H. B. 3241
(By Delegate Lane)
[Introduced March 19, 2009; referred to the
Committee on Political Subdivisions then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §8-13-13 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to requiring municipalities that
impose user fees to impose that fee on all persons residing
within the municipality; allowing exemptions; providing a
notification requirement; and prohibiting municipalities from
imposing user fees on certain persons who reside outside the
municipality.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §8-13-13 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 13. TAXATION AND FINANCE.
PART III. SPECIAL CHARGES FOR MUNICIPAL SERVICES.
§8-13-13. Special charges for municipal services.
Notwithstanding any charter provisions to the contrary, every
municipality which furnishes any essential or special municipal
service, including, but not limited to, police and fire protection,
parking facilities on the streets or otherwise, parks and recreational facilities, street cleaning, street lighting, street
maintenance and improvement, sewerage and sewage disposal, and the
collection and disposal of garbage, refuse, waste, ashes, trash and
any other similar matter, shall have plenary power and authority to
provide by ordinance for the installation, continuance, maintenance
or improvement of such service, to make reasonable regulations with
respect thereto, and to impose by ordinance upon the
users of such
service residents of the municipality or upon those persons who
reside outside the municipality but who subscribe for such services
reasonable rates, fees and charges to be collected in the manner
specified in the ordinance:
Provided, That any sewerage and sewage
disposal service and any service incident to the collection and
disposal of garbage, refuse, waste, ashes, trash and any other
similar matter shall be subject to the provisions of chapter
twenty-four of this code. The municipality shall not, however,
have a lien on any property as security for payments due under such
ordinance. Notwithstanding the provisions of section four, article
eleven of this chapter, any ordinance enacted or substantially
amended under the provisions of this section shall be published as
a Class II legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of
article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code, and the publication
area for such publication shall be such municipality.
The
municipality must also notify by mail all those subscribers who
reside outside the municipality. In the event thirty percent of
the qualified voters of the municipality
or thirty percent of the
subscribers by petition duly signed by them in their own handwriting and filed with the recorder of the municipality within
fifteen days after the expiration of such publication protest
against such ordinance as enacted or amended, the ordinance shall
not become effective until it shall be ratified by a majority of
the legal votes cast thereon by the qualified voters of such
municipality at a regular municipal election or special municipal
election, as the governing body shall direct. Voting thereon shall
not take place until after notice of such submission shall have
been given by publication as above provided for the publication of
the ordinance after it is adopted or substantially amended. The
powers and authority hereby granted to municipalities and to the
governing bodies thereof are in addition and supplemental to the
powers and authority named in any charters thereof:
Provided,
however, That no user fee or charge authorized by this section may
be imposed upon individuals who reside outside the geographical
limits of the municipality unless they are subscribers to the
services listed in this section. Notwithstanding any other
provisions of this section, in the event rates, fees and charges
herein provided for shall be imposed by the governing body of any
municipality for the purpose of replacing and in amounts
approximately sufficient to replace in its general fund such
amounts as shall be appropriated to be paid out of ad valorem taxes
upon property within the municipality pursuant to an election duly
called and held under the constitution and laws of the state to
authorize the issuance and sale of general obligation bonds of the
municipality for public improvement purposes, in the call for which election it shall be stated that the governing body of the
municipality proposes to impose rates, fees and charges in
specified amounts under this section for the use of one or more of
the services above specified, which shall be related to the public
improvement proposed to be made with the proceeds of the bonds, no
notice, publication of notice, or referendum or election or other
condition or prerequisite to the imposition of such rates, fees and
charges shall be required or necessary other than the legal
requirements for issuance and sale of such general obligation
bonds.
Any user fee or charge authorized by this section must be
imposed upon all persons who reside within the geographical limits
of the municipality: Provided, That individuals based upon age or
financial inability to pay the fee may be exempt from the fee. In
no event shall persons who reside and work within the geographical
limits of the municipality be charged the fee twice.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require municipalities
that impose user fees to impose the fee on all persons residing
within the municipality. The bill allows certain exemptions. The
bill also prohibiting municipalities from imposing user fees on
persons who reside outside the municipality and who do not actually
subscribe to the identified services.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.