Bill Text: WV HB4355 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Allowing municipalities and counties to post their annual financial statements on the Internet
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 11-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-24 - To House Government Organization [HB4355 Detail]
Download: West_Virginia-2020-HB4355-Introduced.html
WEST virginia legislature
2020 regular session
Introduced
House Bill 4355
By Delegates Porterfield, Foster, Bibby, Steele, Butler, Waxman, J. Jeffries, Jennings, Mandt, Kessinger and Hill
[Introduced January 15, 2020; Referred to the Committee on Political Subdivisions then Government Organization]
A BILL to amend and reenact §7-5-16 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §8-13-23 of said code, all relating to allowing municipalities and counties to post their annual financial statements on the Internet instead of publishing them in newspapers.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
CHAPTER 7. COUNTY COMMISSIONS AND OFFICERS.
ARTICLE 5. FISCAL AFFAIRS.
§7-5-16. Preparation, publication and disposition of financial statements.
(a) The county commission of every county, by October 15 of each fiscal year, shall prepare on a form to be prescribed by the State Tax Commissioner, and cause to be published a statement revealing: (1) The receipts and expenditures of the county during the previous fiscal year arranged under descriptive headings; (2) the name of each firm, corporation, and person who received more than $50 from any fund during the previous fiscal year, together with the amount received and the purpose for which paid; and (3) all debts of the county, the purpose for which each debt was contracted, its due date, and to what date the interest thereon has been paid: Provided, That all salaries, receipts and expenditures to all county employees by office or department may be published in the aggregate.
(b) The county commission shall transmit to any resident of the county requesting a copy of the published statement for the fiscal year designated, supplemented by a list of the names of each firm, corporation and person who received less than $50 from any fund during the fiscal year showing the amount paid to each, the purpose for which paid and an itemization of the salaries, receipts and expenditures to all county employees by office or department otherwise published in the aggregate.
(c) If a county commission willfully fails or refuses to perform the duties required in this section, every member of the commission, concurring in the failure or refusal, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than $100; and the prosecuting attorney of any county shall, when the failure or refusal shall come to the prosecuting attorney's knowledge, immediately present the evidence thereof to the grand jury if in session, and if not in session, the prosecuting attorney shall institute proper criminal proceedings before a magistrate against any offender, and cause the failure or refusal to be investigated by the next succeeding grand jury.
(d) Where in subsections (a) and (b), salaries, receipts and expenditures are published in the aggregate, the county commission shall, upon written request, provide to any resident of the county an itemized accounting of the salaries, receipts and expenditures.
(e) By October 15 of each fiscal year, each county commission shall:
(1) Publish the financial statement as a Class I-0 legal
advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of
this code. and The publication area for such the publication
shall be is the county; or
(2) Publish a notice that the requisite financial statements are available to the public, free of charge, at the county’s primary office and on a website maintained by the county. Each notice shall contain the office address and the website address where financial statements are available. The statement shall be published as a Class I legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of this code. The publication area for the publication is the county.
CHAPTER 8. MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS.
ARTICLE 13. TAXATION AND FINANCE.
§8-13-23. Preparation, publication and disposition of financial statements.
(a) Every city, within 90 days after the beginning of each fiscal year, shall prepare on a form to be prescribed by the State Tax Commissioner and cause to be published a sworn statement revealing: (1) The receipts and expenditures of the city during the previous fiscal year; (2) the name of each person who received more than $50 during the previous fiscal year, together with the amount received; and (3) all debts of the city, the purpose for which each debt was contracted, its due date and to what date the interest on the debt has been paid. The city shall either:
(1) Publish the statement shall be published as a Class I
legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of
this code, and The publication
area for the publication shall be is the city: Provided,
That all salaries, receipts, payments to each individual vendor and
expenditures to employees of municipal offices, companies and departments may
be published in the aggregate; or
(2) Publish a notice that the requisite financial statement is available to the public, free of charge, at the county’s primary office and on a website maintained by the county. Each notice shall contain the office address and the website address where financial statements are available. The statement shall be published as a Class I legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of this code. The publication area for the publication is the city.
(b) Every city shall transmit to any resident of the city who requests it a copy of any published statement for the fiscal year designated, supplemented by a document listing the names of each person who received less than $50 from any fund during the fiscal year and showing the amount paid to each and the purpose for which paid and an itemization of the salaries, receipts, payments to each individual vendor and expenditures to employees of municipal offices, companies and departments otherwise published in the aggregate.
(c) Every town or village, within 120 days after the beginning of each fiscal year, shall prepare on a form to be prescribed by the State Tax Commissioner a sworn statement revealing: (1) The receipts and expenditures of the town or village during the previous fiscal year arranged under descriptive headings; (2) the name of each person who received money from any fund during the previous fiscal year, together with the amount received and the purpose for which paid; and (3) all debts of the town or village, the purpose for which each debt was contracted, its due date and to what date the interest on the debt has been paid: Provided, That all salaries, receipts, payments to each individual vendor and expenditures to employees of municipal offices, companies and departments may be published in the aggregate.
(d) Every town or village
shall transmit to any resident of the town or village who requests it, a copy
of any statement for the fiscal year designated. Any town or village may, if
its governing body thereof elects, also publish the statement as a Class I
legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of §59-3-1 et seq. of
this code and in that event, the
publication area for the publication shall be is the town or
village; or publish a notice, as a Class I legal advertisement in compliance
with the provisions of §59-3-1 et
seq. of this code with the publication area being the town or village, that
the requisite financial statement is available to the public, free of charge,
on a website maintained by the town or village.
(e) The statement required
by subsection (a) of this section and the statement required by subsection (c)
of this section shall be sworn to by the recorder, the mayor and two members of
the governing body of the municipality. As soon as practicable following the
close of the fiscal year, a copy of any statement required by this section
shall be filed by the municipality with the State Tax Commissioner, the clerk
of the county commission of the county and the clerk of the circuit court of
the circuit in which the municipality or the major portion of the territory of
the municipality is located. If the governing body fails or refuses to perform
any of the duties set forth in this section, every member of the governing body
and the recorder of the governing body concurring in the failure or refusal shall
be is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
fined not less than $10 nor more than $100. If any of the provisions of this
section are violated, it is the duty of the prosecuting attorney of the county
in which the municipality or the major portion of the territory of the
municipality is located to immediately present the evidence of the violation to
the grand jury if in session, and if not in session he or she shall cause the
violations to be investigated by the next succeeding grand jury.
(f) Where in subsections (a), (b) and (c) of this section, salaries, receipts, payments to each individual vendor and expenditures are published in the aggregate, the city, town or village shall, upon written request, provide to any resident of the city, town or village an itemized accounting of the salaries, receipts, payments to each individual vendor and expenditures.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow municipalities and counties to post their annual financial statements on the Internet instead of publishing them in newspapers.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
