COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 670
(By Senators Jackson, Craigo and Plymale)
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[Originating in the Committee on Education;
reported March 30, 2001.]
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A BILL to amend article five, chapter eighteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated section forty-four;
and to amend and reenact section twelve, article nine-a of
said chapter, all relating to limitations on contracts
affecting property taxes.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article five, chapter eighteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
forty-four; and that section twelve, article nine-a of said chapter
be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-5-44. Limitations on contracts effecting property taxes.
(a) No agency of government may enter into any contract,
agreement or other arrangement with any person, firm or corporation
which would have the effect of allowing development of public
property for the direct or indirect benefit of any person, firm or
corporation if the contract, agreement or other arrangement would
cause the reduction, elimination or avoidance of property taxes.
(b) The provisions of subsection (a) of this section do not
apply where the person, firm or corporation enters into a contract,
agreement or other arrangement with a county school board for the
annual payment or contribution in lieu of taxes in the total amount
of the property taxes which have been eliminated, reduced or
avoided.
ARTICLE 9A. PUBLIC SCHOOL SUPPORT.
§18-9A-12. County basic foundation; total basic state aid
allowance.
(a) The basic foundation program for each county for the
fiscal year shall be the sum of the amounts computed in accordance
with the provisions of sections four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
and ten of this article. On the first working day of July in each
year, the state board shall determine the basic foundation program
for each county for that fiscal year. Data used in the computations relating to net and adjusted enrollment, and the
number of professional educators, shall be for the second month of
the prior school term. Transportation expenditures used in these
computations shall be for the most recent year in which data are
available. The allocated state aid share of the county's basic
foundation program shall be the difference between the cost of its
basic foundation program and the county's local share as determined
in section eleven of this article except as provided in subsection
(b) of this section.
(b) The allocated state aid share shall be adjusted in the
following circumstances in the following manner: Provided, That
prior to such adjustment, the state tax commissioner shall provide
the state board, by the fifteenth day of January of each year, a
certified listing of those counties in which such adjustment shall
be made pursuant to this subsection, together with the amount of
revenue which will not be available to each county board in the
ensuing fiscal year as a result of the circumstance:
(1) In those instances where the local share as computed under
section eleven of this article is not reflective of local funds
available because the county is under a final court order to refund
or credit property taxes paid in prior years, the allocated state
aid share shall be the county's basic foundation program, minus the
local share as computed under section eleven of this article, plus the amount of property tax the county is unable to collect or must
refund due to the final court order: Provided, That said
adjustment shall not be made or shall only be made proportionately
when the Legislature fails to fund or funds only in part the public
school basic foundation support plan state share at a level
sufficient to cover the reduction in state share: Provided,
however, That nothing herein provided shall be construed to require
or mandate any level of funding by the Legislature.
(2) In those instances where the local share as computed under
section eleven of this article is not reflective of local funds
available because the county is collecting tax based upon an
assessed value which is less than that determined by the tax
commissioner in the most recent published survey of property
valuations in the state due to an error in the published survey,
which error is certified to by the tax commissioner, the allocated
state aid share shall be the county's basic foundation program,
minus the local share as computed under section eleven of this
article, plus the amount of property tax the county is unable to
collect based on differences in the assessed valuation between
those in the most recent published survey of valuation and the
corrected assessed value actually levied upon by the county:
Provided, That said adjustment shall not be made or shall only be
made proportionately when the Legislature fails to fund or funds only in part the public school basic foundation support plan state
share at a level sufficient to cover the reduction in state share:
Provided, however, That nothing herein provided shall be construed
to require or mandate any level of funding by the Legislature.
(3) In instances where a county is unable to collect property
taxes from a taxpayer during the pendency of any court proceeding,
the allocated state aid share shall be the county's basic
foundation program minus the local share as computed under section
eleven of this article, plus the amount the county is unable to
collect as a result of the pending court proceedings as certified
by the tax commissioner: Provided, That the county is required to
reimburse the amount of allocated state aid share attributable to
the amount of property tax it later receives upon completion of
court proceedings, which shall be paid into the general revenue
fund of the state: Provided, however, That said adjustment shall
not be made or shall only be made proportionately when the
Legislature fails to fund or funds only in part the public school
basic foundation support plan state share at a level sufficient to
cover the reduction in state share: Provided further, That nothing
herein provided shall be construed to require or mandate any level
of funding by the Legislature.
(c) The allocated state aid share shall be adjusted in any
county receiving payments or contributions in lieu of property taxes. In instances where a county or county board of education
receives payments or contributions in lieu of property taxes, the
allocated state aid share shall be the county's basic foundation
program minus the local share as computed under section eleven of
this article, plus any amounts added pursuant to subsection (b) of
this section minus the payments or contributions in lieu of
property taxes which are distributed by the sheriff to the county
board of education or are received in any manner by the county
board of education. In determining the amount of such contribution
or payment in lieu of taxes, each county commission or county board
of education shall provide to the state tax commissioner, by the
first day of January of each year, the total amount of such
payments or contributions paid to the county or county board of
education and the proportion of the total amount that has been or
will be distributed to the county board of education. The state
tax commissioner then shall provide the state board, by the
fifteenth day of January of each year, a certified listing of those
counties in which an adjustment pursuant to this section shall be
made, together with the amount of revenue which will be available
to each county board in the ensuing fiscal year as a result of
contribution or payment in lieu of taxes.
(d) Total basic state aid to the county shall be the computed
state share of basic foundation support. After such computation is completed, the state board shall immediately certify to each county
board the amount of state aid allocated to the county for that
fiscal year, subject to any qualifying provisions of this article.