2005 West Virginia Code - §23-2-16. — Acceptance or assignment of premium rate.

§23-2-16. Acceptance or assignment of premium rate.
(a) If a new corporate employer which is not subject to the provisions of section fifteen of this article is created by the officers or shareholders of a preexisting corporate employer and if the new corporate employer and the preexisting corporate employer: (1) Are managed by the same, or substantially the same, management personnel; (2) have a common ownership by at least forty percent of each corporation's shareholders; (3) are in the same class or group as determined by the executive director under the provisions of section four of this article; and (4) if the preexisting corporate employer's account is in good standing with the commission, at the time the new corporate employer registers with the commission, the new corporate employer may request that the commission assign to it the same rate of payment of premiums as that assigned to the preexisting corporate employer. If the executive director decides that the granting of the request is in keeping with his or her fiduciary obligations to the workers' compensation fund, the executive director may grant the request of the employer.
(b) If a new corporate employer which is not subject to the provisions of section fifteen of this article is created by the officers or shareholders of a preexisting corporate employer and if the new corporate employer and the preexisting corporate employer: (1) Are managed by the same, or substantially the same, management personnel; (2) have a common ownership by at least forty percent of each corporation's shareholders; and (3) are in the same class or group as determined by the executive director under the provisions of section four of this article, at any time within one year of the new corporate employer's registration with the commission, the executive director may decide that, in keeping with his or her fiduciary obligations to the workers' compensation fund, the new corporate employer shall be assigned the same rate of payment of premiums as that assigned to the preexisting corporate employer at any time within the aforesaid one-year period: Provided, That if the new corporate employer fails to reveal to the commission on the forms provided by the commission that its situation meets the factual requirements of this section, the commission may demand payment from the new corporate employer in an amount sufficient to eliminate the deficiency in payments by the new corporate employer from the date of registration to the date of discovery plus interest thereon as provided for by section thirteen of this article. The commission may use its powers pursuant to section five-a of this article to collect the amount due.