H. B. 2789
(By Delegates Hamilton, D. Poling, Longstreth,
Schadler, Evans, Miley, Rowan, Ireland, Ellem and Argento)
[Introduced February 24, 2009; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §33-3-33 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to increasing the surcharge on fire
and casualty policies to benefit volunteer and part-volunteer
fire departments.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §33-3-33 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. LICENSING, FEES AND TAXATION OF INSURERS.
§33-3-33. Surcharge on fire and casualty insurance policies to
benefit volunteer and part-volunteer fire
departments; Public Employees Insurance Agency and
municipal pension plans; special fund created;
allocation of proceeds; effective date.
(a) (1) For the purpose of providing additional revenue for
volunteer fire departments, part-volunteer fire departments and certain retired teachers and the Teachers Retirement Reserve Fund,
there is hereby authorized and imposed on and after July 1, 1992,
on the policyholder of any fire insurance policy or casualty
insurance policy issued by any insurer, authorized or unauthorized,
or by any risk retention group, a policy surcharge equal to one
percent of the taxable premium for each such policy. After June
30, 2005, the surcharge shall be imposed as specified in
subdivisions (2)
and (3) of this subsection.
(2) After the June 30, 2005, through December 31, 2005, for
the purpose of providing additional revenue for volunteer fire
departments, part-volunteer fire departments and to provide
additional revenue to the Public Employees Insurance Agency and
municipal pension plans, there is hereby authorized and imposed on
and after July 1, 2005, on the policyholder of any fire insurance
policy or casualty insurance policy issued by any insurer,
authorized or unauthorized, or by any risk retention group, a
policy surcharge equal to one percent of the taxable premium for
each such policy.
(3) After the
thirty-first day of December 31,
two thousand
five 2009, for the purpose of providing additional revenue for
volunteer fire departments and part-volunteer fire departments,
there is hereby authorized and imposed on the policyholder of any
fire insurance policy or casualty insurance policy issued by any
insurer, authorized or unauthorized, or by any risk retention group, a policy surcharge equal to
fifty-five one hundredths of one
percent of the taxable premium for each such policy.
(4) For purposes of this section, casualty insurance may not
include insurance on the life of a debtor pursuant to or in
connection with a specific loan or other credit transaction or
insurance on a debtor to provide indemnity for payments becoming
due on a specific loan or other credit transaction while the debtor
is disabled as defined in the policy. The policy surcharge may not
be subject to premium taxes, agent commissions or any other
assessment against premiums.
(b) The policy surcharge shall be collected and remitted to
the commissioner by the insurer, or in the case of surplus lines
coverage, by the surplus lines licensee, or if the policy is issued
by a risk retention group, by the risk retention group. The amount
required to be collected under this section shall be remitted to
the commissioner on a quarterly basis on or before the twenty-fifth
day of the month succeeding the end of the quarter in which they
are collected, except for the fourth quarter for which the
surcharge shall be remitted on or before
the first day of March 1
of the succeeding year.
(c) Any person failing or refusing to collect and remit to the
commissioner any policy surcharge and whose surcharge payments are
not postmarked by the due dates for quarterly filing is liable for
a civil penalty of up to $100 for each day of delinquency, to be assessed by the commissioner. The commissioner may suspend the
insurer, broker or risk retention group until all surcharge
payments and penalties are remitted in full to the commissioner.
(d)
(1) All money from the policy surcharge shall be collected
by the commissioner who shall disburse the money received from the
surcharge into a special account in the State Treasury, designated
the Fire Protection Fund. The net proceeds of this portion of the
tax and the interest thereon, after appropriation by the
Legislature, shall be distributed quarterly on the first day of the
months of January, April, July and October to each volunteer fire
company or department on an equal share basis by the State
Treasurer. After
the thirtieth day of June 30,
two thousand five
2010, the money received from the surcharge shall be distributed as
specified in subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection.
(2) (A) After the thirtieth day of June, through the
thirty-first day of December, two thousand five, all money from the
policy surcharge shall be collected by the Commissioner who shall
disburse one half of the money received from the surcharge into the
Fire Protection Fund for distribution as provided in subdivision
(1) of this subsection.
(B) The remaining portion of moneys collected shall be
transferred into the fund in the State Treasury of the Public
Employees Insurance Agency into which are deposited the
proportionate shares made by agencies of this state of the Public Employees Insurance Agency costs of those agencies, until the first
day of November, two thousand five. After the thirty-first day of
October, two thousand five, through the thirty-first day of
December, two thousand five, the remaining portion shall be
transferred to the special account in the State Treasury, known as
the Municipal Pensions and Protection Fund.
(3) (2) After
the thirty-first day of December, two thousand
five December 1, 2010, all money from the policy surcharge shall be
collected by the commissioner who shall disburse all of the money
received from the surcharge into the Fire Protection Fund for
distribution as provided in subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(4) (3) Before each distribution date to volunteer fire
companies or departments, the State Fire Marshal shall report to
the State Treasurer the names and addresses of all volunteer and
part-volunteer fire companies and departments within the state
which meet the eligibility requirements established in section
eight-a, article fifteen, chapter eight of this code.
(e) The allocation, distribution and use of revenues provided
in the Fire Protection Fund are subject to the provisions of
sections eight-a and eight-b, article fifteen, chapter eight of
this code.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to increase the surcharge
on fire and casualty policies to benefit volunteer and part-volunteer fire departments from fifty-five one hundredths of
one percent to one percent.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.