Blog – Page 130

Senate Budget Bill Reduces Governor’s Budget By $100 Million

Senate Committee

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February 28, 2019

The 2020 fiscal year budget bill received passage from the Senate Finance committee, Thursday.

In a presentation provided by counsel, members of the committee learned specific details of the legislation, which reduces the Governor’s introduced budget by a total of $100 million. Most notably of the reduced allocation is the withdrawal of the Governor’s proposed teacher raise totaling $80,000,000.

Counsel additionally listed and explained the proposed bill’s improvements to the Governor’s budget, totaling $137,048,000. Potential improvements to the budget would go towards numerous bills that have been proposed during the session. Of these bills were:

Senate Bill 238, intended to increase certain penalties for passing stopped school bus, received a proposed improvement of $833,301 to add forward and backward facing cameras on all state school buses.
Senate Bill 522, which would create a special road repair fund through a $110,000,000 improvement that would be operated by the Division of Highways.
Senate Bill 544, which would increase salaries for members of WV State Police over three-year period. An improvement of $834,000 was added to this bill.

According the bill, $15,890,000 would be collected through a reduction of general revenue following the passage of Senate Bills 30, 36, 106, 117, 333 and 502.

Numerous changes to the state’s general revenue were also described during counsel’s presentation. To get more information and specific numbers concerning these changes click here.

In conclusion, Senate Bill 150 lists a total appropriation of $13,729,074,601.

Senate Health Amends Foster Care Bill

Senate Committee

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February 28, 2019

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Legislation concerning the state’s foster care system sparked lengthy discussion in Thursday’s Senate Health and Human Resources, resulting in a number of amendments.

Review of House Bill 2010 follows extensive debate from members in it’s house of origin. If passed, the bill would seek to strengthen the state’s foster care system through a nine step, multipurpose plan established in the language of the bill.

Committee chair, Sen. Michael Maroney, R-Marshall, addressed the committee prior to discussion and stated that the bill is the “most important piece of legislation to arise out of this session.”

Multiple representatives from the state’s child care systems, such as the Division of Health and Human Resources and the West Virginia Foster, Adoption and Kinship Parents Network, came before the committee to address concerns surrounding the proposed legislation.

Marissa Sanders of the West Virginia Foster, Adoption and Kinship Parents Network, addressed the committee to state that although she supported some areas of the legislation, she believes that in order to truly strengthen the state’s foster care system, more money should be allocated towards services which could strengthen the state’s existing system.

“Bottom line is we need more services,” Sanders said. “This bill simply doesn’t do that.”

Following discussion of the proposed legislation, debate over amendments lead to the passage of two amended amendments offered by Sen. Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, and Sen. Robert Plymale, D-Wayne.

Sen. Rollan Roberts, R-Raleigh, also motioned to provide an amendment concerning the bill’s use of Managed Care Organizations, but later decided to withdraw his motion due to fellow members citing potential issues surrounding the amendment.

Prior to amendments offered by members, the committee voted to adopt a strike and insert amendment to the bill in order to clarify and strengthen it’s language.

Following adoption of amendments, the committee voted to report the bill to the full Senate with the recommendation of passage following a double reference to the committee on finance.

House Bill 2878, relating to updating the controlled substances listed on schedule one, was also reported to the Senate.

Judiciary Committee Reports Tax Collection Bill to Senate

Senate Committee

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February 28, 2019

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The Senate Committee on the Judiciary met Thursday afternoon to discuss three House bills, including one about the collection of tax and distribution of estates.

House Bill 2579 would clarify conflicts within the code and create uniformity relating to the collection of taxes, the priority of distribution of an estate and to limit the liability of a fiduciary charged with distribution of the estate. Speakers from the West Virginia Bankers Association were in support of the proposed legislation, while the State Tax Department opposes it.

The Committee unanimously approved the bill, and referred it to the Committee on Finance.

House Bill 2509 would make theft of a controlled substance a felony, regardless of the value of the controlled substance. Currently, theft of drugs is a larceny, and a value of less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor. The proposed legislation would penalize a violation by a fine of not more than $30,000 and/or 1-4 years in prison.

House Bill 2872 would authorize any West Virginia State Police officer, Natural Resources Police officer, or any county or municipal law-enforcement officer to assist the State Fire Marshal or any of his or her employees in any duties for which the State Fire Marshal has jurisdiction.

Both bills were approved by the Committee, and will be reported to the full Senate.

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House Health and Human Resources Committee Advances Fraud Unit Bill

House Committee

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February 28, 2019

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The House Committee on Health and Human Resources convened at 1 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 28 to consider several Senate bills. Most notably, the committee had a consideration of a piece of legislation that would move West Virginia’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit from the Office of the Inspector General to the Attorney General’s Office.

Senate Bill 318 has stark similarities to House Bill 2867, which aimed to do the same thing. This bill was defeated in the House Judiciary Committee several weeks ago.

Jolynn Marra, the Director of the Office of Health Facility and Licensure Certification (OHFLAC) and Interim Inspector General, attested to the success that the Medicare Fraud Control Unit has recently had in the state.

“We return $4.98 for every dollar spent in this program,” Marra said. “This unit does a fantastic job, especially with our new director. The numbers speak for themselves.”

WV Attorney General Patrick Morrissey was present to testify as to why House Bill 2867 should be passed, and why the Medicare Fraud Control Unit should be transferred to his office.

“The Attorney General’s Office is experienced,” Morrisey said. “We are a very visible fraud-fighting entity, and we’ve had a lot of success pursuing consumer fraud in the state.”

Morrisey elaborated that 43 other states have their Medicaid Fraud Control Units underneath the jurisdiction of Attorney General Offices, and that the addition of West Virginia’s program to the WV Attorney General Office would increase transparency, and strengthen national relations.

Several delegates spoke in favor Senate Bill 318.

Delegate Amy Summers, R-Taylor, spoke in favor of the bill, arguing that it reduces transparency for the Medicaid Control Fraud Unit to be under jurisdiction of the Inspector General’s office, and office that reports to the Department of Health and Human Resources.

“I just feel it’s inappropriate that this office investigates a program administered by the agency they report to,” Summers said. “It feels a bit like a fox is in the hen house.”

Several other delegates had some concern regarding political motives, and the need for the transfer to occur in the first place.

Delegate Barbara Fleischauer, D-Monongalia, was skeptical of the bill’s passage.

“I’ll be voting no because as the Director of OHFLAC stated, we are currently getting an excellent return on investment,” Fleischauer said. “The office is very successful right now. If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Despite the lengthy debate that Senate Bill 318 generated, the bill was advanced to the House Finance Committee in a 13-11 vote.

Two other Senate bills were advanced to the House floor on this day.

Senate Bill 520 would require the timely reportage of drug overdoses in the state within 72 hours of the overdose happening. This bill would require first responders and emergency medical service personnel to report drug overdoses after responding to them, so that the DHHR may gather accurate data and help citizens receive help. The current rule mandates quarterly reportage, this would update that to 72 hours.

Delegate Matthew Rohrbach, R-Cabell, spoke in favor of the bill, citing the alarming rate of overdoses in Cabell County as a reason why.

“We have to have accurate data to know these overdose rates,” Rohrbach said. “This is a good bill for EMS workers, and those who suffer from addiction.”

Senate Bill 520 underwent a technical amendment, and was advanced to the floor as amended.

Senate Bill 668 was also advanced to the House floor on this day. This bill would to provide requirements for physician assistants who are collaborating with physicians in hospitals. The bill requires written notice to the appropriate licensing board, requires rulemaking, and specifies practice requirements.

This bill was also amended in a minor way that added to the effectiveness of the legislation. This amendment was adopted unanimously by the committee, and as amended, Senate Bill 668 was also advanced to the House floor with the recommendation that it pass.

Senate Passes Four House Bill, two to be Sent to the Governor

Senate Floor Session

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February 28, 2019

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The Senate convened Thursday morning for a quick floor session, and discussed four House bills that were on third reading and up for passage.

House Bill 2746 would provide for a procedure to allow the county commission to administratively close dormant estates. If the county commission administratively closes an estate, the personal representative is still liable in a civil action to heirs, beneficiaries, or interested parties for property.

House Bill 2827 would remove a residency requirement for county deputy assessors to reside in the county in which they are appointed to.

Both bills were passed by the House and Senate, and will be reported to Governor Justice to either be signed into law or vetoed.

The Senate also passed two other House bills including House Bill 2740 which would bar a parent from inheriting from or through a child in certain instances. Those instances include:

The parent’s parental rights were terminated by court order, and the parent-child relationship has not been judicially reestablished
The child died before reaching the age of 18 and there is clear and convincing evidence that immediately before the child’s death the parental rights of the parent could have been terminated under the law on the basis of nonsupport, abandonment, abuse, neglect, or other actions or inactions of the parent toward the child.

A strike and insert amendment by Senator Trump (R – Morgan, 15) added clarification of the bill.

House Bill 2690 relates to policyholder notices under the WV Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association Act. The bill would remove the requirement that the commissioner propose rules for legislative approval establishing the form and content of the disclaimer that advises a policy owner. The Senate Committee substitute removed duplicative language.

Both bills were passed by the Senate, and will be reported back to the House of Delegates.

Senate Resolution 64, designating Feb. 28, 2019 as Rare Disease Day at the Capitol was unanimously adopted by the Senate.

The Senate is adjourned until tomorrow, March 1 at 11 a.m.

The following committees will meet today:

Health at 1 p.m. in 451M

Energy at 1 p.m. in 208W

Gov. Org. at 2 p.m. in 208W

Finance at 3 p.m. in 451M

Judiciary at 3p.m. in 208W

The following committees will meet tomorrow:

Finance at 9:30 a.m. in 451M

Judiciary at 9:30 a.m. in 208W

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Page Break Extensive Debate Leads to Passage of Video Lottery Bill

Senate Committee

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February 28, 2019

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A House Bill relating to racetrack video lottery terminals spurred extensive review during Thursday’s Senate finance meeting.

If passed, House Bill 2901 would allow for the establishment of secondary locations for racetrack video lottery terminals throughout the state.

According to an explanation provided by counsel, the proposed legislation intends to promote expansion of the state’s lottery establishments following approval of the Lottery Commission. If made into law, the bill could potentially result in a fiscal increase of $2,340,000.

Director of the West Virginia Lottery, John Myers, came before the committee to address concerns surrounding the house bill. While standing before the committee, the director explained the various workings of the state’s lottery system concerning video lottery machines. According to Myers, the lottery commission has no problems with the proposed bill and believes it could greatly impact the state.

Following questions from members, Sen. Roman Prezioso, D-Marion, urged adoption of the bill by stating the legislation is a “great investment for the state.”

After discussion of the bill, members agreed to adopt a technical amendment prior to reporting the legislation to the full Senate.

Also reported by the committee were House Bills 2311, 2405, 2734 and 3405.

House Committee on Banking and Insurance Advances Annuity Tax Elimination Bill

House Committee

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February 28, 2019

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The House Committee on Banking and Insurance met at 10 a.m. in 215-E on Thursday, Feb. 28, to consider three Senate bills. One of the bills that was advanced from this committee was a bill to eliminate a state tax on annuity collected by life insurers.

Senate Bill 30 is a bill that would eliminate the 1% tax on the annuity that is currently collected by life insurers in the state of West Virginia. A committee amendment adopted at the beginning of the meeting would make the passage of this bill effective in the fiscal year of 2020, so the proposed budget would not have to allocate for the fiscal impact in this year’s budget.

The members of the Banking and Insurance Committee unanimously adopted Senate Bill 30 as amended, citing that the elimination of the annuity tax could greatly benefit West Virginians.

“Most annuitants in the state make a salary of $50,000 or less,” said Minority Chairman John Williams, D-Monongalia. “This is no longer a tax on people making a lot of money, and I think this is going to help a lot of people.”

The House Banking and Insurance Committee unanimously approved of Senate Bill 30 and advanced it to the House Finance Committee for a second reference.

The committee also considered Senate Bill 340. This bill would repeal part of the Insurance Code referring to the WV Physicians Mutual Insurance Company that is no longer needed. The bill would repeal Article 20E in the code, which is deemed obsolete. Article 20E, enacted in and unchanged since 2001, created a mechanism to provide medical professional liability insurance to health care providers who are unable to secure such coverage at approved rates through the voluntary market.

Senate Bill 340 was unanimously approved by the committee and advanced to the House Committee on the Judiciary for a second reference.

The House Committee on Banking and Insurance laid over Senate Bill 74 on this day due to confusing implications. The bill would seek to exempt nonpaid volunteers at state ski resorts from receiving worker’s compensation benefits. The unanswered implication of possible simple negligence suits caused the committee to lay the bill over.

House of Delegates Completes Legislative Action on Four Bills

House Floor Session

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February 28, 2019

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The House of Delegates convened at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 28 for the 51st day of the legislative session. Senate Bills were considered in the House this day, with noteworthy bills such as Senate Bill 440 passing.

Senate Bill 440, a bill to update the state’s anti-hazing laws, passed through the House in a 75-22 vote. This bill would update the definition of hazing to include any organization whose members include students at any state public or private institution of higher learning. The bill also creates a misdemeanor criminal penalty for this updated provision.

Senate Bill 157, a rules bundle, was also passed unanimously on this day and made effective from passage. This bundle includes Senate Bill 157, Senate Bill 158, and Senate Bill 159. The bundle updates legislative rules regarding the WV Department of Administration.

Senate Bill 157 would allow vendor contracts to be cancelled if they were awarded in an erroneous way; would allow related parties to a debarred vendor to also be debarred; authorize the Purchasing Division to recalculate a vendor’s extension price; ease requirements for direct award; and allow for standardization of commodities.
Senate Bill 158 mainly pertains to the use of a state vehicle. The proposed rule would allow a volunteer acting in an official capacity to use or occupy a state vehicle The bill would also require drivers to maintain a vehicle log including state spending units to annually calculate indirect costs of operating state-owned vehicles for the agency, and spending units to enroll in the management services offered by the Fleet Management Division unless the spending unit is granted an exemption.
Senate Bill 159 would require agencies to report real property inventory in the centralized accounting system maintained by the Enterprise Resource Planning Board. Changes in ownership status or occupancy must be reported in the system within 30 days.

Senate Bill 453 was also passed unanimously by the House of Delegates. This bill gives the Division of Financial Institutions more flexibility to accept alternative forms of valid background checks. The passage of the bill would provide that the Commissioner may use alternate acceptable forms of international information for background checks for potential employees who are not residents of the United States.

Senate Bill 510 passed in a vote of 86-12. This bill would amend the WV Medical Professional Liability Act. It would mandate that a medical malpractice case cannot be pursued in WV courts until a proper claim is issued that formally advises the medical provider being accused of the liability and the evidence upon which the accusation is based.

Bills on second reading that were advanced without amendment on this day include Senate Bill 408 and Senate Bill 593.

Senate Bill 295 went under some minor changes that would improve the functionality of the bill. Delegate John Shott, R- Mercer, proposed an amendment that would strike the authority of people who are not law enforcement officers to arrest civilians. The amendment passed unanimously.

Senate Bill 518 was amended as well by the House Committee on Health and Human Resources. The bill was amended to allow clerks to check identification cards to ensure that people looking to purchase medications with dextromethorphan in them are above the age of 18.

Senate Bill 545 went under a slight technical amendment and another amendment that slightly amended a legislative rule.

All bills on first reading were advanced.

The House of Delegates is in Recess until 5:30 p.m. today, Thursday, Feb. 28. They will reconvene to receive committee reports.

Committees Meeting After Floor Session:

-The House Committee on Health and Human Resources will meet at 1 p.m. in 215-E.

-The House Committee on Energy will meet at 2 p.m. in 418-M.

-The House Finance Committee will meet at 3 p.m. in 460-M.

-The House Committee on the Judiciary will meet at 3:30 in 418-M for continued consideration of their posted agenda.

The House of Delegates reconvened briefly at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 28 to receive committee reports.

The House received the House Finance’s Committee Report for House Bill 2020, the proposed budget for fiscal year 2020. House Bill 2020 was read a first time on this evening.

The House is adjourned until 11 a.m. tomorrow, Friday, March 1.

The House Committee on the Judiciary will meet directly after the evening House floor session to continue consideration of their posted agenda.

Committees Meeting Before Floor Session Tomorrow:

-The House Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources will meet at 8 a.m. in 215-E.

-The House Committee on the Judiciary will meet at 9 a.m. in 418-M.

-The House Committee on Government Organization will meet at 9 a.m. in 215-E.

-The House Education Committee will meet at 10 a.m. in 434-M.

Judiciary Committee Passes Sexual Assault Bill

House Committee

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February 27, 2019

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The Judiciary Committee met today to discuss Senate Bill 72 creating Sexual Assault Victims’ Bill of Rights.

This bill creates a section of code entitled the Sexual Assault Victims’ Bill of Rights. The Victim Protection Act of 1984 provides rights to certain victims. This bill creates additional rights which include the following:

· The right to a personal representative of the victims choosing, to attend police interviews, medical treatment, court proceedings, etc.;

· The right to receive a forensic medical examination;

· The right to have a sexual assault evidence collection kit tested and preserved;

· The right to be informed of the results of a forensic medical examination, unless such disclosure would compromise or impede an ongoing investigation;

· The right to receive notification of the evidence no fewer than 60 days prior to the intended destruction of the evidence; and

· The right to have said evidence preserved for an additional period not to exceed 10 years after a written request

Senate Bill 491 extends effective date for voter registration in conjunction with driver licensing. This bill amends the effective date for automatic voter registration implementation to July 1, 2021. Additionally the bill requires the DMV to obtain an applicants United States citizenship status, along with other information that must be collected and released to the Secretary of State as part of an automatic voter registration application. The bill will be reported to the House.

The committee was left with questions though as one witness testified that another departments witness had given an alternate fact in Senate Judiciary. The committee unsettled by this issue will be asking the committee on Government and Finance to conduct an investigation as well as discussing it with the President of the Senate, Mitch Carmichael.

Senate Bill 481 relates to Judicial Vacancy Advisory Commission. This bill amends the in-state residency restriction for members of the Judiciary Vacancy Advisory Commission, which currently prevents more than three members of the Commission from being residents of the same congressional district of the state. The bill would instead provide that no more than four members may be residents of the same congressional district; and no more than two member of the JVAC may be residents of the same senatorial district. The bill will be reported to the House.

Senate Bill 393 protects the right to farm. The purpose of this bill is to protect the right to farm and to protect agricultural operations form nuisance litigation if the facility has been in operation for more than a year. The bill will be reported to the House.

Senate Bill 3 establishes WV Small Wireless Facilities Deployment Act. This bill primarily makes technical and formatting changes to the bill as originally introduced. The remaining changes are a result of agreement among the stakeholders – primarily between Wireless Communication Provider (AT&T) and the WV Municipal League. It also addresses the FCC guidance on the issue. The bill will be reported to the House.

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House of Delegates Passes Campus Carry Bill

House Floor Session

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February 27, 2019

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The House of Delegates reconvened at 7 p.m. to discuss House Bill 2519, the Campus Self Defense Act.

There were many amendments pending for this bill with one passing. This amendment requires that all universities file reports of incidents to the joint committee on Government and Finance by December 15^th each year. After much passionate debate on the bill and testimonies relating to how it would affect our state and students, the bill was passed 59 to 41.

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