2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 11A. Collection and Enforcement of Property Taxes › Article 3. Sale of Tax Liens and Nonentered, Escheated and Waste and Unappropriated Lands › §11A-3-45. Auditor to Hold Annual Auction

(a) Each tract or lot certified by the Auditor pursuant to 11A-3-44 of this code shall be sold by him or her at public auction at the courthouse of the county to the highest eligible bidder during the courthouses normal operating hours on any business working day within 90 days after the Auditor has certified the lands as required by 11A-3-44 of this code. The payment for any tract or lot purchased at a sale shall be made by check, U. S. currency, or money order payable to the Auditor and delivered before the close of business on the day of sale. No part or interest in any tract or lot subject to such sale, or any part thereof of interest therein, that is less than the entirety of such unredeemed tract, lot, or interest, as the same is described and constituted as a unit or entity in said list, shall be offered for sale or sold at such sale. If the sale shall not be completed on the first day of the sale, it shall be continued from day to day between the same hours until all the land shall have been offered for sale. Bidding at an auction held pursuant to this section constitutes transacting business in this state for purposes of 31B-10-1001
et seq
., 31D-15-1501
et seq
., and 31E-14-1401
et seq
. of this code.
(b) A private, nonprofit, charitable corporation, incorporated in this state, which has been certified as a nonprofit corporation pursuant to the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code, as amended, which has as its principal purpose the construction of housing or other public facilities and which notifies the Auditor of an intention to bid and subsequently submits a bid that is not more than five percent lower than the highest bid submitted by any person or organization which is not a private, nonprofit, charitable corporation as defined in this subsection, shall be sold the property offered for sale at public auction by the Auditor pursuant to the provisions of this section at the public auction as opposed to the highest bidder.
The nonprofit corporation referred to in this subsection does not include a business organized for profit, a labor union, a partisan political organization, or an organization engaged in religious activities, and it does not include any other group which does not have as its principal purpose the construction of housing or public facilities.
(c) To attain eligibility to bid at a public auction held pursuant to this section, a potential bidder must register in advance of such public auction with the Auditors office or complete and execute a notarized affidavit affirming that they meet the requirements set forth in this article on the day of the sale. Registration shall be done in accordance with rules promulgated by the State Auditors office. The Auditor may deregister or refuse to register a potential bidder who:
(1) Has failed to make a payment owed at a prior auction held pursuant to this section;
(2) At the time of registration is delinquent in the payment of real property tax, for which registrant is the most recent owner of record, to any county in this state;
(3) Has a history of noncompliance with code enforcement violations issued by a county or municipality pursuant to 7-1-3ff and 8-12-16 of this code;
(4) At the time of registration is subject to legal proceedings in any county or municipality that are related to code enforcement violations regarding real property owned by him or her; and
(5) Within the preceding five years prior to the auction, has failed to comply with a valid raze or repair order (or any other similar order) issued by a county or municipality.
(d) Potential bidders who are domestic or foreign entities as defined in chapters 31B, 31D, and 31E of this code must show proof at the time of their registration that they properly registered with the Secretary of States office and are authorized to conduct business in this state.
(e) In order to effectuate the purposes of this section, the Auditor may promulgate procedural rules, interpretive rules, and legislative rules, including emergency rules, or any combination thereof, in accordance with 29A-3-1
et seq
. of this code.