(a) Any person who willfully commits any of the following offenses is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $5,000 nor more than $25,000, or imprisoned in the county or regional jail not more than one year, or both fined and imprisoned:

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Terms Used In West Virginia Code 11-14C-41

  • Aircraft: includes any airplane or helicopter. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Aviation fuel: means aviation gasoline or aviation jet fuel. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Commissioner: means the State Tax Commissioner. See West Virginia Code 11-22-1
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Diesel fuel: means a liquid that is advertised as, offered for sale as, sold for use as, suitable for use as or used as a motor fuel in a diesel-powered highway vehicle or watercraft. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Distributor: means a person who acquires motor fuel from a licensed supplier, permissive supplier or from another licensed distributor for subsequent sale or use. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Document: means any deed, or instrument or writing by which any real property within this state or any interest in real property is granted, conveyed or otherwise transferred to the grantee, purchaser or any other person. See West Virginia Code 11-22-1
  • Dyed diesel fuel: means diesel fuel that meets the dyeing and marking requirements of section 4082, Title 26, United States Code, regardless of how the diesel fuel was dyed. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Exporter: means a person that exports motor fuel from this state. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Fuel: means motor fuel. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Fuel supply tank: means a receptacle on a motor vehicle from which motor fuel is supplied for the propulsion of the motor vehicle. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Highway: means every way or place of whatever nature open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel in this state including the streets and alleys in towns and cities. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Highway vehicle: means any self-propelled vehicle, trailer or semitrailer that is designed or used for transporting persons or property over the public highway and includes all vehicles subject to registration under article three, chapter . See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Importer: means a person that imports motor fuel into this state. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • In this state: means the area within the borders of West Virginia including all territory within the borders of West Virginia that is owned by the United States of America. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Licensee: means a person licensed by the commissioner pursuant to section ten of this article. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Motor fuel: means gasoline, blended fuel, aviation fuel, any special fuel and alternative fuel. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Offense: includes every act or omission for which a fine, forfeiture, or punishment is imposed by law. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
  • Permissive supplier: is a person who may not be subject to the taxing jurisdiction of this state but who meets both of the following requirements: (A) Is registered under Section 4101 of the Internal Revenue Code for transactions in motor fuel in the bulk transfer/terminal system. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Person: means an individual, firm, cooperative, association, corporation, limited liability corporation, estate, guardian, executor, administrator, trust, business trust, syndicate, partnership, limited partnership, copartnership, organization, limited liability partnership, joint venture, receiver and trustee in bankruptcy. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
  • Supplier: means a person that is:

    (A) Subject to the general taxing jurisdiction of this state. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2

  • this article: means article fourteen-c, chapter . See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • this state: means the State of West Virginia. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Transport vehicle: means a vehicle designed or used to carry motor fuel over the highway and includes a straight truck, a straight truck/trailer combination and a semitrailer combination rig. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Use: means the actual consumption or receipt of motor fuel by a person into a motor vehicle, aircraft or watercraft. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2
  • Watercraft: means any vehicle used on waterways. See West Virginia Code 11-14C-2

(1) Fails to obtain a license required by this article prior to performing an act for which the license is required;

(2) Fails to pay to this state no more than thirty days after the date the tax is due the tax levied by this article;

(3) Makes a false statement in an application, return, ticket, invoice, statement, or any other document required under this article;

(4) Fails to file no more than thirty days after it is due any return required by this article;

(5) Fails to maintain any record required by this article;

(6) Makes a false statement in an application for a refund;

(7) Refuses to allow the commissioner to examine the person's books and records concerning motor fuel;

(8) Fails to make a required disclosure of the correct amount of fuel sold or used in this state;

(9) Fails to file a replacement or additional cash bond or continuous surety bond as required under this article;

(10) Fails to show or give a shipping document as required under this article;

(11) Refuses to allow a licensed distributor, licensed exporter, or licensed importer to defer payment of tax to the licensed supplier or permissive supplier, as required by section twenty of this article;

(12) Uses, delivers, or sells any aviation fuel for use or intended for use in highway vehicles or watercraft;

(13) Interferes with or refuses to permit seizures authorized under section forty-two of this article;

(14) Delivers motor fuel from a transport vehicle to the fuel supply tank of a highway vehicle;

(15) Dispenses into the supply tank of a highway vehicle, watercraft or aircraft any motor fuel on which tax levied by section five of this article has not been paid;

(16) Allows to be dispensed into the supply tank of a highway vehicle, watercraft or aircraft any motor fuel on which tax levied by section five of this article has not been paid;

(17) Purchases motor fuel from an unlicensed distributor, unlicensed importer or unlicensed supplier; or

(18) Uses twenty-five or less gallons of dyed diesel fuel for a use that the user knows or has reason to know is a taxable use of the motor fuel, or sells twenty-five or less gallons of dyed diesel fuel to a person who the seller knows or has reason to know will use the motor fuel for a taxable purpose.

(b) Any person who willfully commits any of the following offenses with the intent either to evade or circumvent the tax levied by section five of this article or to assist any other person in efforts to evade or circumvent the tax levied by section five of this article is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $25,000 nor more than $50,000, or imprisoned in a state correctional facility not less than one nor more than five years, or both fined and imprisoned:

(1) Alters, manipulates, replaces, or in any other manner tampers or interferes with, or causes to be altered, manipulated, replaced, tampered or interfered with, a totalizer attached to motor fuel pumps to measure the dispensing of motor fuel;

(2) Fails to pay motor fuels taxes and diverts the tax proceeds for other purposes;

(3) As a licensee or the agent or representative of a licensee, converts or attempts to convert motor fuel tax proceeds for the use of the licensee or the licensee's agent or representative, with the intent to defraud this state;

(4) Collects motor fuel taxes when not authorized or licensed by the commissioner to do so;

(5) Imports motor fuel into this state in contravention of this article;

(6) Conspires with any other person or persons to engage in an act, plan, or scheme to defraud this state of motor fuels tax proceeds;

(7) Uses in excess of twenty-five gallons of any dyed diesel fuel for a use that the user knows or has reason to know is a taxable use of the motor fuel, or sells in excess of twenty-five gallons of any dyed diesel fuel to a person who the seller knows or has reason to know will use the motor fuel for a taxable purpose;

(8) Alters or attempts to alter the strength or composition of any dye or marker in any dyed diesel fuel intended to be used for a taxable purpose; or

(9) Fails to remit to the commissioner any tax levied pursuant to this article, if the person has added, or represented that he or she has added, the tax to the sales price for the motor fuel and has collected the amount of the tax.

(c) Each offense is subject to a separate criminal penalty.