H. B. 4449
(By Delegates Shott, Porter, Frazier,
Hall, Moore, Hamilton and Andes)
[Introduced
February 11, 2010
; referred to the
Committee on Energy, Industry and Labor, Economic Development and
Small Business then Finance.]
A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §11-6K-1, §11-6K-2,
§11-6K-3, §11-6K-4, §11-6K-5 and §11-6K-6, all relating to the
method of valuation of certain mine safety equipment;
providing definitions; providing methodology for valuation of
certain mine safety equipment; stating that the initial
determination of valuation is to be made by the county
assessor; authorizing the protest and appeal of the assessor's
decision; and providing an effective date.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new article, designated §11-6K-1, §11-6K-2,
§11-6K-3, §11-6K-4, §11-6K-5 and §11-6K-6, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 6K. VALUATION OF SPECIAL MINE SAFETY PROPERTY.
§11-6K-1. Short title.
This article shall be known and cited as the "Special Mine Safety Property Valuation Act".
§11-6K-2. Definitions.
When used in this article, the term mine safety property means
those items delineated in section fifty-five, article two, chapter
twenty-two-a of this code, unless a different meaning is clearly
required by the context in which it is used.
§11-6K-3. Valuation of special mine safety property.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, the value of special mine safety property, for the
purpose of ad valorem property taxation under this chapter and
under article X of the Constitution of the State of West Virginia,
shall be its salvage value.
§11-6K-4. Initial determination by county assessor.
The assessor of the county in which a specific item of
property is located shall determine, in writing, whether that
specific item of property is special mine safety property subject
to valuation in accordance with this article. Upon making a
determination that a taxpayer has special mine safety property, the
county assessor shall notify the Tax Commissioner of that
determination and shall provide information as the Tax Commissioner
requires relating to that determination.
§11-6K-5. Protest and appeal.
At any time after the property is returned for taxation, but
prior to January 1 of the assessment year, any taxpayer may apply to the county assessor for information regarding the issue of
whether any particular item or items of property constitute special
mine safety property under this article which is subject to
valuation in accordance with this article. If the taxpayer
believes that some portion of the taxpayer's property is subject to
the provisions of this article, and such property has not been
determined to be so by the county assessor, the taxpayer may file
objections in writing with the county assessor. The county
assessor shall decide the matter by either sustaining the protest
and making proper corrections or by stating, in writing if
requested, the reasons for the county assessor's refusal. The
county assessor may, and if the taxpayer requests, the county
assessor shall, before January 1 of the assessment year, certify
the question to the Tax Commissioner in a statement sworn to by
both parties, or if the parties are unable to agree, in separate
sworn statements. The sworn statement or statements shall contain
a full description of the property and its uses and any other
information the Tax Commissioner requires.
The Tax Commissioner shall, as soon as possible upon receipt
of the question, but in no case later than February 28 of the
assessment year, instruct the county assessor as to how the
property shall be treated. The instructions issued and forwarded
by mail to the county assessor are binding upon the county
assessor, but either the county assessor or the taxpayer may apply
to the circuit court of the county for review of the question of the applicability of this article to the property in the same
fashion as is provided for appeals from the county commission in
section twenty-five, article three of this chapter. The Tax
Commissioner shall prescribe forms on which the questions under
this section shall be certified and the Tax Commissioner has the
authority to pursue any inquiry and procure any information which
may be necessary for disposition of the matter.
§11-6K-6. Effective date.
This article shall be effective for assessment years
commencing on and after July 1, 2010.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
ensure that mandated mine
safety equipment is assessed at salvage value.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.