Rules of Gold in West Virginia

West Virginia has not yet enacted a statute recognizing gold or silver coins or bullion as legal tender. Multiple bills have been introduced across 2024-2025 sessions: SB 749 (2024) — West Virginia Legal Tender Act creating state Bullion Depository; HB 5649 (2024) — companion; SB 843 (2024) — companion; HB 2463 (2025, lead Del. Chris Anders + 7 cosponsors) — most recent. HB 2463 would: (a) recognize gold and silver bullion and specie as legal tender in West Virginia; (b) authorize the West Virginia Bullion Depository; (c) authorize the depository to issue state-issued 100%-gold-and-silver-backed transactional currency (defined as "electronic currency" — a digital representation of physical PM transferable via digital transaction, fully redeemable as physical PM in fractional troy ounce or gram measurements); (d) provide that bullion/specie held in the WV Bullion Depository is not personal property and not subject to ad valorem personal property taxation; (e) provide that the exchange of one type of legal tender for another does not give rise to tax liability. The 2024 Banking and Insurance Committee created a study resolution for the 2024 interim, allowing the bill to be brought back in 2025 — HB 2463 reflects that 2025 reintroduction. Status: pending in committee as of capture (2026-04-26). If enacted, WV joins the legal-tender-state cluster AND becomes one of the most COMPLETE sound-money jurisdictions — combining legal tender + state bullion depository + transactional currency + cap-gains-on-exchange exemption. The transactional-currency provision is distinctive: would make WV the second state (after pending UT HB 306) to authorize a state-issued PM-backed payment infrastructure.

West Virginia taxes capital gains as ordinary income through a 5-bracket individual income tax system. TY 2025 brackets (per SB 2033 / 2024 reform reductions): 2.22% (taxable income up to $10,000), 2.96% ($10,001-$25,000), 3.33% ($25,001-$40,000), 4.44% ($40,001-$60,000), and 4.82% (over $60,000). No PM-specific carve-out and no preferential long-term/short-term distinction. WV's top rate of 4.82% sits in the lower-middle of the dataset; the 4.82% threshold at $60K is moderate (not as aggressive as VA's $17K trigger but not as relaxed as the $1M+ surtax states). HB 2463 (pending) would exempt PM-to-PM exchanges from tax liability, which would create a narrow capital-gains carve-out for legal-tender PM-to-currency exchanges if enacted.

West Virginia has not enacted enabling legislation authorizing a state-administered or state-chartered bullion depository. HB 2463 (2025 RS, Del. Chris Anders) would authorize the West Virginia Bullion Depository as part of the broader sound-money package (see legal-tender field). The depository would: (a) accept deposits of gold/silver bullion and specie (coins); (b) issue 100%-backed transactional currency in electronic form representing fractional troy ounce or gram quantities of physical PM; (c) hold deposits not subject to ad valorem personal property taxation. Pending in committee. The State Treasurer currently has no statutory authority to operate a depository or hold physical bullion as a state asset.

West Virginia statutes do not currently authorize state-treasury PM holdings, but SB 465 (2025 Regular Session, "Inflation Protection Act of 2025") is pending and would permit the West Virginia Board of Treasury Investments to invest a portion of public funds in (a) precious metals, (b) digital assets with a market cap of over $750 billion averaged over the previous calendar year (effectively Bitcoin-only at current valuations), and (c) stablecoins. The investment cap is 10% of the total amount of public funds in that account at the time of investment. Custody framework is flexible: direct holding of metals or crypto, exchange-traded products, or other approved custody setups. SB 465 parallels the NH HB 302 (2025) framework that combined PM + Bitcoin authorization — making WV potentially the second state after NH to authorize this combined PM+digital-asset reserve approach. Status: referred to Committee on Banking and Insurance; no clear indication of sufficient support for full vote. Former WV Treasurer Riley Moore (R, served 2021-2025; now US Representative for WV-2 since 2025) was a vocal sound-money advocate during his treasurer tenure; his successor faces SB 465 as the operative reserve-authorization vehicle.

The West Virginia Consolidated Public Retirement Board (CPRB) administers ten retirement systems for state and local government employees, teachers, public safety personnel, and judiciary. CPRB asset allocation across the ten plans follows standard institutional categories (public equities, fixed income, real estate, alternatives) without enumerating physical-precious-metals exposure as a discrete line item. Field marked `No-public-disclosure` rather than definitive `No` because the alternatives sleeve composition is not fully enumerated in publicly-available summary documents. Note: SB 465 (pending — see reserves field) operates at the WV Board of Treasury Investments level, not at CPRB level — pension assets are governed separately and would not be affected by SB 465 enactment.