Senate Bill No. 382
(By Senator Bailey)
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[Introduced January 28, 2003; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section four, article seven, chapter
sixty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, relating generally to applications for
private club license; and giving the commissioner authority to
investigate character and criminal records, if any, of
applicant's chief executive officer, chief operating officer,
and in-state manager of local operation seeking a private club
license.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section four, article seven, chapter sixty of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended and reenacted to read as follows:
§ 60-7-4. Application for license; information required;
verification; application to be accompanied by fees; bond;
college fraternities and sororities ineligible for license; racial
discrimination by applicants.
(a) Application for a license to operate a private club shall
be made on such form as may be prescribed by the commissioner and
shall include:
(1) The name of the applicant;
(2) If such applicant be an unincorporated association, the
names and addresses of the members of its governing board;
(3) If such applicant be a corporation, the names and
addresses of its officers and directors;
(4) The place at which such applicant will conduct its
operations and whether the same is owned or leased by the
applicant;
(5) The number of members of the applicant;
(6) The name or names of any national organizations with which
applicant is affiliated and the nature of such affiliation;
(7) The size and nature of the dining and kitchen facilities
operated by applicant; and
(8) Such other information as the commissioner may reasonably
require which shall include, but not be limited to, the criminal
records, if any, of each member of the applicant's governing board
and/or its officers and directors applicant's chief operating
officer and chief executive officer, and each local in-state
manager for every location applied for who have been convicted of
a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude.
(b) Such application shall be verified by each member of the governing board of the applicant if an unincorporated association
or, if the applicant be a corporation, by each of its officers and
all members of its board of directors. Such application shall be
accompanied by the license fee hereinafter prescribed and by a bond
of the applicant in the penal sum of five thousand dollars with a
corporate surety authorized to transact business in the State of
West Virginia, payable to the State of West Virginia, which bond
shall be conditioned on the payment of all fees herein prescribed
and on the faithful performance of and compliance with the
provisions of this article.
(c) Under no circumstance shall any college fraternity or
sorority be issued a license to operate a private club.
(d) No license to operate a private club will be issued to
applicants who discriminate against any person or group of persons
because of race or color of such person or group of persons except
clubs as defined in clauses (1) and (2), subdivision (a), section
two of this article.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide the commissioner
with discretion regarding the licensing process and reduce
unnecessary delay of investigation of the character of foreign
corporate applicants.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.