reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-4. Same -- Car Line Companies

In the case of car lines used for the transportation or accommodation of passengers or freight by owners or operators, other than railroad companies making their return under this law, such return shall show for every such owner or operator: (a) All cars and other rolling stock, giving a detailed statement of the number of cars, including passenger, mail, express, baggage, freight, sleeping, dining, parlor, refrigerator, stock or other cars of every description, and the true and actual value of all such cars used wholly or in part in this state, distinguishing between those used wholly in this state and those used partly within and partly without the state, and the true and actual value of those used wholly within the state and those used partly within and partly without the state, and the proportional value of such cars used partly within and partly without the state, according to the time used and the number of miles run by such cars in and out of the state, the railroad over which they were run, and the proportional value in each county within this state within which such cars were run; but in any case where it may appear to the board of public works that from the nature of the employment of such cars, or otherwise, it is not practicable to show the matters hereinbefore required in this section as to the cars used in this state, and the proportional value of the cars used partly within and partly without this state and each county thereof, the board may, as to such matters, accept such other information as it may be practicable to obtain, or in its discretion the board may dispense with such showing as to any such matter; (b) real and personal property of every kind, whatever, including money, credits and investments and the amount thereof, wholly held or used in this state, showing the amount and the true and actual value in each county; (c) the actual capital employed in the business of such owner or operator, the total amount of bonded indebtedness with respect to such line, and of indebtedness not bonded; the whole length of the several lines of railroad over which such cars run, including branches and connecting lines in and out of the state; and, if such owner or operator be a corporation, its actual capital stock and the number, character, amount and market value of the shares thereof, and the amount of capital stock actually paid in; its bonded indebtedness and its indebtedness not bonded. The board of public works shall have the right to require any such owner or operator to furnish such other and further information as, in the judgment of the board, may be of use to it in determining the true and actual value of the property to be assessed to such owner or operator.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-5. Same -- Pipeline Companies

In the case of a pipeline, such return shall show for each owner or operator: (a) The number of miles of pipeline owned, leased or operated within this state, the size or sizes of the pipe composing such line, and the material of which such pipe is made; (b) if such pipeline be partly within and partly without this state, the whole number of miles thereof within this state and the whole number of miles without this state, including all branches and connecting lines in and out of the state; (c) the length, size and true and actual value of such pipelines in each county of this state, including in such valuation the main line, branches and connecting lines, and stating the different values of the pipe separately; (d) its pumping stations, machine and repair shops and machinery therein, tanks, storage tanks and all other buildings, structures and appendages connected or used therewith, together with all real estate, other than its pipeline, owned or used by it in connection with its pipeline, including telegraph and telephone lines, and the true and actual value of all such buildings, structures, machinery and appendages and of each parcel of such real estate, including such telegraph and telephone lines, and the true and actual value thereof in each county in this state in which it is located; and the number and value of all tank cars, tanks, barges, boats and barrels; (e) its personal property of every kind whatsoever, including money, credits and investments, and the amount thereof wholly held or used in this state, showing the amount and value thereof in each county; (f) an itemized list of all other real property within this state, with the location thereof; and (g) the actual capital employed in the business of such owner or operator, the total amount of the bonded indebtedness of such owner or operator with respect to such line, and of indebtedness not bonded; and, if such owner or operator be a corporation, its capital stock, the character, number and amount and the market value of the shares thereof, and the amount of capital stock actually paid in; its bonded indebtedness and its indebtedness not bonded. The board of public works shall have the right to require such owner or operator to furnish such other and further information as, in the judgment of the board may be of use in determining the true and actual value of the property to be assessed to such owner or operator.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-6. Same -- Express Companies

In case of an express company or express line, such report shall show for every such owner or operator: (a) The whole number of miles of railroad over which such express company operates its cars within this state; (b) if such railroad be partly within and partly without this state, the whole number of miles of such railroad over which such express company runs its cars within this state, and the whole number of miles without the same, including its branches in and out of this state; (c) the whole number of miles of railroad in each county in this state over which such express company runs its cars; (d) the whole number of cars used or run by it within the limits of this state; (e) the gross and net earnings of such express company wherever its business is carried on, and the gross and net earnings within the limits of this state; (f) the personal property of every kind whatsoever, including the number of horses, drays, wagons, carts, money, credits and investments wholly held or used in this state, showing the amount and value thereof in each county; (g) an itemized list of all its real property, with the location thereof; which list shall show, as to each parcel, whether it is assessed for taxation, and if so, by what officer or authority; (h) the capital actually employed and the amount of indebtedness; and, if such owner or operator be a corporation, its actual capital stock, and number, character, amount and market value, of the shares thereof, and the amount of capital stock actually paid in; (i) the gross expenditures for each year, giving a detailed statement thereof under each class or head of expenditure.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-7. Same -- Telegraph and Telephone Companies

In the case of a telegraph or telephone line, the report shall show for every owner or operator: (a) The number of miles of lines owned, leased or operated within this state, the gauge of the wire, the number of strands of wire, the material of which it is made and, as accurately as may be, the time when the line or any material part thereof was constructed or last replaced; (b) if such lines be partly within and partly without the state, the whole number of miles thereof within this state and the whole number of miles without this state, including all branches and connecting lines in and out of the state; (c) the true and actual value per mile of such line in each county of this state; (d) its stations, shops and machinery therein, and all buildings, structures and appendages connected or used therewith, together with all real estate, other than its telegraph or telephone line, owned or used by it in connection with its line, and of each parcel of such real estate and the true and actual value thereof in each county in this state in which it is located; (e) its personal property of every kind whatsoever, including money, credits and investments, and the amounts thereof wholly held or used in this state, showing the amount and value thereof in each county; (f) an itemized list of all other real property within this state, with the location thereof; and (g) the actual capital employed in the business of such owner or operator, the total amount of the bonded indebtedness of the owner or operator, with respect to the line, and of all indebtedness not bonded; and, if the owner or operator be a corporation, its capital stock, the character, number, amount and the market value of the shares thereof, and the amount of capital stock actually paid in; its bonded indebtedness and its indebtedness not bonded. The board of public works shall have the right to require any such owner or operator to furnish such other and further information as, in the judgment of the board, may be of use to it in determining the true and actual value of the property to be assessed to the owner or operator.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-8. Form and Manner of Making Return; Failure to Make Return; Criminal Penalty

All returns to be made to the board of public works, under this chapter, shall be made in conformity with any reasonable requirement of the board of which the person making the return shall have had notice, and shall be made upon forms which may be furnished by the board, and according to instructions which the board may give relating thereto, and to the description and itemizing of the property. Such owner or operator, whether a natural person, or a corporation or company, failing to make such return as herein required shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, fined $1,000 for each month such failure continues.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-9. Compelling Such Return; Procuring Information and Tentative Assessments by Tax Commissioner

(a) If any owner or operator fails to make such return within the time required by section one of this article, it shall be the duty of the Tax Commissioner to take such steps as may be necessary to compel such compliance, and to enforce any and all penalties imposed by law for such failure.
(b) The return delivered to the Tax Commissioner shall be examined by him and if it be found insufficient in form or in any respect defective, imperfect or not in compliance with law, he shall compel the person required to make it to do so in proper and sufficient form, and in all respects as required by law.
(c) If any such owner or operator fails to make such return, the Tax Commissioner shall proceed, in such manner as to him may seem best, to obtain the facts and information required to be furnished by such returns.
(d) The Tax Commissioner may send for persons and papers, and may compel the attendance of any person and the production of any paper necessary, in the opinion of said Tax Commissioner, to enable him to obtain the information required for the proper discharge of his duties under this section.
(e) The Tax Commissioner shall arrange, collate and tabulate such returns and all pertinent information and data contained therein, such further evidence or information as may be required by the Tax Commissioner of such owner or operator, and all other pertinent evidence, information and data he has been able to procure, upon suitable work sheets, so that they may be conveniently considered, and shall on or before September 15, lay such returns and work sheets, together with his recommendations in the form of a tentative assessment of the property of each such owner or operator, before the board of public works. And as soon as the Tax Commissioner has completed the preparation of such work sheets and tentative assessments, he shall notify the owner or operator affected thereby of the amount of such tentative assessment by written notice deposited in the United States post office, addressed to such owner or operator at the principal office or place of business of such owner or operator, and the Tax Commissioner shall retain in his office true copies of such work sheets which shall be available for inspection by any such owner or operator or his duly authorized representative.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-10. Failure to Give Information Required by Board of Public Works; Criminal Penalty

If any person shall refuse to appear before the board when required to do so, as aforesaid, or shall refuse to testify before the board in regard to any matter as to which the board may require him to testify, or if any person shall refuse to produce any paper in his possession or under his control, which the board may require him to produce, every such person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, fined $500, and may be imprisoned not less than one nor more than six months, at the discretion of the court.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-11. Valuation of Property by Board

Upon the fifteenth day after giving the notices required by section nine of this article, or as soon thereafter as reasonably convenient but not later than October 1, the board of public works shall proceed to access and fix the true and actual value of all property of such owner or operator hereinbefore required to be returned, in each county through which the railroad, car line, cars, express, telegraph, telephone, or pipeline of such owner or operator runs, and in which any property to be assessed is located. In ascertaining such value the board shall consider the return, if any, made by the owner or operator, and any return which may have been previously made by such owner or operator, the work sheets and tentative assessment recommended by the Tax Commissioner, such evidence or information as may be offered by such owner or operator, such further evidence or information as may be required by the board of such owner or operator, and any other pertinent evidence, information and data. Any and all evidence, information and data, at a regular meeting of the board held for such purpose at least fifteen days after giving the notice required by section nine of this article. Before any assessment shall be made by the board, any and all evidence, information and data considered by the board shall be available for inspection by any such owner or operator or his duly authorized representative, and an opportunity given to be heard thereon when the board of public works has assessed any property hereby required to be returned, and has determined the valuation thereof, such assessment and valuation shall be entered of record in the book of minutes of its proceedings, and shall be certified by the secretary of the board to the Auditor.
Nothing in this chapter contained shall be construed to require the assessment by the board of public works of any part of a railroad, telegraph, telephone or pipeline until such part is so far completed as to be fit for use. But material held by any railroad, telegraph, telephone or pipeline company shall be returned to the board of public works for assessment as personal property. As soon as such assessment is made, the secretary of the board shall notify the owner or operator affected thereby of the amount thereof by written notice deposited in the United States post office, addressed to such owner or operator at the principal office or place of business of such owner or operator. Such assessment and valuation shall be final and conclusive, unless the same be appealed from in the manner following, within fifteen days after such notice is so deposited.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-12. Appeal From Valuation by Board

Any owner or operator claiming to be aggrieved by any such decision may, within the time aforesaid, apply by petition in writing, duly verified, to the circuit court of the county in which the property so assessed is situated, or if such property be situated in more than one county then in the county in which the largest assessment of such owner or operator was made in the next preceding year, for an appeal from the assessment and valuation so made of all such property, and jurisdiction is hereby conferred upon and declared to exist in the court, in which such application is filed, to grant, docket and hear such appeal; and such appeal, as to all of the property so assessed, as well as that situated in the county of the court so applied to, as that situated in the several other counties, shall forthwith be allowed by such court so applied to, and be heard by such court as to all of such property as soon as possible after the appeal is docketed, but notice in writing of such petition shall be given to the Secretary of State, as secretary of the board of public works, by mailing a copy of the petition for an appeal filed as aforesaid, which said petition shall recite the fact that copies of such petition have been sent by registered mail. Notice in writing of the hearing upon such petition shall be given to the State Tax Commissioner at least fifteen days beforehand. Likewise, the State Tax Commissioner may, by giving notice in writing at least fifteen days beforehand to the petitioner, bring on such appeal for hearing. Upon such hearing the court shall hear all such legal evidence as shall be offered on behalf of the state or any other county, district or municipal corporation interested, or on behalf of the appealing owner or operator. If the court be satisfied that the value so fixed by the board of public works is correct, it shall confirm the same, but if it be satisfied that the value so fixed by the board is either too high or too low, the court shall correct the valuation so made and shall ascertain and fix the true and actual value of such property according to the facts proved, and shall certify such value to the Auditor and to the secretary of the board of public works. The state or the owner or operator may appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeals if the assessed value of the property be $50,000 or more.
If the court to which an application for appeal would properly be made as aforesaid shall not be in session, the judge thereof in vacation shall forthwith allow the appeal, and if the judge thereof be disqualified or for any reason not be available, the filing of the aforesaid petition in the office of the clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the largest assessment of such owner or operator was made in the preceding year, within the time of aforesaid, shall constitute sufficient compliance with this section, and the appeal shall thereafter be proceeded with as otherwise provided in this section.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-14. Certification of Levies to Auditor

The clerk of the county court of every county in which any property lies which was so assessed shall, within thirty days after the county and district levies are laid by such court, certify to the Auditor the amount levied upon each $100 value of the property of each class in the county for county purposes, and on each $100 of the value of the property of each class in each magisterial district for the district purposes. It shall be the duty of the secretary of the board of Education of every school district and independent district in which any part of the property lies, within thirty days after the levies are laid therein for free school and building purposes, or either, to certify to the Auditor the amount so levied on each $100 value of the property of each class therein for each of such purposes; and it shall be the duty of the recorder, clerk or other recording officer of every municipal corporation in which any part of the property lies, within the same time, after levies are laid therein for any of the purposes authorized by law, to certify to the Auditor the amount levied upon each $100 value of the property of each class therein for each and every purpose.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-15. Failure of Officers to Perform Duties as to Property of Public Service Corporations

Any clerk of a county court, secretary of the board of Education, or recorder, clerk or other recording officer of a municipal corporation, who shall fail to perform any of the duties herein required of him shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, fined not less than $100 nor more than $500. In case of the failure of any such officers to furnish to the Auditor the certificate herein required, the Auditor may obtain the rate of taxation for any of said purposes from the copies of the land books on file in his office, if the same be found in such books, if not, in such other way or manner as he may deem necessary or proper for the purpose.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-16. Entry of Assessment by Auditor of Property of Such Public Service Businesses

As soon as possible after the valuation of the property of such owner or operator is fixed by the board of public works or by the circuit court on appeal as aforesaid, and after he shall have obtained the information herein provided for to enable him to do so, the Auditor shall assess and charge each class of property of every such owner or operator with the taxes properly chargeable thereon, in a book to be kept by him for that purpose, as follows: (a) With the whole amount of taxes upon such property for state and state school purposes, if any such taxes are levied; (b) with the whole amount of taxes on such property in each county for county purposes; (c) with the whole amount of taxes on such property in each school district for free school and building purposes; and (d) with the whole amount of taxes on such property in each municipal corporation for each and all of the purposes for which a levy therein was made by the municipal authorities of such corporation.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-17. Injunction to Restrain Collection of Tax

No injunction shall be awarded by any court or judge to restrain the collection of the taxes, or any part of them, so assessed upon the property of such owner or operator, except upon the ground that the assessment thereof was in violation of the Constitution of the United States, or of this state; or that the same were fraudulently assessed, or that there was a mistake made by the Auditor in the amount of taxes properly chargeable on the property of such owner or operator; and in the latter case no such injunction shall be awarded unless application be first made to the Auditor to correct the mistake claimed, and the Auditor shall refuse to do so, which fact shall be stated in the bill, nor unless the complainant pay into the treasury of the state all taxes appearing by the bill of complaint to be owing.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-18. Payment of Assessment by Owner or Operator

The Auditor shall, as soon as possible after such assessment is completed, make out and transmit by mail or otherwise, to such owner or operator, a statement of all taxes and levies so charged, and it shall be the duty of such owner or operator, so assessed and charged, to pay one half of the amount of such taxes and levies into the treasury of the state by September 1, and the remaining one half by the first day of the following March, subject to a deduction of two and one-half per centum if the taxes be paid on or before the date due. If such owner or operator fail to pay such taxes and levies when due, interest thereon at the rate of nine per centum per annum until paid shall be added, and the Auditor shall certify, after the date the second installment is due, to the sheriff of each county, the amount of such taxes and levies assessed within his county; and it shall be the duty of every sheriff to collect and account for such taxes and levies in the same manner as other taxes are levied or collected and accounted for by him The payment of such taxes and levies by any such owner or operator shall not prejudice or affect the right of such owner or operator to obtain relief against the assessment or valuation of its property in proceedings now pending or hereafter brought under the provisions of section twelve of this article, or in any suit, action or proceeding in which such relief may be obtainable; and if under the provisions of said section twelve or in any suit, action or proceeding, it be ascertained that the assessment or valuation of the property of such owner or operator is too high and the same is accordingly corrected, it shall be the duty of the Auditor of the state to issue to the owner or operator a certificate showing the amount of taxes and levies which have been overpaid, and such certificate shall be receivable thereafter for the amount of such overpayment in payment of any taxes and levies assessed against the property of such owner or operator, its successors or assigns. It shall likewise be the duty of said Auditor to certify to the county court, school districts and municipalities, the amounts of the respective overpayments distributable to such counties, school districts and municipalities. All moneys received by the Auditor under the provisions of this section shall be transmitted to the several counties within twenty days from receipt thereof.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-19. Accounting by Sheriff for District and Municipal Taxes From Public Service Corporations

When the district and independent school district taxes and levies are collected by the sheriff, he shall account for and pay the same as treasurer of such district. When such taxes and levies due to a municipal corporation are collected by the sheriff he shall pay the same to the proper collecting officer, or treasurer, of such municipal corporation, or otherwise, as the council or other proper authority thereof may direct.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-20. No Release of Taxes Assessed Against Such Corporations

Neither the county court of any county, nor any Board of Education, nor the municipal authorities of any incorporated town, shall have jurisdiction, power or authority, by compromise or otherwise, to remit or release any portion of the taxes so assessed upon the property of any such owner or operator, and when such taxes or levies are certified to the sheriff of any county for collection, as aforesaid, it shall be his duty to collect the whole thereof, regardless of any order or direction of any such county court, Board of Education or municipal authority to the contrary; and, if he fail to do so, he and his sureties in his official bond shall, unless he be restrained or prohibited from so doing by legal process from some court having jurisdiction to issue the same, be liable thereon for such taxes and levies he may so fail to collect, if he could have collected the same by the use of due diligence. Any member of the county court or Board of Education, or of the council of a municipal corporation, who shall vote to remit or release any part of the taxes, so assessed on the property of any such owner or operator, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, fined $500, and shall be removed from his office by the court by which the judgment of such fine is rendered, in addition to such fine.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-21. Accounting for Levies Against Public Service Corporations

When such taxes and levies are paid into the treasury, as herein provided, the Auditor shall account to the sheriff of each of the counties, to which any sum so paid in for county levies belongs, for the amount due such county, and may arrange the same with such sheriff in any settlement for state taxes in such a way as may be most convenient; and the sheriff shall account to the county court of his county for the amount so received by him in the same manner as for other county levies. The amount so paid for each district and independent school district shall be added to the distributable share of the school fund payable to such district, and shall be paid upon the requisition of the county superintendent of free schools in like manner as other school moneys are paid.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-22. Certification by Auditor of Amount Chargeable to Sheriff From Levies Against Public Service Corporations; Payment of Amount Due Municipality

The Auditor shall certify to the county court and the county superintendent of schools of every such county, on or before February 1 in each year, the respective amounts with which the sheriff thereof is chargeable on account of the various levies upon the property of such owner or operator. The amount so paid in for each municipal corporation shall, as soon as received by the Auditor, be paid over to the sheriff, or the treasurer of such municipal corporation, or to such other officer of the municipality as the council may designate, and the Auditor shall report such payment to the council. But the failure of the clerk of any county court, or the secretary of any Board of Education, or the proper officer of any municipal corporation, to certify the levies to the Auditor within the time herein prescribed shall not invalidate or prevent the assessment required by this article, but the Auditor shall make the assessment and proceed to collect or certify the same to the sheriff as soon as practicable after he shall have obtained the information necessary to make such assessment.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-24. Assessment of Buildings and Real Estate of Public Service Corporations

All buildings and real estate owned or held by such owner or operator, and used or occupied for any purpose immediately connected with the property, shall be included in such assessment by the board of public works; but all real estate owned or held by any such owner or operator and not used or occupied for purposes immediately connected with the property, shall be assessed as otherwise provided in this chapter.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-26. Operating Fund for Public Utilities Division in Auditor S Office

The Auditor shall establish a special operating fund in the state Treasury for the public utilities division in his or her office. The Auditor shall pay into the fund one and three eighths percent of the gross receipts of all moneys collected as provided for in this article. Up to one percent of the gross receipts shall be transferred from the operating fund to the tax loss restoration fund created in 11-6-27. From the operating fund, the Auditor shall reimburse the Tax Division for the actual operating expenses incurred in the performance of its duties required by this article not to exceed 50 percent of the fund balance after annual transfers to the tax loss restoration fund. Any moneys remaining in the special operating fund after annual transfers to the tax loss restoration fund shall be used by the Tax Division and the Auditor for funding the operation of their offices. If, at the end of any fiscal year, the balance in the special operating fund established under this section exceeds 20 percent of the gross revenues from the special operating fund operations, the excess shall be transferred to the General Revenue Fund.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6. Assessment of Public Service Businesses › §11-6-27. Public Utilities Tax Loss Restoration Fund

(a) The Auditor shall establish a special revenue fund in the state Treasury entitled the "Public Utilities Tax Loss Restoration Fund". The Auditor shall pay into the fund up to one percent of the gross receipts deposited in the public utilities operating fund created in 11-6-26 of this code and up to one percent of the gross receipts deposited in the operating fund of the interstate commerce division created in 11-6G-17 of this code. The proceeds of the tax loss restoration fund shall be distributed quarterly on a proportional basis to counties, districts and municipalities that have lost assessed value from the prior years assessment and the method of distribution is based upon the county, district or municipalitys percentage loss compared to the total loss of all counties, districts and municipalities that have lost assessed value from the prior years assessment:
Provided
, That the calculation to the adjustments shall exclude loss in tax revenue attributed to the school current levy, as set forth in 11-8-6c of this code:
Provided, however
, That the proceeds received by any county, district or municipality shall not be greater than the loss of tax revenue caused by the decrease in assessed value.
(b) The Auditor shall request the State Treasurer to invest the balance of the Public Utilities Tax Loss Restoration Fund pursuant to 12-6C-6 of this code. The Auditor may use the earnings from investments to support any provisions of this code administered by the Auditor related to local government oversight or the general operations of the office.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6A. Pollution Control Facilities Tax Treatment › §11-6A-1. Declaration of Policy

It is declared to be the public policy of the State of West Virginia to maintain reasonable standards of purity and quality of the water of the state and a reasonable degree of purity of the air resources of the state. In the exercise of the police power of the state to protect the environment and promote the public health, safety and general welfare, the Legislature has enacted the Water Pollution Control Act as article eleven, chapter twenty-two of this code and the Air Pollution Control Act as article five, chapter twenty-two thereof. It is recognized and declared by the Legislature that pollution control facilities, as hereinafter defined, are required for the protection and benefit of the environment and the general welfare of the people, are nonproductive, do not add to the economic value of a business enterprise and do not have a market value after installation in excess of salvage value.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6A. Pollution Control Facilities Tax Treatment › §11-6A-2. Definition

As used in this article, "pollution control facility" means any personal property designed, constructed or installed primarily for the purpose of abating or reducing water or air pollution or contamination by removing, altering, disposing, treating, storing or dispersing the concentration of pollutants, contaminants, wastes or heat in compliance with air or water quality or effluent standards prescribed by or promulgated under the laws of this state or the United States, the design, construction and installation of which personal property was approved as a pollution control facility by either the office of water resources or the office of air quality, both of the Division of Environmental Protection, as the case may be.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6A. Pollution Control Facilities Tax Treatment › §11-6A-3. Tax Treatment of Pollution Control Facilities

The value of a pollution control facility first placed in operation subsequent to July 1, 1973, shall, for the purpose of ad valorem property taxation under this chapter, be deemed to be its salvage value, that is to say, the price for which such facility would sell in place if voluntarily offered for sale by the owner thereof.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6A. Pollution Control Facilities Tax Treatment › §11-6A-4. Regulations

The State Tax Commissioner shall have the power and authority to promulgate regulations for the administration of this article. Such regulations may provide, among other things, for the identification and certification of pollution control facilities, the determination of the date upon which such facilities were first placed in operation, the determination of whether such facilities are real or personal property, a method for the allocation or separation of values where the pollution control facility produces a profitable by-product or where a part of such facility is required for the operation of the business without regard to the requirements of state or federal air or water quality standards and such other matters as may be related to the administration of this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6A. Pollution Control Facilities Tax Treatment › §11-6A-5. Coal Waste Disposal Power Projects

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, a coal waste disposal power project designed, constructed or installed to reclaim, burn and dispose of coal wastes in compliance with applicable air and water quality standards and which meets the criteria for financing under section twenty-one, article two-c, chapter thirteen of this code shall, for purposes of section three of this article, be subject to the provisions of this section.
(b) All items of personal property installed at a coal waste disposal power project shall be deemed a pollution control facility for purposes of this article, subject to an allocation of value as contemplated by section four of this article, as provided by this subsection. In allocating value, the Tax Commissioner shall accord salvage valuation to a portion of the total personal property at the project. The portion shall be equal to the ratio of tons of West Virginia coal waste burned and disposed of at the project to the total tons of coal and coal waste burned and disposed at the project during the previous calendar year: Provided, That with respect to a project placed in service prior to the effective date of this section at which project such ratio for the year ended the December 31, 1994, was less than seventy percent, the Tax Commissioner shall award salvage valuation to sixty-three percent of the total personal property at the project for tax years after the effective date of this section, notwithstanding the actual ratio for any calendar year. The remaining portion of the personal property at the project, but in no event less than twenty-five percent of that total, shall be valued without regard to this article: Provided, however, That the facility shall not qualify as a pollution control facility under this subsection if it burns coal, coal waste or fuel waste from outside the State of West Virginia after the effective date of this section.
This provisions of this section are not intended to be applied retroactively.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6A. Pollution Control Facilities Tax Treatment › §11-6A-5a. Wind Power Projects

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, a power project designed, constructed or installed to convert wind into electrical energy shall be subject to the provisions of this section.
(b) Each wind turbine installed at a wind power project and each tower upon which the turbine is affixed shall be considered to be personal property that is a pollution control facility for purposes of this article and, subject to an allocation of the value of project property determined by the Tax Commissioner in accordance with this section, all of the value associated with the wind turbine and tower shall be accorded salvage valuation: Provided, That the portion of the total value of the facility assigned salvage value in accordance with this section shall, on and after July 1, 2007, be no greater than seventy-nine percent of the total value of the facility. All personal property at a wind power project other than a wind turbine and tower shall not be accorded salvage valuation and shall not be considered to be personal property that is a pollution control facility. For purposes of this section, "wind turbine and tower" is limited to: The rotor, consisting of the blades and the supporting hub; the drive train, which includes the remaining rotating parts such as the shafts, gearbox, coupling, a mechanical brake and the generator; the nacelle and main frame, including the wind turbine housing, bedplate and the yaw system; the turbine transformer; the machine controls; the tower; and the tower foundation.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6B. Homestead Property Tax Exemption › §11-6B-5. Determination; Notice of Denial of Claim or Exemption

(a) The assessor shall, as soon as practicable after a claim for exemption is filed, review that claim and either approve or deny it. If the exemption is denied, the assessor shall promptly, but not later than January 1, serve the claimant with written notice explaining why the exemption was denied and furnish a form for filing with the county commission should the claimant desire to take an appeal. The notice required or authorized by this section shall be served on the claimant or his or her authorized representative either by personal service or by certified mail.
(b) In the event that the assessor shall have information sufficient to form a reasonable belief that a claimant, after having been originally granted an exemption, is not eligible for said exemption, he or she shall deny the exemption on the next assessment date and shall promptly, but no later than January 1, serve the claimant with written notice explaining the reasons for the denial and furnish a form for filing with the county commission should the claimant desire to take an appeal.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6B. Homestead Property Tax Exemption › §11-6B-6. Appeals Procedure

(a) Notice of appeal; thirty days. -- Any claimant aggrieved by the denial of his or her claim for exemption or the subsequent denial of his or her exemption may appeal to the county commission within thirty days after receipt of written notice explaining why the exemption was denied.
(b) Review; determination; appeal. -- The county commission shall complete its review and issue its determination as soon as practicable after receipt of the notice of appeal, but in no event later than the twenty-eighth day of February of the tax year for which the exemption is first applied. In conducting its review, the county commission may hold a hearing on the claim. The assessor or the claimant may apply to the circuit court of the county for review of the determination of the county commission in the same manner as is provided for appeals from the county commission in section twenty-five, article three of this chapter.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6B. Homestead Property Tax Exemption › §11-6B-7. Property Tax Books

(a) Property book entry. -- The exemption of the first $20,000 of assessed value shall be shown on the property books as a deduction from the total assessed value of the homestead.
(b) Levy; statement to homestead owner. -- When the $20,000 exemption is greater than the total assessed value of the eligible homestead, no taxes shall be levied. The sheriff shall issue a statement to the owner showing that no taxes are due.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6B. Homestead Property Tax Exemption › §11-6B-10. Criminal Penalties; Restitution

(a) False or fraudulent claim for exemption. -- Any claimant who willfully files a fraudulent claim for exemption, and any person who knowingly assisted in the preparation or filing of such fraudulent claim for exemption or who knowingly supplied information upon which the fraudulent claim was prepared or allowed, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than $150, or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than six months, or both fined and imprisoned.
(b) Fraudulent assessments. -- (1) An assessor or employee of a county who, with intent to defraud the state, assesses the value of the eligible claimant's homestead for an amount which is in excess of its true and actual value or is in excess of the assessed value of similar property in his county, in order to increase the cost of the homestead exemption to his county and to thereby secure a larger reimbursement from the state, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500, or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than one year, or both fined and imprisoned. Each violation of this subsection shall constitute a separate offense.
(2) An assessor or employee of a county who, with intent to defraud a claimant, assesses the value of the eligible claimant's homestead for an amount which is in excess of its true and actual value or is in excess of the assessed value of similar property in his county, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500, or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than one year, or both fined and imprisoned. Each violation of this subsection shall constitute a separate offense.
(c) Failure to notify assessor. -- A claimant or his legal representative, who, prior to the next first day of July, fails to notify the assessor of the county wherein property subject to the homestead property tax exemption is located, that title to that property or a portion thereof was transferred by deed, grant, sale, gift, will or by the laws of this state regulating descent and distribution, that the property is no longer used and occupied for residential purposes exclusively by the claimant or that the claimant is no longer permanently and totally disabled, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year or both.
(d) In addition to the criminal penalties provided above, upon conviction of any of the above offenses, the court shall order that the defendant make restitution unto the state for all taxes not paid due to an improper exemption for the claimant and interest thereon at the legal rate until paid.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6B. Homestead Property Tax Exemption › §11-6B-11. Severability

If any provision of this article or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held unconstitutional or invalid, such unconstitutionality or invalidity shall not affect, impair or invalidate other provisions or applications of the article, and to this end the provisions of this article are declared to be severable.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11. Taxation › Article 6B. Homestead Property Tax Exemption › §11-6B-12. Effective Date

(a) The provisions of this article enacted in the year 1981 took effect on July 1, 1981.
(b) Amendments to this article enacted in the year 1990 shall, regardless of the effective date of this act, be used to determine the assessed value of property on which ad valorem property taxes are levied for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 1990. assessors and county commissioners are hereby authorized and directed to review the claims for homestead exemption for the current tax year filed in their counties prior to October 2, 1989, and to make such changes in their books for the current tax year as may be needed to give these amendments their intended effect, regardless of any other provision in this chapter that may prohibit such action. Any person who has already paid property taxes for tax year 1990, and who is considered eligible for homestead exemption under this article, may apply pursuant to section twenty-seven, article three of this chapter for a refund for property taxes erroneously paid.