H. B. 2016
(By Delegates Boggs, Kominar and Mahan)
[Introduced January 8, 2003; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section four, article six-b, chapter
eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, relating to extending the filing
deadline for homestead property tax exemption.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section four, article six-b, 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 6B. HOMESTEAD PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION.
§11-6B-4. Claim for exemption; renewals; waiver of exemption.
(a) General. -- No exemption shall be allowed under this
article unless a claim of exemption is filed with the assessor of
the county in which the homestead is located, on or before the
first day of October the last day of December following the July
first assessment day. In the case of sickness, absence or other disability of the claimant, the claim may be filed by the claimant
or his or her duly authorized agent.
(b) Claims for disability exemption. -- Each claim for
exemption based on the owner being permanently and totally disabled
shall include one of the following forms of documentation in
support of said claim: (1) A written certification by a doctor of
medicine or doctor of osteopathy licensed to practice their
particular profession in this state that the claimant is
permanently and totally disabled; (2) a written certification by
the social security administration that the claimant is currently
receiving benefits for permanent and total disability; (3) a copy
of the letter from the social security administration originally
awarding benefits to the claimant for permanent and total
disability and a copy of a current check for such benefits, marked
void; (4) a current social security health insurance (medicare)
card in the name of the claimant and a copy of a current check to
the claimant, marked void, for benefits from the social security
administration for permanent and total disability; (5) a written
certification signed by the veterans administration certifying that
a person is totally and permanently disabled; (6) any lawfully
recognized workers' compensation documentation certifying that a
person is totally and permanently disabled; (7) any lawfully
recognized pneumoconiosis documentation certifying that a person is
totally and permanently disabled; or (8) any other lawfully recognized documentation certifying that a person is totally and
permanently disabled.
(c) Renewals. --
(1) Senior citizens. -- If the claimant is age sixty-five or
older, then after the claimant has filed for the exemption once
with his or her assessor, there shall be no need for that claimant
to refile unless the claimant moves to a new homestead.
(2) Disabled. -- If the claimant is permanently and totally
disabled, then after the claimant has filed for the exemption once
with his or her assessor, and signed a statement certifying that he
or she will notify the assessor if he or she is no longer eligible
for an exemption on the basis of being permanently and totally
disabled and that the claimant will notify the assessor within
thirty days of the discontinuance of the receipt of benefits for
permanent and total disability, if the claimant originally claimed
receipt of said benefits to document his or her claim for
exemption, there shall be no need for that claimant to refile,
unless the claimant moves to a new homestead.
(3) Waiver of exemption. -- Any person not filing his or her
claim for exemption on or before the first day of October shall be
determined to have waived his or her right to exemption for the
next tax year.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
extend the deadline for
filing for a homestead property tax exemption by three months.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.