Government Organization

HB 5612 removes the requirement for the state to establish market value for properties on the West Virginia State Capitol Complex. It amends a law requiring state agencies to identify unused or underused properties and report them to the Real Estate Division for review. The bill does not change the process for valuing other state-owned properties, only specifically exempts Capitol Complex properties from the market valuation requirement. This directly affects state agencies managing Capitol Complex properties and the Real Estate Division’s annual property review process.

HB 4452 removes specific land ownership limits for religious organizations in West Virginia. It eliminates current restrictions that cap church-owned land at 10 acres within cities/towns and 60 acres outside those areas. The bill amends state law to allow religious groups to own any amount of land without these acreage limits. This change directly affects churches, congregations, and religious organizations operating within the state. The policy shift removes a longstanding legal restriction on property ownership by religious entities.

HB 5653 amends West Virginia's tax code to explicitly require confidentiality for internal tax administration materials, including manuals, training materials, guidelines, thresholds, and procedures used by the Tax Commissioner's office. This extends existing protections for tax returns to cover these additional internal documents, prohibiting disclosure to the public without authorization. The law applies to all state and local tax authorities handling tax matters, ensuring internal processes for tax enforcement and compliance remain shielded. It aligns with current rules that protect sensitive tax information while adding clarity to previously unspecified materials.

HB 4801 amends West Virginia law to allow municipalities and counties to use hotel occupancy tax revenue for two new purposes: demolishing unsafe or unsanitary structures and planning for reuse or improvement of publicly owned property. This bill adds these specific activities to the list of permissible expenditures while maintaining the existing requirement that at least 50% of the tax revenue must fund tourism promotion. Local governments can still allocate funds to convention visitor bureaus or hotels (up to 75% of eligible tax revenue) for tourism-related expenses like advertising and marketing, subject to budget approval. The law directly affects counties and municipalities collecting hotel occupancy taxes, providing clearer guidelines for how these funds can be spent on community infrastructure and tourism development.

This bill expands the authority of county commissions in West Virginia to sell or lease county-owned property by introducing competitive bidding as an alternative to traditional public auctions. It allows counties to sell real property directly to private parties if the price is at least 75 percent of the appraised value, while sales to government entities and nonprofits may be made without considering market value. The legislation also requires public notice through legal advertisements, establishes minimum pricing standards based on assessed values or third-party appraisals, and mandates transparency by posting all formal offers on county websites for at least 30 days. Additionally, the bill clarifies that property sold to volunteer fire departments, ambulance services, and community centers must revert to the county if those organizations later propose to dispose of it, unless the county explicitly waives this right in the deed.