Senate Bill No. 103
(By Senators Edgell and Kessler)
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[Introduced January 10, 2002; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section twelve, article eight,
chapter thirty-six of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to
exempting certain abandoned property consisting of military
awards and decorations from sale at public auction by the
state treasurer.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twelve, article eight, chapter thirty-six of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 8. UNIFORM UNCLAIMED PROPERTY ACT.
§36-8-12. Public sale of abandoned property.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the
administrator, within three years after the receipt of abandoned property, shall sell it to the highest bidder at public sale at
a location in the state which in the judgment of the
administrator affords the most favorable market for the
property. The administrator may decline the highest bid and
reoffer the property for sale if the administrator considers the
bid to be insufficient. The administrator need not offer the
property for sale if the administrator considers that the
probable cost of sale will exceed the proceeds of the sale. A
sale held under this section must be preceded by a single
publication of notice, at least three weeks before sale, in a
newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the
property is to be sold.
(b) Securities listed on an established stock exchange must
be sold at prices prevailing on the exchange at the time of
sale. Other securities may be sold over the counter at prices
prevailing at the time of sale or by any reasonable method
selected by the administrator. If securities are sold by the
administrator before the expiration of three years after their
delivery to the administrator, a person making a claim under
this article before the end of the three-year period is entitled
to the proceeds of the sale of the securities less any deduction
for expenses of sale. A person making a claim under this
article after the expiration of the three-year period is entitled to receive the securities delivered to the
administrator by the holder, if they still remain in the custody
of the administrator, or the net proceeds received from sale,
and is not entitled to receive any appreciation in the value of
the property occurring after delivery to the administrator,
except in a case of intentional misconduct or malfeasance by the
administrator.
(c) A purchaser of property at a sale conducted by the
administrator pursuant to this article takes the property free
of all claims of the owner or previous holder and of all persons
claiming through or under them. The administrator shall execute
all documents necessary to complete the transfer of ownership.
(d) All abandoned property consisting of military awards and
decorations which is delivered to the administrator is exempt
from the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, and shall
be held in trust by the division of veterans affairs. A person
claiming an interest in the abandoned property may file a claim
to the property pursuant to the provisions of this article.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exempt certain
abandoned property consisting of military awards and decorations
from sale at public auction by the state treasurer.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.