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Judiciary Committee Passes Bill to Sell Liquor on Sundays

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The Senate Committee on the Judiciary met Tuesday afternoon for a brief meeting to discuss two bills on the agenda.

House Bill 2481 would allow the selling of liquor on Sundays from 1 p.m. to midnight unless on Christmas Day. The Committee approved a strike and insert amendment to also exclude Easter Sunday.

The Committee also discussed Senate Bill 295 which relates to crimes against public justice. The proposed bill would to include court security officers, the state fire marshal assistant, and deputy fire marshals in the definition of persons against whom obstructing an officer is a crime.

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

RA

Committee Reviews Tobacco Legislation

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Senate Bill 348, relating to tobacco usage restrictions, came before the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee during Monday’s meeting.  

The proposed legislation, which would increase the buying age of tobacco products from 18 to 21, was highly advocated for by guests of the committee. Following explanation of the bill, three guests came before the committee in support of the bill which is intended to battle the state’s tobacco usage.  

Doctor Catherine Slemp, the interim state health office at the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, addressed the committee to explain her reasons for supporting the legislation. Slemp stated that each year 4,300 lives are lost in the state due to tobacco which ultimately accounts for a billion dollars in health costs being spent by the state.  

On average, 94 percent of the state’s smokers begin smoking before the age of 21; 75 percent begin at the age of 18.  

Following a question from Sen. Mike Azinger, R-Wood, Slemp explained that the bill was a result of the military seeking to improve the health based readiness of individuals who are attempting to enlist. According to the officer, many individuals who join the military at the age of 18 are already smoking or may begin to smoke following their arrival in the service. The long term goal of the military is to create a tobacco free environment.  

Lauren Rowley of the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association came before committee members concerning the committee substitute for Senate Bill 489, relating to the Pharmacy Audit Integrity Act. Rowley stated that following review of the revised language, the association appreciated the work of the committee substitute but disagreed with updates applied to the registration process.  

“We believe the registration that is currently in place is fine and shouldn’t be changed,” Rowley said. “We have not heard any of our clients complain about our current registration so I’m hoping you can remove this.” 

When reviewing Senate Bill 545, relating to HIV testing, Sen. Ron Stollings, D-Boone, raised concerns over the objective of the bill and asked if it was intended to make HIV testing more restrictive.  

Council responded to the Senator by explaining that the bill isn’t intended to be restrictive, but to revamp the process by creating more flexibility with testing. 

Senate Bill 546, relating to health care provider taxes, was briefly reviewed by the committee as well.  

Each of the four bills were reported to the full Senate with the recommendation that each pass. 

 

Industry and Labor Committee Passes Bill Relating to Contractors Wages for Employees

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The committee for Industry and Labor met today to discuss House Bill 2049, relating to a prime contractors responsibility for wages and benefits of employees.

The purpose of this bill is to repeal a section of the West Virginia Wage Payment and Collection Act requiring a prime contractor to be responsible for the wages and benefits of a subcontractors employees in certain instances. The committee amendment made by the Subcommittee amends the language to provide additional language regarding how an employee may seek wages and/or fringe benefits from a prime contractor in the event that a subcontractor does not pay those wages and benefits in a manner consistent with the Wage Payment and Collection Act.

The bill will be reported to the House after first being reviewed by the Judiciary committee.

TH

Five Bills Passed by the House of Delegates

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The House of Delegates convened at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 12 on the 35th day of the regular session of the 84th West Virginia Legislature. On this day, six bills were on third reading, five of which were passed.

Before the consideration of business, Delegate Cody Thompson, D-Randolph, made a motion to discharge House Bill 2733 from the table for immediate consideration. House Bill 2733 would add the terms “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to the list of protected classes under the state Human Rights Act.

Delegate Thompson’s motion to remove House Bill 2733 was rejected, as was a following motion to discharge the bill from the House Committee on Industry and Labor. The bill remains tabled.

One of the bills on third reading was House Bill 2330. This bill would allow military veterans who have certain qualifications to qualify for examination for licensure in certain fields. If a service member obtains a MOS related to the fields of plumbing, HVAC operation, or fire safety installation, they can also opt to take the examination for state licensure without going through additional state training under passage of this bill. House Bill 2330 was passed unanimously.

House Bill 2405, a bill to impose a tiered tax on managed healthcare providers within the state. If passed, the tax would be applied at the beginning of fiscal year 2021. The intent of the bill is to maximize federal matching dollars for utilization in the state’s Medicaid program. House Bill 2405 passed as well.

House Bill 2468 was postponed for one day and will appear on tomorrow’s agenda for third reading.

House Bill 2674 would create a loan repayment program for mental health professionals who have worked in the state of West Virginia within an underserved area for at least five years.

Delegate Martin Atkinson, R-Roane, spoke in favor of the bill’s passage.

“This bill would give mental health providers a chance to live, work, and raise a family within our beautiful state,” Atkinson said. “This would increase needed mental health support for our students, teachers.”

House Bill 2674 was passed by the House of Delegates.

House Bill 2734 was also passed on this day, a bill that would expand the utilities that currently can apply to the WV Public Service Commission for special reduced rates for low income utility customers to include privately owned sewer utilities and combined water and sewer utilities. West Virginia individuals receiving TANF, Social Security, and other specific forms of government assistance would be eligible to apply for these reduced utility rates if this bill passes.

House Bill 2813 was an additional bill on third reading that was passed. This bill would facilitate the collection of West Virginia use taxes from out-of-state retailers that do not have a physical presence in the state but “have an economic nexus” within the state.

Bills on second reading that were passed without amendment include Senate Bill 18, Senate Bill 323, House Bill 2109, House Bill 2609, and House Bill 2647.

Senate Bill 61, a bill on second reading in the House, was amended by the House Judiciary Committee. They added a portion to the bill pertaining to the admissibility of evidence within state courts. The amendment passed unanimously.

Bills on first reading were also advanced on this day. Most notably, Senate Bill 451 was read for the first time on this day. It will be on second reading and go through the amendment process during tomorrow’s House Floor session.

The House of Delegates is adjourned until 11 a.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, February 13th.

 

Committees Meeting Today:

  • The House Committee on Political Subdivisions 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 Committee on Health and Human Resources will meet at 2 p.m. in 215-E.
  • The House Committee on Pensions and Retirement will meet at 4 p.m. in 460-M.

Committees Meeting Tomorrow Before Floor Session:

  • The House Committee on the Judiciary will meet at 9 a.m. tomorrow in 418-M.
  • The House Committee on Government Organization will meet at 9 a.m. tomorrow in 215-E.
  • The House Rules Committee will meet at 10:45 behind the House Chamber.

Senate Passes Anti-Hazing Bill, Reports Ten Other Bills to House

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The Senate convened Tuesday morning to discuss 12 bills that were on third reading and up for a vote.

Senate Bill 440 relates to anti-hazing laws. This legislation is a direct result of events that happened at West Virginia University in 2018. Five fraternities disassociated themselves from the University, and were subsequently banned from rejoining the University again for the next ten years.

Under current law, the anti-hazing law only relates to greek chapters that are a part of a higher education. SB 440 would amend the current code to include any students who are enrolled in a school of higher education, and are a part of a greek chapter, can be prosecuted for hazing. Whether or not a chapter is associated with a school or not.

Senate Bill 491 would extend the statutory deadline for the implementation of automatic voter registration in conjunction with certain Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) transactions from July 1, 2019 to July 1, 2021. The DMV is in need of updating their system mainframe before they can implement the automatic voter registration. SB 491 would give the DMV more time to update their system mainframe.

The Senate also passed nine other bills including:

  • Senate Bill 13: Relating to distributions from State Excess Lottery Fund
  • Senate Bill 26:   Permitting certain employees of educational service cooperatives participate in state’s teacher retirement systems
  • Senate Bill 442: Supplementing, amending, and decreasing appropriation to Insurance Commission
  • Senate Bill 443: Supplemental appropriation of federal moneys to DHHR divisions
  • Senate Bill 444: Supplemental appropriation to DHHR divisions
  • Senate Bill 452: Supplemental appropriation to Second Chance Driver’s License Program
  • House Bill 2191: Relating generally to limited video lottery
  • House Bill 2459: Exercising authority to exempt individuals domiciled within the state from certain restrictions contained in federal law
  • House Bill 2492: Relating to mandatory reporting procedures of abuse and neglect of adults and children

Senate Bills 574 to 589 were also introduced.

The Senate is adjourned until tomorrow at 11 a.m.

The following committees will meet today:

Health at 1 p.m. in 451M

Education at 2 p.m. in 451M

Government Organization at 2 p.m. in 208W

Finance at 3 p.m. in 451M

Judiciary at 3 p.m. in 208W

The following committees will meet tomorrow:

Energy at 10 a.m. in 208W

Agriculture at 2 p.m. in 208W

RA

 

House Committee on Tech and Infrastructure Discusses Road Woes

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The House Committee on Technology and Infrastructure convened at 1 p.m. on Monday, February 11 in 215-E to consider several pieces of legislation. After a brief recess, they also convened at 5 p.m. to continue their discussion. House Bill 2011, a bill to establish the Road Maintenance Program in West Virginia counties, was the central topic of discussion within the committee meeting.

House Bill 2011 would create a program in the state known as the Road Maintenance Program that would allow for and encourage a program in every district of the state to contract out with private contractors in order to perform road maintenance within that district. The WV Division of Highways and Legislative Auditor would oversee the efficacy of this bill if it were to pass.

The Road Maintenance Program would aim to solve for the abundance of road work projects delegated to the WV Division of Highways each year, and allow them to contract out services for projects that they don’t have the manpower or resources for.

A discussion regarding the bill’s ability to take work away from the state persisted throughout the committee meetings.

Delegate Daniel Linville, R- Cabell, spoke in favor of the bill for what it would do in regards to holding the state accountable for doing productive work on the roads.

“At the heart of this bill, it would be more beneficial to West Virginia citizens to get more bang for their buck.” Linville said. “If we encourage you to contract this work out, it would ensure all appropriations are spent.”

If House Bill 2011 passes, the Road Maintenance Program would allow districts to contract vendors out to do road construction, snow removal, and other applicable work if the WV Division of Highways fails to complete 90% of their targeted projects during the prior year.

Despite representatives from the Division of Highways arguing that the legislation is unnecessary because of the agency’s ability to currently contract out work, House Bill 2011 passed through the Technology and Infrastructure Committee unanimously.

Delegate Ed Evans, D-McDowell, spoke in favor of the bill, saying that something needs to be done about state roads.

“Those roads are awful. I lost a future son-in-law to the dangers of Route 52. Something has to be done, for the safety of our constituents.” Evans said.

House Bill 2011 was amended technically and was advanced to the House Government Organization Committee for a second reference.

Additionally, the committee had a consideration of House Bill 2472 and House Bill 2846, two bills that would allow for the creation of special registration plates in the state.

Both of these bills creating special registration plates were referred to the House Finance Committee for second reference.

House Concurrent Resolution 32 was also approved by the Committee unanimously. This resolution would request the Commissioner of the WV Division of Highways to increase the speed limit on the highways to 75 miles per hour, in areas where appropriate.

House Concurrent Resolution 32 was approved to be advanced to the House floor with the recommendation that it pass, but it first come to the House Committee on Rules for consideration.

Judiciary Committee Passes Right to Farm Bill, Reports Three Other Bills to Senate

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The Senate Judiciary Committee met Monday morning to discuss a right to farm bill; along with three other bills on the agenda.

Senate Bill 393 would protect the rights to farm. It would also protect agricultural operations from nuisance litigation if the facility has been in operation for more than one year.  It provides language that an agricultural operation which has been in operation for a period of more than one year shall not be considered a nuisance, either public or private, as a result of any changed condition in or about the locality where the agricultural operation is located.

The proposed legislation was unanimously passed by the Committee and will be reported to the Senate.

Senate Bill 516 would to require the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources to make payment of attorney fees as allowed by law directly to the attorney instead of to the adoptive parent, in order to end acts of fraud. The bill also requires the department to make timely payment.

Senate Bill 518 would restrict the sale and trade of dextromethorphan, common in congestion medicine. The bill sets age limits. The bill defines a term. The bill establishes a penalty. People under the age of 18 could buy not buy dextromethorphan.

Senate Bill 563 would prohibit a victim in sexual offense prosecutions from being subjected to certain physical examinations.

The Committee approved all bills, and will be reported to the Senate to be voted upon.

Following the approval of SB 563, a committee member made a motion to suspend the rules of the Committee to immediately consider Senate Bill 391, which would add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to the categories covered by the Human Rights Act, prohibiting discrimination in employment and places of public accommodation, and report it to the Senate. The Committee voted 10-5 against the motion, but committee members from both sides agreed and suggested to the Chair the Committee takes under consideration SB 391 in the coming weeks.

RA

Judiciary Committee Holds Public Hearing for Campus Carry Act Bill

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The Judiciary Committee held a public hearing regarding House Bill 2519, the Campus Carry Act. To simplify the bill, would allow students on a college campus to have a concealed carry weapon.  Many advocates for and against the bill from the state and local universities showed up to voice their opinions on the bill.

Advocates for the bill discussed how in other states there has been 50 percent reductions in crime on campus since the law was enacted. Many spoke as well about the importance of safety on campus and how dangerous it can be for young women to be on campus without being able to protect themselves. Advocates for the bill spoke about the violation it would be to American citizens 2nd amendment rights, and how security on campuses cannot always be around when there is danger present.

“A girl attending Florida State University was raped at knife point not fifteen feet away from a blue light to call for help. I also have a granddaughter that was in college and she lived in a room alone and was often uneasy about being by herself. She had to walk to her car and back from classes alone and although Pepper spray is an option I do not believe it would have helped in a situation like that. That story about this young girl from Florida State is what made me realize how desperately we need this legislation and why campus’s need campus carry” said Sarah Akin.

Those opposed to the bill also brought strong counterpoints to the committees attention. West Virginia’s rate of suicide has gone up in recent years and young adults dealing with mental health issues and the experimentation phases of college risk taking their own lives with this law. The point was also made that funds would increase greatly by universities as well as hiring additional security and security measures installed on campus. Those opposed also brought up facts that young adults between the ages of 18-21 in college brains are not fully developed and drinking and partying could only lead to accidents or disaster.

“I believe campus carry could lead to more harm, especially among women and the LGBTQ+ community. Public colleges in Colorado were forced to allow campus carry and rape increased 36 percent. As a survivor of sexual assault on campus I am disgusted that previous and current students are being used to advance a political agenda. Its clear that an increase in guns on campus doesn’t lead to a reduced rates on women and the queer community” said Ash Bray.

The committee will look at the bill in depth.

During committee earlier today the committee passed House Bill 2486 this bill relates to using criminal records of criminal conviction to disqualify a person from receiving a license for a profession or occupation.

TH

House of Delegates Passes Computer Science Instruction Bill

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During the floor session of the House of Delegates today Senate Bill 267 was passed. Senate Bill 267 is a bill that requires State Board of Education adopt a policy detailing level of computer science instruction. The bill also requires the Department of Education to develop and offer professional development opportunities to ensure educators are equipped with the requisite knowledge and skill to deliver computer science instruction. The bill authorizes the Department to partner with high-quality computer science professional learning providers in developing and offering the professional development opportunities.

Additional Bills that passed third reading include:

·     House Bill 2365, clarifying the definition of an employee for the purposes of unemployment compensation and workers    compensation.

·     House Bill 2583, Family Planning Access Act

·     House Bill 2661, relating to natural gas utilities

·     House Bill 2809, relating to prohibited acts and penalties in the Hatfield-McCoy recreation area

All additional bills on second and first reading were advanced as well.

TH

House Committee on Government Organization Has a Brief Consideration of Two Bills

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The House Committee on Government Organization convened at 2 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 11 in 215-E to consider two bills. The committee advanced both House Bill 2881 and House Bill 2716.

House Bill 2881 is very similar to a piece of legislation that re-registered and changed the color scheme for state registration plates. The purpose of this bill is to provide for a change of the color scheme for county and municipal vehicle registration plates. House Bill 2881 would require all municipalities to obtain a new title certificate, registration certificate, and registration plate for all vehicles prior to January 1, 2020 and will require renewal every two years.

House Bill 2881 was approved unanimously by the Committee, and was advanced to the House Committee on Finance for a second reference.

House Bill 2716 was also considered by the committee, a bill to update motorboat equipment requirements in the state of West Virginia.

The bill, which mirrors federal code regarding motorboats, establishes in code what lighting requirements and boat class regulations are pertinent in West Virginia waters.

The bill was passed unanimously, and was advanced to the House Floor with the recommendation that it pass.

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