Senate Bill No. 594
(By Senators Helmick, Chafin, Fanning and Kessler)
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[Introduced March 16, 2009; referred to the Committee on
Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §5B-2-12 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to the frequency of funding of the
courtesy patrol program out of the Tourism Promotion Fund.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §5B-2-12 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. WEST VIRGINIA DEVELOPMENT OFFICE.
§5B-2-12. Tourism Promotion Fund created; use of funds.
There is hereby continued in the State Treasury the special
revenue fund known as the Tourism Promotion Fund created under prior
enactment of section nine, article one of this chapter.
(a) The Legislature finds that a courtesy patrol program
providing assistance to motorists on the state's highways is one of
the most beneficial methods to introduce a tourist visiting the
state of the state's hospitality and good will. For that reason, $4,700,000 of the moneys deposited in the fund each year shall be
deposited
in equal monthly installments in a special revenue account
in the State Treasury to be known as the Courtesy Patrol Fund.
Expenditures from the fund shall be used solely to fund the courtesy
patrol program providing assistance to motorists on the state's
highways. Amounts collected in the fund which are found, from time
to time, to exceed funds needed for the purposes set forth in this
subdivision may be transferred to other accounts or funds and
redesignated for other purposes by appropriation of the Legislature.
(b) If there are funds remaining after the
monthly distribution
required in subdivision (a) of this section, a minimum of five
percent of the moneys deposited remaining in the fund each year
shall be used solely for direct advertising for West Virginia travel
and tourism:
Provided, That no less than twenty percent of these
funds be expended, with the approval of the Director of the Division
of Natural Resources, to effectively promote and market the state's
parks, state forests, state recreation areas and wildlife
recreational resources. Direct advertising means advertising which
is limited to television, radio, mailings, newspaper, magazines, the
internet and outdoor billboards or any combination thereof.
(c) The balance of the moneys deposited in the fund shall be
used for direct advertising within the state's travel regions as
defined by the commission. The funds shall be made available to
these districts beginning July 1, 1995, according to legislative
rules authorized for promulgation by the Tourism Commission.
(d) All advertising expenditures over $25,000 from the Tourism
Promotion Fund require prior approval by recorded vote of the
commission. No member of the commission or of any committee created
by the commission to evaluate applications for advertising or other
grants may participate in the discussion of, or action upon, an
application for or an award of any grant in which the member has a
direct financial interest.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require monthly
installments of the funds required to be transferred from the
Tourism Promotion Fund to fund the courtesy patrol.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.)