or gas or water, whether the oil
or gas or water be owned by the owner or operator or not, or for
the transmission of electrical or other power, or the transmission
of steam or heat and power or of articles by pneumatic or other
power; (6) by the owner or operator of every telegraph or telephone
line, wholly or in part, within this state, except private lines
not operated for compensation; (7) by the owner and operator of every gas company and electric lighting company furnishing gas or
electricity for lighting, heating or power purposes; (8) by the
owner or operator of hydroelectric companies for the generation and
transmission of light, heat or power; (9) by the owner or operator
of water companies furnishing or distributing water; (10) by the
owner or operator of every nonresident commercial navigation
company upon any navigable waterway within the state engaged in the
transportation or accommodation of freight or passengers, or both,
for compensation; and (10) (11) by the owner or operator of all
other public service corporations or persons engaged in public
service business whose property is located, wholly or in part,
within this state.
(b) The words "owner or operator", as applied herein to
railroad companies, shall include includes every railroad company
incorporated by or under the laws of this state for the purpose of
constructing and operating a railroad or of operating part of a
railroad within this state, whether the railroad or any part of it
be in operation or not; and shall also include includes every other
railroad company, or persons or associations of persons, owning or
operating a railroad or part of a railroad in this state on which
freight or passengers, or both, are carried for compensation. The
word "railroad", as used herein, includes every street, city, suburban or electric or other railroad or railway.
(c) The words "owner or operator", as applied herein to
express companies, shall include includes every express company
incorporated by or under the laws of this state, or doing business
in this state, whether incorporated or not, and any person or
association of persons owning or operating any express company or
express line upon any railroad or otherwise, doing business partly
or wholly within this state.
(d) The words "owner or operator", as applied to nonresident
commercial navigation companies, includes every nonresident
navigation company doing business in this state, whether
incorporated or not, and any person or association of persons
owning or operating any commercial navigation company, equipment,
barges, tugs or vessels traversing any navigable waterway within
this state and doing business wholly or partly within this state.
(d) (e) The return shall be signed and sworn to by the owner
or operator if a natural person or, if the owner or operator shall
be is a corporation, shall be signed and sworn to by its president,
vice president, secretary or principal accounting officer.
(e) (f) The return required by this section of every owner or
operator shall cover the year ending on the thirty-first day of
December, next preceding, and shall be made on forms prescribed by the board of public works, which board is hereby invested with full
power and authority and it is hereby made its duty to prescribe the
forms as will require from any owner or operator herein mentioned
which forms contain information as in the judgment of the board
may be of use to it in determining the true and actual value of the
properties of the owners or operators.
§11-6-7c. Same--Nonresident commercial navigation companies; ad
valorem fees.
In the case of any commercial navigation vessels used for the
transportation or accommodation of passengers or freight by owners
or operators, the return shall show for every owner or operator:
(1) The whole number of statute miles of waterway over which the
commercial navigation company operates its vessels within this
state; (2) if the navigation company operates partly within and
partly without this state, the whole number of miles of waterway
over which the company operates its vessels within this state and
the whole number of miles traveled in other states; (3) the gross
capital cost of the vessels to the company and the year the company
acquired the vessels; and any information as, in the judgment of
the board of public works, may be of use to it in determining the
true and actual value of the property to be assessed to the owner
or operator. Ad valorem fees provided in this chapter shall be determined for nonresident commercial navigation vessels as
follows: (A) The gross capital cost of all commercial vessels shall
be multiplied by a percentage factor representing the remainder of
each vessel's value after depreciation, according to a depreciation
schedule established by the tax commissioner, which calculation
shall yield the appraised value of the vessel and which calculation
shall then be multiplied by sixty percent to yield the assessed
value; and (B) the assessed value shall be multiplied by the
apportioned percentage representing the miles traveled in this
state to the total system miles traveled in the previous year to
obtain the apportioned value, which value shall be multiplied by
the applicable rate of tax. "Commercial navigation vessels"
includes any equipment, barges, tugs or boats traversing any
navigable waterways within this state.
§11-6-27. Dedication of tax.
The amount of taxes collected under this article from owners
or operators of nonresident commercial navigation companies, less
the amount allowable refunds and any interest payable with respect
to the refunds, shall be deposited into the special revenue fund
created in the state treasurer's office and known as the riverfront
development fund to be appropriated by the Legislature for purposes
of the West Virginia public port authority to assist in the development, construction and operation of public ports in the
state.