2 prescribe the rules, regulations and conditions under which races 3 shall be conducted in this state, which rules and regulations shall H. B. No. 455]

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4 be recorded upon its books in its office and any corporation or as5 sociation desiring to conduct racing at any meeting may annually 6 apply to the state racing commission for a license to do so and all 7 licenses issued shall also be shown upon the books of said com8 mission.

9 Said commission shall issue said license and grant the same for a 10 term of one year, but said license shall contain a provision that 11 all meetings and races conducted under this act shall be subject 12 to the rules, regulations and conditions from time to time adopted 13 by said commission and shall be regulated by the commission.

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The books and proceedings of said commission so kept showing 15 the rules prescribed by it for the conduct of said meetings and the 16 issuing of said licenses and all other proceedings by it, shall at all 17 times be subject to the inspection upon application of any one so 18 desiring to see the same and shall be treated as public records.

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Said commission may have the power for good reasons to re20 voke any license granted by said commission to any association or 21 corporation, but the action of said commission in revoking any 22 such license shall be subject to a review by any court of competent 23 jurisdiction.

Sec. 4. Said commission in granting any license to any such corporation or association to conduct racing, may in its discre3 tion permit the use during such meetings of what is known as 4 parimutuel machines to be used during such meeting, if such 5 corporation or association so desires, but it shall be unlawful for 6 said association or corporation to permit gambling at such meet7 ings by means of bookmakin.g

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In cases where said commission permits the use of parimutuel 9 machines the said commission shall require in the license to use 10 the same that at least one per cent. of all money placed in said 11 machines during any meeting or association, shall be paid to the 12 tax commissioner of the state and shall be credited by the tax 13 commissioner to the state agriculture department. And the books 14 of said racing association or corporation using said machines at 15 any meeting conducted by it shall at all times be open to inspection 16 by the said tax commissioner or said racing commission, to see 17 that the proper amount due to the state from the money placed

18 in said machines may be properly accounted for to the state. And 19 the amount due from any association or corporation to the state 20 shall be paid and accounted for to the tax commissioner of the 21 state on or before the first day of December of each year; but H. B. No. 455]

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22 nothing in this act providing for the payment of this tax to the 23 state shall prevent the commission from granting the license to 24 said corporation or association permitting said machines such ad25 ditional amount as in its judgment is necessary to maintain said 26 corporation and association and provide suitable purses, prizes and 27 premiums for breeders and owners of horses to contest for at such 28 meetings.

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Public bookmaking and gambling at any race meeting shall not 30 be permitted by said racing commission, and the same is hereby 31 declared a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not less 32 than one hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars for 33 each day the same is permitted or allowed, and any association or 34 corporation permitting the same shall be guilty of such misde35 meanor, and all persons aiding and abetting therein shall like36 wise be guilty of said misdemeanor and punishable by fine as 37 hereinafter provided.

38 But it is expressly provided that this act shall not apply to 39 horse shows, the purpose of which is merely to show horses, un40 less racing is conducted and such horse shows and the purposes, 41 prizes and stakes provided in such race contests and all such 42 meetings known as horse shows where prizes, purses and stakes are [H. B. No. 455 43 offered in contest for speed shall be under the provision of this 44 act and this act shall apply to same.

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Provided, however, in no case shall this act apply to any fair or 46 horse show held for a period of not over five days.

Sec. 5. All acts, parts of acts, or laws of this state in con

2 flict with this act, are hereby repealed.

House Bill No. 175

(BY MR. BIVENS, by request.)

[Introduced January 19, 1921; referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.]

A BILL to prohibit profiteering and to provide punishment thereof. Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

No person firm or corporation shall collect or receive from any 2 other person firm or corporation an unreasonable profit on the 3 sale of any of the necessities of life. Necessities of life include 4 food of all kind, fuel used in the ordinary house-hold, and in any 5 manufacturing, transportation or other useful enterprises, and also 6 clothing, footwear and headwear.

7 A charge of over twenty-five per cent on the original net cost 8 plus the proper carrying charges, and the articles proper share of 9 the expenses of conducting the business shall be deemed an unrea10 sonable profit.

11 Any person firm or corporation violating the foregoing shall be 12 guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction shall be fined not ex13 ceeding one thousand dollars.

House Bill No. 9

(BY MR. HALL of Wetzel.)

[Introduced January 17, 1921; referred to the Committee on Counties, Districts and Municipal Corporations.]

A BILL to amend and re-enact section one of chapter 47-a of Barnes' code of West Virginia as last amended and re-enacted by section one of chapter eight, acts of the legislature of one thousand nine hundred and fifteen, second extraordinary session, relating to the issuing of bonds by counties, cities, school districts and municipal corporations.

Be it enacted by the legislature of West Virginia:

That section forty-seven-a of Barnes' code of West Virginia, as last amended and re-enacted by section one, chapter eight, acts of the legislature of one thousand nine hundred and fifteen, second

extraordinary session, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows:

Section 1. No county, city, school district or municipal cor2 poration, except in cases where such corporation has already au3 thorized bonds to be issued, shall hereafter be allowed to become 4 indebted in any manner or for any purpose, to an amount, in5 cluding existing indebtedness, in the aggregate, exceeding two 6 and one-half per centum on the value of all taxable property 7 therein; to be ascertained by the last assessment, for the state 4 [H. B. No. 9 8 and county purposes, previous to the incurring of such indebt9 edness; nor, without at the same time providing for the collec10 tion of a direct annual tax to pay annually the interest on such 11 debt and the principal thereof within and not exceeding thirty12 four years.

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Provided, however, that any county, magisterial district or 14 group of magisterial districts, is hereby authorized and allowed. 15 to become indebted, notwithstanding anything in this act to the 16 contrary, in an additional sum not to exceed two and one-half 17 per centlm on the value of the taxable property therein, ascer18 tained as aforesaid, for the purpose of locating, grading, drain19 ing, paving and permanently improving the roads or highways and 20 for the construction or repair of bridges therein, or the pur21 chase of existing toll bridges. Provided, further, however, that 22 any city or municipal corporation of five hundred inhabitants 23 or more is hereby authorized and allowed to become indebted, 24 notwithstanding anything in this act to the contrary, in an addi25 tional sum not to exceed two and one-half per centum on the 26 value of taxable property therein, ascertained as aforesaid, for 27 the purpose of grading, paving, sewering and otherwise im28 proving the streets and alleys of said city or municipal corporH. B. No. 9] 29 ation; the term "sewering being used in a comprehensive sense 30 so as to include mains, laterals, connections, traps, incinerating 31 and disposal plants, and other necessary and convenient acces32 sories to a modern, sanitary and efficient sewerage system; and, 33 provided, further, that no debt shall be contracted under this 34 section, unless all questions connected with the same shall have 35 been first submitted to a vote of the people, and have received 36 three-fifths of all the votes for and against the same, and, pro

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37 vided, further, that in all cases where like authority is given to 38 such cities or municipal corporations by their charters this sec39 tion shall not apply.

House Bill No. 357

(BY MR. RAMSEY)

[Introduced January 24, 1921; referred to the Committee on Counties, Districts and Municipal Corporations.]

A BILL to change a portion of the boundary line between the counties of Greenbrier and Nicholas and to annex to Nicholas county a portion of Greenbrier county.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

Section 1. That the boundary line between the counties of 2 Greenbrier and Nicholas be and the same is hereby changed in a 3 portion of its course and is located and established as follows: 4 Beginning at Meadow river on the line of Fayette county, and at 5 the present corner between said Greenbrier and Nicholas counties 6 and thence along the present division line between said Greenbrier 7 and Nicholas counties to the northern most corner of Meadow 8 Bluff district of said Greenbrier county, corner to Williamsburg 9 district of said county, thence with the division line between said 10 Meadow Bluff district and Williamsburg district, passing Beech 11 knob to Job's knob, thence leaving said district line and following 12 the main ridge of the mountain in an easterly direction to the top 13 of Cold knob, thence following the main ridge around the head of 14 the South Fork of Cherry river and between same and Spring [H. B. No. 357 15 creek waters to the corner of Pocahontas county, near the T. M. 16 Taylor place, thence in a northerly direction with the line between 17 Pocahontas and Greenbrier counties to the corner of Webster 18 county, thence with the present line between said counties of Web19 ster and Greenbrier to the present line between said counties of 20 Greenbrier and Nicholas at the north-east end of said line. And 21 the territory of the present county of Greenbrier lying north of the 22 division line hereby established and hereby included in the county 23 of Nicholas shall constitute and be a part of the county of Nich24 olas.

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