Chapter 47, Chapter 47

It is the intent of this legislation that elderly homeowners be permitted to meet their financial needs by accessing the equity in their homes through a reverse mortgage. The Legislature recognizes that many restrictions and requirements that exist to govern traditional mortgage …

"Reverse mortgage" means a nonrecourse loan secured by real property which: (1) Provides cash advances to a borrower based on the equity in a borrower's owner-occupied principal residence; (2) Requires no payment of principal or interest until the entire loan becomes due and paya…

Reverse mortgage loans shall be governed by the following rules, without regard to the requirements set out elsewhere for other types of mortgage transactions: (a) Interest. A reverse mortgage may provide for an interest rate which is fixed or adjustable, and may also provide for…

Reverse mortgage loans may be made or acquired without regard to the following statutory provisions or relevant interpretation of law: (a) Limitations on the purpose and use of future advances or any other mortgage proceeds; (b) Limitations on future advances to a term of years, …

Notwithstanding any law relating to payments, allowances, benefits or service provided on a means-tested basis, including, but not limited to, supplemental security income, low-income energy assistance, property tax relief, medical assistance and general assistance: (a) Reverse m…

(a) No reverse mortgage commitment shall be made by a lender unless the loan applicant attests, in writing that the applicant received from the lender at time of initial inquiry a statement prepared by the commissioner of banking, in consultation with the board of the West Virgin…

(a) All reverse mortgage loans subject to this article shall be under the jurisdiction and supervision of the commissioner of banking, and subject to the regulatory authority and penalties set forth in chapter thirty-one-a of this code. (b) The commissioner of banking shall have …

This article shall be known and may be cited as the Reduced Cigarette Ignition Propensity Standard and Fire Prevention Act.

Nothing in this article shall be construed to prohibit any person or entity from manufacturing or selling cigarettes that do not meet the requirements of section three of this article, if the cigarettes are or will be stamped for sale in another state or are packaged for sale out…

This article shall have no force and effect if a federal law or regulation establishing a national reduced cigarette ignition propensity standard is adopted and becomes effective.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the local governmental units of this state may neither enact nor enforce any ordinance or other local law or regulation relating to cigarette fire safety standards conflicting with any provision of this article.

Except as otherwise specifically provided in this section, the provisions of this article take effect on January 1, 2010. The provisions of section twelve of this article take effect on the effective date of this article.

(a) "Agent" means any person authorized by the State Tax Commissioner to purchase and affix stamps on packages of cigarettes. (b) "Cigarette" means: (1) Any roll of tobacco wrapped in paper or in any substance not containing tobacco; and (2) Any roll of tobacco wrapped in any sub…

(a) Except as provided in subsection (g) of this section and in section ten of this article, no cigarettes may be sold or offered for sale in this state or offered for sale or sold to persons located in this state, unless: (i) The cigarettes have been tested in accordance with th…

(a) Each manufacturer shall submit to the state Fire Marshal a written certification attesting that: (1) Each cigarette listed in the certification has been tested in accordance with section three of this article; and (2) Each cigarette listed in the certification meets the perfo…

(a) Cigarettes that are certified by a manufacturer in accordance with section four of this article shall be marked to indicate compliance with the requirements of section three of this article. The marking shall be in eight-point type or larger and consist of: (1) Modification o…

(a) A manufacturer, wholesale dealer, agent or any other person or entity who knowingly sells or offers to sell cigarettes, other than through retail sale, in violation of section three of this article, is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $100 for each pack of the cigaret…

(a) The State Fire Marshal or the State Tax Commissioner may promulgate rules, pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, necessary to effectuate the purposes of this article. (b) The State Tax Commissioner in the regular course of conducti…

To enforce the provisions of this article, the State Tax Commissioner and its duly authorized representatives may examine the books, papers, invoices and other records of any person in possession, control or occupancy of any premises where cigarettes are placed, stored, sold or o…

All moneys collected as civil penalties under section six of this article shall be deposited in a special account in the state Treasury to be known as the Reduced Cigarette Ignition Propensity Standard and Fire Prevention Act Fund. The moneys shall be deposited to the credit of t…

(a) "Pawnbroker" means any person, partnership, association or corporation or employee thereof advancing money in a pawn transaction in exchange for collateral in the property of the pledgor. Pawnbroker does not mean any bank which is regulated by the West Virginia Division of Fi…

(a) All pawnbrokers shall make and maintain a transaction report on all purchase or pawn transactions, except for refinance pawn transactions or merchandise bought from a manufacturer or wholesaler with an established place of business. The required transaction report shall inclu…

A pawnbroker who violates the provisions of this article is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be fined not less than $100 and not more than $200 for each offense.

This article may not be construed to prohibit or otherwise limit any county or municipality of this state from adopting an ordinance, to the extent that the ordinance does not conflict or create lesser requirements than this article or any other provision of this code, establishi…

(a) The purpose of this article is to ensure the integrity of the use of court reporter services by establishing standards for private court reporters and entities providing or arranging for court reporting services. It is declared the policy of the State of West Virginia that fa…

(a) A legal proceeding may not be reported by: (1) An individual who engages in a prohibited action as provided in this section; (2) A party to the action; (3) A relative, employee or attorney of one of the parties; (4) Someone with a financial interest in the action or its outco…

(a) Prior to the commencement of a legal proceeding, and at any time during or following the conclusion of a legal proceeding, an attorney or a party to that legal proceeding has the right to an itemized statement of all rates and charges for all services that have been or will b…

A court reporter or the entity that produces and bills for the transcript which violates the provisions of sections two or three of this article is subject to civil penalty in a court of competent jurisdiction as follows: Any party to a civil action, a court reporter, attorney or…

This article may be known and cited as the Prevention of Deceptive Lawsuit Advertising and Solicitation Practices Regarding the Use of Medications Act.

As used in this article: (1) “Legal advertisement” means a solicitation for legal services regarding the use of medications through television, radio, newspaper or other periodical, outdoor display, or other written, electronic, or recorded communications wherein the advertisemen…

(a) Specifically prohibited legal advertising practices. — A person engages in an unfair or deceptive act or practice if, in a legal advertisement, the person does any of the following: (1) Fails to contain the statement: “This is a paid advertisement for legal services.”; (2) Pr…

(a) Use or disclosure of protected health information for legal solicitation. — A person shall not use, cause to be used, obtain, sell, transfer, or disclose to another person without written authorization protected health information for the purpose of soliciting an individual f…

This article does not limit or otherwise affect the authority of the judiciary or the Lawyer Disciplinary Board to regulate the practice of law, enforce the West Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct, or discipline persons admitted to the bar.