WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
2023 REGULAR SESSION
ENGROSSED
Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 581
By Senators Hamilton, Plymale, and Deeds [Originating in the Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources; reported on February 25, 2023]
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1 A Bill to amend and reenact §11-1A-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend
2 and reenact §19-1-4 of said code; to amend and reenact §19-2-5 of said code; to amend
3 and reenact §19-2C-1, §19-2C-6a, and §19-2C-10 of said code; to amend and reenact
4 §19-12-2 of said code; to amend and reenact §19-12D-3, §19-12D-4, and §19-12D-5 of
5 said code; to amend and reenact §19-36-2 of said code; to amend said code by adding
6 thereto a new article, designated §19-39-1, §19-39-2, §19-39-3, §19-39-4, §19-39-5, §19-
7 39-6, §19-39-7, §19-39-8, §19-39-9, §19-39-10, and §19-39-11, all relating generally to the
8 2023 Farm Bill; defining terms; authorizing transfer of land owned by the Department of
9 Agriculture; increasing membership and composition of board of review; compensating
10 board of review members for services; limiting consecutive terms served by board of
11 review members; removing public hearing requirement relating to noxious weed and rule;
12 restricting ownership of agricultural land holdings; providing exceptions to restrictions on
13 ownership of agricultural land holdings; requiring report to be filed with Commissioner of
14 Agriculture in certain circumstances; providing for enforcement of violations of acquisition,
15 registration, and reporting requirements; permitting Attorney General to initiate action in
16 circuit court; requiring Attorney General to make notice filing; directing circuit court to enter
17 an order under certain circumstances; providing for escheat of property to state; directing
18 sale of escheated property; providing civil penalty for failure to meet filing requirements;
19 and providing effective dates.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
CHAPTER 11. TAXATION.
ARTICLE 1A. APPRAISAL OF PROPERTY.
§11-1A-3. Definitions.
1 As used in this article, unless the context clearly requires a different meaning:
2 (a) "Assessed value" of any item of property is its assessed value after the certification of
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3 the first statewide reappraisal and shall be 60 percent of the market value of such the item of
4 property regardless of its class or species, except as hereinafter specifically provided in this
5 article;
6 (b) "Base year" shall have has the meaning ascribed to that term by the provisions of §11-
7 1A-2 of this code;
8 (c) "Commission" shall mean means the West Virginia appraisal control and review
9 commission;
10 (d) "Commissioner" or "Tax Commissioner" shall mean means the chief executive officer of
11 the state Tax Department except in those instances where the context clearly relates to the West
12 Virginia appraisal control and review commission, in which case "commissioner" shall mean
13 means any member of such the commission;
14 (e) "Designated agent" shall mean means a person, not directly employed by the Tax
15 Commissioner, who is designated by the Tax Commissioner to perform reappraisal functions
16 authorized or required by this article. Such That term shall include, but not be is not limited to,
17 agents and independent contractors, and nothing in this article shall may be construed to alter the
18 relationship of the State of West Virginia, or its officers, and such persons to create relationships
19 not contemplated by agreements between the Tax Commissioner and such persons;
20 (f) "Farm" shall mean means and includes land currently being used primarily for farming
21 purposes, whether by the owner thereof or by a tenant, and which has been so used for at least
22 seasonally during the year next preceding the then current tax year, but shall may not include
23 lands used primarily in commercial forestry or the growing of timber for commercial purposes; and
24 shall not include one acre surrounding the principal residence situate on a farm which shall be
25 valued as a homesite in the same manner as surrounding homes and properties not situated on
26 farmland, taking into consideration such variables as location, resale value and accessibility. The
27 Commissioner of Agriculture shall formulate criteria upon which a parcel of land qualifies as a
28 "farm." The county assessor may require the assistance of the Commissioner of Agriculture in
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29 making a determination of whether a parcel of land qualifies as a "farm".
30 (g) "Farming purposes" shall mean means the utilization of land to produce for sale,
31 consumption, or use, any agricultural products, including, but not limited to, livestock, as defined in
32 §19-10B-2 of this code, poultry, fruit, vegetables, grains or hays or any of the products derived
33 from any of the foregoing, tobacco, syrups, honey, and any and all horticultural and nursery stock,
34 Christmas trees, all sizes of ornamental trees, sod, seed and any and all similar commodities or
35 products including farm wood lots and the parts of a farm which are lands lying fallow or in timber
36 or in wastelands;
37 (h) "Property situate in this state" shall mean means:
38 (1) Property having legal situs in this state; or
39 (2) In the case of persons with a place of business located in this state and authorized to do
40 business in this state and one or more other states of the United States or any foreign country:
41 (A) Any tangible property brought into this state from time to time or otherwise deemed
42 determined to have situs in this state for purposes of ad valorem property taxation; and
43 (B) Any intangible property held by such the person, wherever evidence thereof is situate.
44 In the case of assessment of such the intangible property for ad valorem property taxation after the
45 first statewide reappraisal only such the part thereof, as may be determined by applicable law or
46 regulation to be subject to such taxation, shall be deemed determined to be situate in this state;
47 (i) "Value," "market value" and "true and actual value" shall have has the same meaning
48 and shall mean means the price at or for which a particular parcel or species of property would sell
49 if it were sold to a willing buyer by a willing seller, in an arm's length transaction, without either the
50 buyer or the seller being under any compulsion to buy or sell: Provided, That in determining value,
51 primary consideration shall be given to the trends of price paid for like or similar property in the
52 area or locality wherein such the property is situate over a period of not less than three nor more
53 than eight years next preceding the base year, and in the case of a farm or farms shall be
54 determined assuming such the land is being used for farming purposes. In addition, the
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55 commissioner may, for purposes of appraisement of any tract or parcel of real property, or chattels,
56 real or other species of property, real or personal, take into account one or more of the following
57 factors: (1) The location of such the property; (2) its site characteristics; (3) the ease of alienation
58 thereof, considering the state of its title, the number of owners thereof, and the extent to which the
59 same may be the subject of either dominant or servient easements; (4) the quantity of size of the
60 property and the impact which its sale may have upon surrounding properties; (5) if purchased
61 within the previous eight years, the purchase price thereof and the date of each such purchase; (6)
62 recent sale of, or other transactions involving comparable property within the next preceding eight
63 years; (7) the value of such the property to its owner; (8) the condition of such the property; (9) the
64 income, if any, which the property actually produces and has produced within the next preceding
65 eight years; and (10) any commonly accepted method of ascertaining the market value of any
66 such property, including techniques and methods peculiar to any particular species of property if
67 such technique or method is used uniformly and applied to all property of like species.
CHAPTER 19. AGRICULTURE.
ARTICLE 1. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.
§19-1-4. Duties of commissioner.
1 The Commissioner of Agriculture shall perform the following duties:
2 (a) Devise means of advancing the agricultural interests of the state and, in the
3 performance of such duty, he or she shall have authority to call upon any state department, or
4 officer of the state or county, to cooperate in promoting the agricultural interests of the state. It shall
5 be is the duty of any such department, or officer, upon request of the commissioner to render the
6 assistance desired;
7 (b) Promote and encourage the organization of such societies and associations as have
8 for their object the improvement and development of the state’s agricultural, horticultural, and
9 kindred interests, especially in production, processing for market, and distribution;
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10 (c) Conduct cooperative work with the United States Department of Agriculture in
11 inspecting and determining the grade and condition of farm produce at collecting centers,
12 receiving centers, and shipping points;
13 (d) Induce the investment of capital in, and immigration into, this state by the dissemination
14 of information relative to the soil, climate, health, natural resources, market opportunities, and
15 advantages of the state;
16 (e) Investigate and report upon the kinds, conditions, and extent of the mineral products of
17 the state and their value;
18 (f) Take charge of the museum of the Department of Agriculture, collect, preserve and
19 exhibit therein specimens of agricultural, horticultural and kindred products, products of the
20 forests, minerals, flora, and fauna of the state;
21 (g) Publish and distribute, from time to time, such reports and bulletins concerning
22 agriculture, horticulture, and kindred subjects as may be of value to the farmers of the state and,
23 as conditions may demand, publish a handbook giving the resources of the several counties of the
24 state, the varieties of soil and products, both mineral and vegetable, and the adaptability of the
25 different sections of the state to the different branches of agriculture, horticulture, and kindred
26 interests;
27 (h) Submit a biennial report to the Governor and Legislature containing such information as
28 to the operations of the department as may be helpful to the agricultural interests of the state,
29 together with an itemized statement of all receipts and disbursements during the biennial period
30 covered thereby, and giving the name of every person employed during such the period, the time
31 employed, and the amount paid each employee;
32 (i) Perform such other duties and exercise such other powers as are provided in this
33 chapter and by general law;
34 (j) Enter into an agreement with the Secretary of the Department of Veterans’ Assistance to
35 transfer without consideration all or part of the approximately 17 acres of Department of
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36 Agriculture property in Beckley, West Virginia, located adjacent to the Jackie Withrow Hospital
37 which was formerly known as Pinecrest Hospital, for construction of a veterans skilled nursing
38 facility;
39 (k) Propose rules, including regulatory standards, for legislative approval in accordance
40 with the provisions of §29A-3-1 et seq. of this code for the purpose of carrying out the
41 requirements of this chapter; and
42 (l) Cooperate with the State Resiliency Office to the fullest extent practicable to assist that
43 office in fulfilling its duties;
44 (m) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the contrary, transfer to the Village of
45 Barboursville, without consideration, all the approximately 250 acres of land known as the
46 Huntington State Hospital institutional farm, located at Barboursville, Cabell County, for the
47 purpose of providing public services; and
48 (n) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the contrary, transfer to the City of
49 Ellenboro, without consideration, all the lots owned by the Department of Agriculture located in the
50 City of Ellenboro, for public services.
ARTICLE 2. MARKETING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.
§19-2-5. Inspection and grading of agricultural products; charges.
1 The commissioner may comply with the request of any person for official inspection of
2 agricultural products and he or she, or his or her agents, shall have authority to may inspect and
3 determine the grade and quality of agricultural products at public markets, concentration points,
4 packing, grading, and processing plants and other places where agricultural products are
5 assembled for distribution; the commissioner shall may establish and publish a schedule of
6 charges for such the inspection and grading service; and it shall be his duty and he shall have
7 authority to may collect such the charges for such the inspection and grading services, which
8 moneys shall be paid into the State Treasury and reappropriated to the Department of Agriculture
9 for the administration of this article.
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 ARTICLE 2C. AUCTIONEERS.
§19-2C-1. Definitions.
1 For the purposes of this article:
2 (a) "Absolute auction" means the sale of real or personal property at auction whereby
3 every item offered from the block is sold to the highest bidder without reserve and without the
4 requirements of a minimum bid or other conditions which limit the sale other than to the highest
5 bidder.
6 (b) "Auction" means any sale of real or personal property in which offers or bids are made
7 by prospective purchasers by means of verbal exchange, physical gesture, or written
8 communication, whether bids are made in person, via mail, or electronically, the property is sold to
9 the highest bidder, and there is no fixed or predetermined time for the auction to end, as the close
10 of the auction is determined by either the auctioneer or the persons bidding on the item or items.
11 The term "auction" includes public auctions.
12 (c) "Auctioneer" means a person who sells goods or real estate at public auction for
13 another on commission or for other compensation.
14 (d) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Agriculture of West Virginia.
15 (e) "Department" means the West Virginia Department of Agriculture.
16 (f) "Escrow account" means a separate custodial or trust fund account maintained by the
17 auctioneer.
18 (g) "Estate auction" means the sale at auction of property of a specified deceased person
19 or the property of a specified living person’s estate. Estate auctions may contain property other
20 than that of the specified living or deceased person. However, the inclusion of additional property
21 must be included in all advertising and auction announcements.
22 (h) "In this state" means that an auction satisfies one of the following criteria:
23 (1) The auctioneer performed the auction within the borders of the State of West Virginia;
24 (2) The auctioneer is selling items for a person located in the State of West Virginia;
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25 (3) The auctioneer is auctioning real or personal property located in the State of West
26 Virginia;
27 (4) The auctioneer delivers purchased property to a location in the State of West Virginia;
28 or
29 (5) The auctioneer is otherwise subject to the laws, including taxation authority, of the State
30 of West Virginia.
31 (h) "Public auction" or "auction" means any public sale of real or personal property in any
32 manner, whether in-person, via written offers or bids, or online, when offers or bids are made by
33 prospective purchasers and the property sold to the highest bidder.
§19-2C-6a. Investigation of complaints; board of review.
1 (a) The Department of Agriculture may, upon its own action, and shall upon the verified
2 written complaint of any person, investigate the actions of any auctioneer, apprentice auctioneer,
3 any applicant for an auctioneer’s or apprentice auctioneer’s license, or any person who assumes
4 to act in that capacity, if the complaint, together with other evidence presented in connection with
5 it, establishes probable cause. Upon verification of the complaint, the department shall present the
6 complaint to the board of review. The board of review shall consider all facts of the complaint and
7 recommend a course of action to the commissioner.
8 (b) The board of review shall be appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and
9 consent of the Senate, and shall consist of three five members, each appointed for a staggered
10 three-year term. Two Three members of the board of review shall be licensed auctioneers in West
11 Virginia, one of which has experience performing auctions, and residents of this state and shall