reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-16. Restrictions on Nonresident Brewers, Manufacturers and Distributors

No brewer or manufacturer whose chief place of business is outside the State of West Virginia shall offer for sale or sell nonintoxicating beer, in the State of West Virginia, or offer any of the same for shipment into this state, except to a distributor who is duly licensed under this article, and no such brewer or manufacturer shall consign, ship or deliver any of the same to any person within the State of West Virginia, or sell and deliver the same outside the State of West Virginia to be transported into the State of West Virginia, except to a duly licensed distributor for delivery at the place of business of such distributor as set forth in such brewer's or manufacturer's license. No such brewer or manufacturer shall have any interest in the business of any distributor or retailer, nor be connected directly or indirectly with any distributor or retailer. Every such brewer or manufacturer shall mail to the commissioner on or before the tenth day of each calendar month, a sworn statement showing all such sales and shipments of nonintoxicating beer made by such brewer or manufacturer during the preceding calendar month. If any such brewer or manufacturer shall violate any of the provisions of this article or shall violate any of the rules, regulations, or order of the commissioner, such brewer or manufacturer shall be punished in like manner as provided for any nonresident brewer who shall violate any provisions of this section. If any such brewer shall violate any of the provisions of this article, he shall not be permitted to sell, ship or deliver any nonintoxicating beer to any distributor or to otherwise engage in any business authorized by this article for a period of not to exceed one year from the date the notice shall be mailed to such brewer or manufacturer by the commissioner of the fact that such brewer or manufacturer has violated the provisions of this article or such rules, regulations, or orders of the commissioner. During such period of one year it shall be unlawful for any distributor or manufacturer or for any other person within the jurisdiction of the State of West Virginia, to buy or receive from such brewer or manufacturer any nonintoxicating beer or have any dealings with such brewer or manufacturer with respect thereto. A distributor, who has not qualified with residence requirements of this article or whose chief place of business is outside the State of West Virginia shall not sell, ship, transport, convey or deliver, or cause to be sold, shipped, transported, conveyed or delivered, directly or indirectly, any nonintoxicating beer to any distributor within the State of West Virginia. If any such distributor shall violate any of the provisions of this article, he shall be punished in like manner as provided for any nonresident brewer or manufacturer who shall violate any provisions of this section.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-17. Container Labeling

It shall be unlawful for any brewer, brewpub, manufacturer, distributor or retailer to have affixed upon any beer, ale or other malt beverage or malt cooler container, sold or for sale in this state, a label bearing any design, picture or wording, indicating that the contents of the container are brewed or manufactured for one particular distributor or retailer or group of retailers, or use any trademark other than that of a licensed brewer or manufacturer.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-17a. Commissioner to Investigate, Review, and Approve or Deny Franchise Agreements, Labels, Brands, and Line Extensions

(a) The commissioner shall investigate and review:
(1) All franchise agreements and any amendments to a franchise agreement to verify compliance with this article and the promulgated rules.
(2) The registration of all container labels for brands manufactured, imported or sold in West Virginia, as further specified in §11-16-10(g) of this code.
(3) The registration of all brands and line extensions with the commissioner that are the subject of a franchise agreement or an amendment to a franchise agreement.
(4) The appointment of all brands or line extensions to a distributor in a brewers established franchise distributor network and to that distributors assigned territory from the brewer.
(5) The appointment of all brands or line extensions acquired by a brewer as either an acquiring brewer, successor brewer and also any successor entities of a brewer, as specified in §11-16-21(a)(3) of this code, to the distributor in the selling brewers established franchise distributor network and to that distributors assigned territory.
(b) The commissioners investigation and review under subsection (a) of this section may include, but is not limited to: the brewer, its subsidiaries, parent entities, contracted entities, affiliated entities, associated entities or any other related entities, the brewers corporate structure, the nature of the relatedness of various entities, ownership, trade names or partial trade names, logos, copyrights, trademarks or trade design, product codes, marketing and advertising, promotion or pricing.
(c) The commissioner may approve or deny any item listed in subsection (a) of this section as determined by the commissioner in accordance with this article, the promulgated rules as the facts and circumstances dictate.
(d) Any brewer adversely affected by a denial as specified in subdivision (3) or (4), subsection (a) of this section, may request, in writing, a final written determination from the commissioner.
(e) Upon receipt of final determination as provided in subsection (d) of this section, a brewer may request an administrative hearing by filing a written petition and as otherwise required per §11-16-24 of this code and the rules promulgated by the commissioner. Upon filing a written petition, the brewer shall file a $1,000 hearing deposit, via certified check or money order, to cover the costs of the hearing. Such certified check or money order shall be made payable to the commissioner. In any such hearing held by the request of a brewer, the burden of proof is on the brewer and the standard of review for the administrative hearing is by a preponderance of the evidence.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-23. Revocation or Suspension of License; Monetary Penalty; Hearing Assessment of Costs; Establishment of Enforcement Fund

(a) Upon a determination by the commissioner that a licensee has: (i) Violated the provisions of section eighteen of this article or of chapter sixty of this code; (ii) acted in such a way as would have precluded initial or renewal licensure; or (iii) violated any rule or order promulgated by the commissioner, the commissioner may:
(1) Revoke the licensee's license;
(2) Suspend the licensee's license;
(3) Place the licensee on probationary status for a period not to exceed twelve months; and
(4) Impose a monetary penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each violation where revocation is not imposed.
(b) Any monetary penalty assessed and collected by the commissioner shall be transmitted to the State Treasurer for deposit into the State Treasury to the credit of a special revenue fund designated the "Nonintoxicating Beer Enforcement Fund", which is hereby created. All moneys collected, received and deposited in the "Nonintoxicating Beer Enforcement Fund" shall be kept and maintained for expenditures by the commissioner for the purpose of enforcement of the statutes and rules pertaining to nonintoxicating beer and shall not be treated by the State Treasurer or State Auditor as any part of the general revenue of the state. At the end of each fiscal year all funds in the nonintoxicating beer enforcement fund in excess of $20,000 shall be transferred to the General Revenue Fund.
(c) In addition to the grounds for revocation, suspension or other sanction of a license set forth in subsection (a) of this section, conviction of the licensee of any offense constituting a violation of the laws of this state or of the United States relating to nonintoxicating beer or alcoholic liquor shall be mandatory grounds for such sanctioning of a license. Conviction of the licensee of any violation of the laws of this state or of the United States relating to prostitution or the sale, possession or distribution of narcotics or controlled substances shall be mandatory grounds for revocation of the licensee's license for a period of at least one year.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-25. Reissuance of License After Revocation

No license shall be issued to any person who has formerly held a license, under the provisions of this article, which has been revoked by the commissioner, within a period of two years from the date of such revocation; nor shall any license be issued hereunder to any person who was an officer or stockholder of a corporation whose license was revoked as aforesaid, nor to any person who was a member of a partnership or association whose license was revoked as aforesaid, within said period of two years from the date of revocation; nor shall any license be issued to any corporation having a stockholder or director who has had a license revoked as aforesaid, within said period of two years from the date of the revocation of such person's license: Provided, That the commissioner may, in his or her discretion, reissue Class B licenses for any of such licensee's locations not involved in the unlawful conduct of which licensure was revoked notwithstanding such two year period.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-26. Municipal License Tax

Any municipal corporation in this state shall have the authority to levy a license tax under the provisions of this article upon any retailer, distributor or brewer or operator of a brewpub of nonintoxicating beer whose place of business is situated within such municipality, but the amount of the license tax levied by such municipal corporation shall in no event exceed the amount fixed herein to be levied by the state. Only one municipal tax is to be so imposed and that only by the municipality in which the place of business, or warehouse, is located. Cities and incorporated towns are hereby empowered to enact ordinances for the enforcement of this article in conformity with the provisions of the same: Provided, That in no case shall the rate of such municipal license tax exceed the rate of such tax in effect on January 1, 1986.
In the case of a brewpub, such municipal tax shall not exceed the same proportions of taxation as the other licensees.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-27. Revenue Collected and Paid to State Treasurer; Expense of Administration

Taxes imposed and collected under the provisions of this article shall be paid to the State Treasurer in the manner provided by law, and the taxes imposed by sections nine and thirteen of this article shall be credited to the state fund, general revenue. The expenses of administration and enforcement shall be paid out of the taxes collected under sections nine and thirteen of this article, but shall not exceed fifteen percent of the amount so collected.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 16. Nonintoxicating Beer › §11-16-28. Expiration Date of Existing Licenses; When Provisions Operable

(a) A license now in effect authorizing the manufacture, distribution or sale of nonintoxicating beer shall remain in effect until June 30, 1986, unless sooner revoked in accordance with the provisions of this article.
(b) The provisions of this article enacted during the regular session of the Legislature held in the year 1986 shall become operable at 12:01 a.m. on July 1, of said year: Provided, That the commissioner may issue licenses prior to such date and any licensee may do any act necessary in order to prepare for and be able to engage in the retail sale of any product regulated by this article on that date and at that time.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-3. Levy of Tax; Ratio; Dedication of proceeds.(a) Tax on Cigarettes and Tobacco Products Other Than Cigarettes. — for the Purpose of Providing Revenue for the General Revenue Fund of the State, an Excise Tax Is Hereby Levied and Imposed on Sales of Cigarettes and Tobacco Products Other Than Cigarettes

(b) Tax rate on cigarettes. — Effective May 1, 2003, the excise tax rate levied and imposed on the sale of cigarettes is 55 cents on each twenty cigarettes or in like ratio on any part thereof: Provided, That on and after July 1, 2016, the excise tax rate levied and imposed on the sale of cigarettes is $1.20 on each twenty cigarettes or in like ratio on any part thereof. Only one sale of the same article shall be used in computing the amount of tax due under this subsection.
(c) Tax on tobacco products other than cigarettes. — Effective January 1, 2002, the excise tax levied and imposed on the sales or use of tobacco products other than cigarettes at the rate equal to seven percent of the wholesale price of each article or item of tobacco products other than cigarettes sold by the wholesaler or subjobber dealer, whether or not sold at wholesale, or if not sold, then at the same rate upon the use by the wholesaler or dealer: Provided, That on and after July 1, 2016, the excise tax rate levied and imposed on the sales or use of tobacco products other than cigarettes is at the rate equal to twelve percent of the wholesale price of each article or item of tobacco products other than cigarettes sold by the wholesaler or subjobber dealer, whether or not sold at wholesale, or if not sold, then at the same rate upon the use by the wholesaler or dealer. Only one sale of the same article shall be used in computing the amount of tax due under this subsection.
(d) Effective date of amendments. — Amendments to this section enacted in the year 2003 apply in determining tax imposed under this article from May 1, 2003, through June 30, 2016. Amendments to this section enacted in the year 2016 apply in determining tax imposed under this article effective on and after July 1, 2016.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-4. Effect of Rate Changes; Tobacco Products on Hand or in Inventory; Report; Discount

(a) Any cigarette tax stamps on hand or in inventory on the effective date of a rate change, whether affixed to the cigarette package, on hand but not affixed to the cigarette package or stamps purchased to be affixed by a meter, are considered to have been purchased or received on the effective date of the change in rate. Any tobacco products, on hand or in inventory other than cigarettes, on the effective date of any rate change are hereby considered to have been purchased or received on the effective date of the change in rate.
(b) Every wholesaler, subjobber, subjobber dealer, retail dealer and vending machine operator who, on the effective date of any rate change, has, on hand or in inventory, any tobacco products or cigarette tax stamps, whether affixed to the cigarette package, on hand but not affixed to the cigarette package, or stamps purchased to be affixed by a meter, and upon which the tax has not been paid or upon which the tax or any portion of the tax has been previously paid, shall take a physical inventory and shall file a report of the inventory with the Tax Commissioner, in the format required by the Tax Commissioner, and shall file the inventory within sixty days after the effective date of the rate change and shall pay to the Tax Commissioner any additional tax due under an increased rate within sixty days after the effective date of the rate change.
A discount of four percent shall be allowed on all tax due for persons who pay additional tax under this section.
(c) Imposition of the tax on tobacco products other than cigarettes shall be treated as a change in rate on the effective date of the tax.
(d) The changes set forth to this section and enacted in 2016 shall be effective on and after July 1, 2016.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-4a. No Tobacco Products Tax by Municipalities or Other Governmental Subdivisions

No municipality or governmental subdivision shall levy any excise or other tax on any tobacco product, or require cigarettes or other tobacco products to be stamped, or require licenses for sale thereof, other than licenses which may be required in accordance with section four, article twelve of this chapter.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-6. Sales of Stamps by Deputies; Fees; Reports of Deputies

The Tax Commissioner may appoint, subject to such conditions as he shall deem to be the best interest of the state, any bank or trust company authorized to do business in, and doing business in this state, as his deputy for the purpose of selling such stamps and may require bond, excepting that no such deputy shall be thereby authorized to sell the same at a discount or on credit, without prior written authority by the Tax Commissioner and excepting, further, that provisions hereof relating to sale of stamps shall not prevent any bank or trust company from acting as the commissioner's deputy for purposes of checking, setting, and sealing meters or selling stamps under other provisions of this article. The Tax Commissioner is hereby authorized to allow such deputy, authorized to sell stamps hereunder, a fee of one eighth of one percent of the face value of all stamps sold by such deputy. The State Tax Commissioner shall be responsible for the delivery of stamps to any deputy so appointed, and may prescribe such regulations and forms of receipts and reports as he may deem necessary and advisable for the transaction of the business of selling such stamps. Each such deputy shall remit by the fifteenth of the month, for the previous month, or oftener, as requested, to the Tax Commissioner all moneys arising from the sale of such stamps by him together with a report showing the names of the purchasers and the number of each denomination and the aggregate face value sold by each such deputy. The Tax Commissioner may sell stamps at his office.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-7. Form of Stamps; Custody; Discounts; Security for Payments

The commissioner shall design and procure stamps to be used as herein provided for, affixed and attached to containers, packages or receptacle of whatever kind that may be used for containing cigarettes. In the preparing of said stamp or stamps the same shall have printed or impressed thereon the words "State of West Virginia -- Cigarette Tax Stamp" and such other words and figures as the commissioner may deem proper. He shall also prescribe the form of impression to be placed upon any package or container of cigarettes by any metering device. The Tax Commissioner shall collect the taxes provided for by this article.
Such stamps shall be kept in the custody of the Tax Commissioner or such deputies as he may designate to sell the same. Such stamps shall be sold and accounted for at the tax value thereof except that the Tax Commissioner may authorize sale thereof, or sell to wholesalers in this state, or to wholesalers outside of this state such stamps at a discount of four percent of the tax value of such stamps, the same to be allowed as a commission for affixing the stamps and prepaying the cigarette tax; and excepting further that the Tax Commissioner may, by like regulation so certified, authorize the delivery of stamps, to wholesalers in this state, or to wholesalers outside of this state, on credit, allowing the same discount as when sold for cash, if and when the purchaser shall file with the Tax Commissioner a bond made payable to the State of West Virginia, in such form and amount as the commissioner shall prescribe, and with surety or sureties to the satisfaction of the commissioner, conditioned as he may require, to guarantee payment within thirty days for stamps so delivered within such period of time and by making of such reports and settlement as the commissioner may require. The commissioner may, by further regulations, provide for canceling, renewing or increasing such bond or for the substitution of the surety thereon.
For the purposes of this article "tax value" shall mean the tax value of each stamp or meter impression, as imposed by this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-10. Refunds

The commissioner shall redeem any unused or mutilated, but identifiable, stamps that any wholesaler or retail dealer may present for redemption, on written verified requests made by the purchaser, his administrators, executors, successors or assigns, and refund therefor, ninety-five percent of the face value of said stamps, less any discounts allowed on the purchase of said stamps. The commissioner shall pay on a like basis for stamps destroyed by fire or flood upon presentation of proof of such loss satisfactory to him Such payments shall, for the purposes hereof, be deemed to be refunds of taxes improperly collected and shall be allowed and paid from funds collected. Stamps or meter impressions on cigarettes returned to the manufacturers will be subject to refund upon the filing of an affidavit in duplicate issued by the manufacturer evidencing the destruction of stamps or meter impressions. A claim for refund or credit shall be subject to the provisions of section fourteen, article ten of this chapter.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-11. Surety Bonds Required; Release of Surety; New Bond

The Tax Commissioner may require wholesalers, subjobbers or retail dealers to file continuous surety bond in an amount to be fixed by the Tax Commissioner except that the amount shall not be less than $1,000. Upon completion of the filing of a surety bond an annual notice of renewal, only, shall be required thereafter. The surety must be authorized to engage in business within this state. The bond shall be conditioned upon faithfully complying with the provisions of this article including the filing of the returns and payment of all taxes prescribed by this article.
Any surety on a bond furnished hereunder shall be released and discharged from all liability accruing on such bond after the expiration of sixty days from the date the surety shall have lodged, by certified mail, with the Tax Commissioner a written request to be discharged. This shall not relieve, release or discharge the surety from liability already accrued, or which shall accrue before the expiration of the sixty-day period. Whenever any surety shall seek release as herein provided, it shall be the duty of the person to supply the Tax Commissioner with another bond.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-13. Preservation of Rules

All rules for the cigarette tax act previously promulgated by the commissioner, as provided in this article, article ten of this chapter and article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, remain in effect until they are amended or repealed by the commissioner or superceded by operation of law.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-17. Enforcement Powers

Any employee or agent of the Tax Commissioner, so designated by the Tax Commissioner, shall have all the lawful powers delegated to members of the department of public safety to enforce the provisions of this article in any county or municipality in this state.
Such employee shall execute a bond with security in the sum of $3,500, payable to the State of West Virginia conditioned for the faithful performance of his duties, as such, and such bond shall be approved as to form by the Attorney General, and the same shall be filed with the Secretary of State and preserved in his office.
The state department of public safety or any county sheriff or his deputy is, upon request of the commissioner, hereby authorized and required to assist in the enforcement of the provisions of this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-19. Penalty for Failure to File Report When No Tax Due

In the case of any failure to make or file a report when no tax is due, as required by this article on the date prescribed for filing, unless it be shown that the failure was due to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect, there shall be collected a penalty of $25 for each month of the failure or fraction of a month.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-19b. Certain Tax-Not-Paid Tobacco Products Declared Contraband

(a) Whenever the commissioner or any of the commissioner's authorized deputies, agents or employees, or any law-enforcement officer in this state, discovers any tobacco products subject to tax, as provided by this article, and upon which the tax has not been paid, as required by this article, the tobacco products shall thereupon be considered to be contraband, and the commissioner, or the commissioner's authorized deputy, agent or employee, or any law-enforcement officer in this state, may immediately seize and take possession of the tobacco products without a warrant, and the tobacco products and related property shall be forfeited to the state as provided in article seven, chapter sixty-a of this code.
(b) Seizure of contraband shall not be considered to relieve any person from fine or imprisonment, as provided in section nineteen-a of this article, for any of the offenses set forth in said section.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-20. Transportation of Unstamped Cigarettes or Tax-Not-Paid Tobacco Products; Forfeitures and Sales of Cigarettes and Equipment

(a) In general. -– Every person who transports tax-not-paid tobacco products upon the public highways, waterways, airways, roads or streets of this state shall have in his or her actual possession invoices or delivery tickets for the tobacco products.
(b) Contents of delivery tickets. -– Delivery tickets shall show: (1) The true name and the complete and exact address of the consignor or seller; (2) the true name and complete and exact address of the consignee or purchaser; (3) the quantity and brands of the tobacco products transported; and (4) the true name and complete and exact address of the person who has or shall assume payment of the West Virginia taxes imposed by this article, or the tax, if any, of the state or foreign country at the point of ultimate destination: Provided, That any common carrier which has issued a bill of lading for a shipment of tobacco products and is without notice to itself or to any of its agents or employees that the cigarettes are not stamped as required by this article, or that the tax imposed by this article on tobacco products other than cigarettes has not been paid, shall be considered to have complied with this article and the vehicle or vessel in which the tax-not-paid tobacco products are being transported is not subject to confiscation under this section or article seven, chapter sixty-a of this code.
(c) In the absence of invoices, delivery tickets or bills of lading, as the case may be, that meet the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the tobacco products, the vehicle or vessel in which the tobacco products are being transported and any paraphernalia or devices used in connection with the tax-not-paid tobacco products are declared to be contraband goods and may be seized by the commissioner, or the commissioner's authorized deputies, agents or employees, or by any law-enforcement officer of the state, without a warrant and shall be forfeited to the state as provided in article seven, chapter sixty-a of this code.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-20a. Criminal Penalty for Unlawful Transportation of Tax-Not-Paid Tobacco Products

Any person who transports tax-not-paid tobacco products in violation of section twenty of this article is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $300 nor more than $5,000, or imprisoned in the regional or county jail not more than one year, or both fined and imprisoned.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-20b. Vending Machines; Presence of Tax-Not-Paid Tobacco Products

(a) If tax-not-paid tobacco products are found in any vending machine, both the tax-not-paid tobacco products and the vending machine are contraband goods within the meaning of article seven, chapter sixty-a of this code, and may be seized by the commissioner, at the discretion of the commissioner, or the commissioner's authorized deputies, agents or employees, or any law-enforcement officer in this state, without a warrant. The provision of article seven, chapter sixty-a of this code apply to the seizure and disposition of the contraband.
(b) Seizure and sale of the contraband shall not relieve the owner of the property from any action by the commissioner for violations of any other sections of this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-21. Severability

If any provision of this article or the application thereof shall for any reason be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder of said article, but shall be confined in its operation to the provision thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered, and the applicability of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-22. General Procedure and Administration

Each and every provision of the "West Virginia Tax Procedure and Administration Act" set forth in article ten of this chapter shall apply to the tax imposed by this article seventeen with like effect as if said act were applicable only to the tax imposed by this article seventeen and were set forth in extenso in this article seventeen.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 17. Tobacco Products Excise Tax Act › §11-17-23. Special Study on Impact of Tax on Tobacco Products Other Than Cigarettes

(a) The Tax Commissioner and the commissioner of the Bureau of Employment Programs shall conduct a study to analyze the impact of the provisions of this article on the manufacturers and distributors of tobacco products other than cigarettes and their employees. This study shall include an analysis of the results of taxation of tobacco products other than cigarettes, as provided in this article, as they affect employment, costs of operation and the overall economic impact upon manufacturers and distributors and their employees.
(b) The commissioners shall report the results of the study to the Governor and the Joint Committee on Government and Finance no later than February 1, 2003, and shall submit recommendations on how to ameliorate any negative impact upon manufacturers, distributors or employees through proposed tax credits, job training programs, extension of unemployment or other benefits, incentives or other similar solutions.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-2. Excise Tax on Bottled Soft Drinks, Syrups and Dry Mixtures; Disposition Thereof

(a) An excise tax is levied and imposed on and after midnight of June 30, 1951, upon the sale, use, handling or distribution of all bottled soft drinks and all soft drink syrups, whether manufactured within or without this state, as follows:
(1) On each bottled soft drink, a tax of one cent on each sixteen and nine-tenths fluid ounces, or fraction thereof, or on each one-half liter, or fraction thereof contained therein.
(2) On each gallon of soft drink syrup, a tax of 80 cents, and in like ratio on each part gallon thereof, or on each four liters of soft drink syrup a tax of 84 cents, and in like ratio on each part four liters thereof.
(3) On each ounce by weight of dry mixture or fraction thereof used for making soft drinks, a tax of one cent or on each 28.35 grams, or fraction thereof, a tax of 1 cent.
(b) Any person manufacturing or producing within this state any bottled soft drink or soft drink syrup for sale within this state and any distributor, wholesale dealer or retail dealer or any other person who is the original consignee of any bottled soft drink or soft drink syrup manufactured or produced outside this state, or who brings such drinks or syrups into this state, shall be liable for the excise tax hereby imposed. The excise tax imposed shall not be collected more than once in respect to any bottled soft drink or soft drink syrup manufactured, sold, used or distributed in this state.
(c) The changes made to this section during the regular session of the Legislature, 2022, shall be effective July 1, 2022.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-4. Affixing of Tax Stamps or Tax Crowns

The payment of the taxes herein provided shall be evidenced by the affixing of soft drink tax stamps or tax crowns to the original containers or bottles in which any bottled soft drink or syrup is placed, received, stored or handled. Such stamps or crowns, of the appropriate denomination, shall be affixed to each container of syrup and to each bottled soft drink by the person who under the provisions of this article is first required to pay the tax thereon, within twenty-four hours after such person has such bottled soft drink or syrup in his possession for the first time. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to syrup used by bottlers in the manufacture of bottled soft drinks, or to bottled soft drinks or syrups which are transported through this state and which are not sold, delivered, used or stored herein, if transported in accordance with such rules and regulations as may be promulgated by the commissioner, or to any bottled drink or syrup which is manufactured in this state and sold to a purchaser outside this state.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, it shall be unlawful for any person to sell, use, handle or distribute any bottled soft drink or soft drink syrup to which the tax stamps or tax crowns required by this section are not affixed, and any person who shall violate this provision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500, or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-4a. Cancellation and Removal of Stamps

Any person subject to the tax imposed by this article who affixes a soft drink stamp to a container shall be required to immediately cancel the stamp by writing or marking initials thereon and the date upon which the stamp was affixed. When any container to which a stamp has been affixed is emptied, the person emptying the same or on whose behalf the same has been emptied shall be required to immediately remove or deface the tax stamp thereon.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-4b. Disposition of Unused Crowns; Penalty for Violation

Unused tax crowns upon which the tax imposed by this article has not been paid and which the original purchaser has not used and does not intend to use, and which are fit for use, shall be disposed of in the following manner only:
(1) By returning same to the manufacturer thereof and receiving from such manufacturer a certificate which shall indicate the name of the person returning the crowns, the date of return and the number and denominations of crowns returned; or
(2) By transferring such crowns to any person and receiving in exchange therefor a certificate issued by the commissioner authorizing the transferee to acquire such crowns.
Upon receipt of either such certificate the commissioner shall credit the account of the original purchaser in the amount indicated by the certificate.
In the event of the disposition of such crowns in a manner not authorized by this section, the original purchaser thereof or his estate, and/or any person (whether acting in an official capacity or otherwise) who shall make such unauthorized disposition shall be liable for the amount of tax which the crowns represent; and, in addition, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of $5,000 and imprisonment in the county jail for not less than sixty days nor more than one year, in the discretion of the court.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-5a. Due Date of Reports; Additional Reports; Extension of Time

Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article shall on or before the fifteenth day of each month make and file with the commissioner a report of such person's operations for the preceding month to verify liability for tax under this article. This report shall be in a form prescribed by the Tax Commissioner.
The commissioner may by fifteen days' written notice require the filing of such additional reports as he deems necessary to verify a person's liability under this article.
Upon written application setting forth good cause, the commissioner may extend the time for filing such reports or additional reports on such terms and conditions as he may require.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-5b. Additional Penalty for Late Filing or Payment

In addition to the additions to tax, penalties and interest authorized in article ten of this chapter, if any taxpayer fails to file a return or pay the proper amount of tax within the time specified herein, the commissioner shall refuse to authorize the purchase of tax stamps or crowns by the delinquent taxpayer: Provided, That if the failure to pay was due to reasonable cause, the commissioner may waive this penalty. The taxpayer may request a hearing within sixty days after service of notice of the refusal of the commissioner to authorize the purchase of the tax stamps or crowns. Upon receipt of a written request for a hearing filed within the time prescribed the provision for hearing and appeal, sections nine and ten, article ten of this chapter shall be applicable.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-7a. Seizure and Sale of Soft Drink Syrups by Commissioner; Forfeiture; Collection of Tax

Whenever the commissioner or any of his duly authorized agents shall discover any soft drink syrups, subject to tax as provided by this article and upon which the tax has not been paid as herein required, the commissioner or his duly authorized agent is hereby authorized and empowered forthwith to seize and take possession of such soft drink syrups, which shall thereupon be deemed to be forfeited to the state, and the commissioner shall within a reasonable time thereafter sell such forfeited soft drink syrups; and from the proceeds of such sale shall collect the tax and interest due thereon, together with a penalty of fifty percent of the tax due and the cost incurred in such proceedings, and pay the balance, if any, to the person in whose possession such soft drink syrups were found: Provided, That such seizure and sale shall not be deemed to relieve any person from fine or imprisonment provided herein for violation of any provision of this article. Such sale shall be made in the county where most convenient and economical. Notice of such sale shall be published as a Class I 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 the county wherein such seizure was made and the county wherein the sale is to take place. Notice shall be published at least five days prior to the sale. All moneys collected under the provisions of this section shall be paid into the State Treasury and treated as other taxes collected under this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-9. Altering, Counterfeiting or Reusing Tax Stamps or Tax Crowns; Penalty

Any person who falsely or fraudulently makes, forges, alters, or counterfeits any tax stamp or tax crown prescribed by the commissioner under the provisions of this article, or who knowingly or willfully utters, passes or tenders as true any such false, altered, forged or counterfeited stamp or crown, or who uses more than once any stamp or crown for the purpose of evading the tax imposed by this article, shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary for not less than one year nor more than five years.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-10. Penalties; Crimes

Any person who violates any of the provisions of this article or any lawful rule or regulation promulgated by the Tax Commissioner for this article under the authority of article ten of this chapter, for the violation of which no other penalty is provided by law, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than $25 nor more than $100.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 19. Soft Drinks Tax › §11-19-12. General Procedure and Administration

Each and every provision of the "West Virginia Tax Procedure and Administration Act" set forth in article ten of this chapter shall apply to the tax imposed by this article nineteen with like effect as if said act were applicable only to the tax imposed by this article nineteen and were set forth in extenso in this article nineteen.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 20. Reciprocal Enforcement › §11-20-1. Authority of Other States and Their Political Subdivisions to Sue

Any state of the United States, or any political subdivision thereof, shall have the right to sue in the courts of West Virginia to recover any tax which may be owing to it when the like right is accorded to the State of West Virginia and its political subdivisions by such state, whether such right is granted by statute or as a matter of comity.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 21. Personal Income Tax › §11-21-1. Legislative Findings

The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the adoption by this state for its personal income tax purposes of the provisions of the laws of the United States relating to the determination of income for federal income tax purposes will (1) simplify preparation of state income tax returns by taxpayers, (2) improve enforcement of the state income tax through better use of information obtained from federal income tax audits, and (3) aid interpretation of the state tax law through increased use of federal judicial and administrative determinations and precedents.
The Legislature does, therefore, declare that this article be construed so as to accomplish the foregoing purposes.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 21. Personal Income Tax › §11-21-2. Short Title; Arrangement and Classification

This article may be cited as the "West Virginia Personal Income Tax Act." No inference, implication of presumption of legislative construction shall be drawn or made by reason of the location or grouping of any particular section or provision or portion of this article, nor shall the descriptive matter or headings relating to any part, section, subsection, or paragraph be given any legal effect.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 21. Personal Income Tax › §11-21-3. Imposition of Tax; Persons Subject to Tax

(a) Imposition of tax. A tax determined in accordance with the rates hereinafter set forth in this article is hereby imposed for each taxable year on the West Virginia taxable income of every individual, estate, electing pass-through entity, and trust.
(b) Partners and partnerships. A partnership or other pass-through entity as such shall not be subject to tax under this article, unless the partnership or other pass-through entity elects to be subject to the tax levied under this section for a taxable year pursuant to 11-21-3a of this code. Persons carrying on business as partners or owners of a pass-through entity shall be liable for tax under this article only in their separate or individual capacities, unless the partnership or other pass-through entity elects to be subject to the tax levied under this section for a taxable year pursuant to 11-21-3a of this code. However, partnerships and other pass-through entities are subject to the tax imposed by this article to the extent they elect to pay additional West Virginia income taxes owed that are attributable to final federal partnership audit adjustments under 11-21A-3 of this code.
(c) Associations taxable as corporations. An association, trust, or other unincorporated organization which is taxable as a corporation for federal income tax purposes, shall not be subject to tax under this article.
(d) Exempt trusts and organizations. A trust or other unincorporated organization which by reason of its purposes or activities is exempt from federal income tax shall be exempt from tax under this article (regardless of whether subject to federal income tax on unrelated business taxable income).
(e) Cross references. For definitions of West Virginia taxable income of:
(1) Resident individual, see 11-21-11 of this code.
(2) Resident estate or trust, see 11-21-18 of this code.
(3) Nonresident individual, see 11-21-30 of this code.
(4) Nonresident estate or trust, see 11-21-38 of this code.
(f) Effective date. This section as amended in 2023 shall apply to taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2022.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 21. Personal Income Tax › §11-21-4. Rate of Tax -- Taxable Years Ending Prior to January 1, 1963

(a) Rate of tax on individuals. -- The tax imposed by section three of this article on the West Virginia taxable income of every individual (other than a head of a household to whom subsection (b) applies) and upon the West Virginia taxable income of every estate and trust shall be equal to six per centum of the federal income tax which would be imposed on an identical amount of federal taxable income under subsection (a) of section one of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1954.
(b) Rate of tax on heads of households. -- The tax imposed by section three of this article on the West Virginia taxable income of every individual who is a head of a household in the determination of his federal income tax for the taxable year shall be equal to six per centum of the federal income tax which would be imposed upon an identical amount of federal taxable income under subsection (b) of section one of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1954.
(c) Rates of tax in case of joint return or return of surviving spouse. -- In the case of a joint return of a husband and wife, the tax imposed by section three of this article on the West Virginia taxable income shall be equal to six per centum of twice the tax which would be imposed upon half the identical amount of federal taxable income under subsection (a) of section one of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1954. For purposes of this subsection of this article and for the purposes of section five of this article, the return of an individual who is entitled to file his federal income tax return for the taxable year as a surviving spouse shall be treated as a joint return of a husband and wife.
(d) Effective date. -- The provisions of this section shall be given effect in determining the rate of tax imposed by this article for all taxable years or portions thereof ending prior to January 1, 1963.