Thursday, May 29, 2025
Thursday, May 29, 2025
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Three Bills Move to Third Reading Today in the Senate

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Today the Senate moved three bills from second to third reading. The bills moved were SB 127, SB 230, and SB 233.

Senate Bill 127 would authorize the Department of Revenue to promulgate legislative rules.

Senate Bill 230 would relate to West Virginia officials carrying concealed firearms nationwide.

Senate Bill 233 would exclude protection of oral communication uttered in child care centers from the Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Act.

Senate Bill 174, which is on third reading, was laid over one day.

Senate Resolution 14 was adopted today which designates February 16, 2017 as West Virginia Homeschool Day.

Senator Woelfel (D-Cabell), during remarks, expressed his opposition to SB 184 which would privatize the West Virginia School of Orthopedic Medicine. He said that the state could potentially lose money on this transaction.

The following meetings are today:

Health and Human Resources at 1 p.m. in 451M.

Energy, Industry and Mining at 1 p.m. in 208W.

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.

Tomorrow mornings meetings are:

Judiciary at 9 a.m. in 208W.

Confirmations at 9:30 a.m. in 451M.

 

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

Senate Finance Hears from Attorney General

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The Senate Finance Committee heard a presentation 9:30 a.m. Thursday from State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey about the budget needs of the Attorney General’s Office.

Morrisey is asking for $4.48 million to be appropriated to the Attorney General’s Office from the budget, as opposed to Governor Justice’s proposed appropriation of $4.44 million.

Morrisey said the extra funds will be used to provide enough reserves to handle “unpredictable” cases that may either end in a settlement or go to an expensive trial.

In the end, Morrisey said the requested appropriation will also help the Attorney General’s Office to stay with in-house counsel and take in the Medicaid Fraud Unit to be “more aggressive” in fighting Medicaid fraud–both of which, Morrisey said, will save money for the state and its taxpayers.

Senate Finance will meet 3 p.m. Thursday in room 451M.

Senate Finance Hears from Treasurer and Auditor

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The Senate Finance Committee heard from State Treasurer John Perdue and State Auditor John McCuskey as to their budget requests for the 2018 fiscal year.

The committee first heard from Perdue, who gave a presentation on the accomplishments of the Treasurer’s office, as well as the problems they could use more funding for.

Perdue asked the committee to appropriate 3.6 million to the Treasurer’s Office, as opposed to the 3.1 million proposed in Governor Justice’s budget bill, in order to fund several programs run by the office that Perdue believes would help lift the state out of “tough, tough times.”

After a long series of questioning, the committee heard a comparatively short presentation from McCuskey.

McCuskey said the 2.7 million allocated to the Auditor’s Office in Justice’s budget proposal is “sufficient enough for us to perform our constitutional duties.”

Committee Chairman Mike Hall (R-Putnam) reminded the committee after the presentations to research and find any information they might not have been able to acquire from questioning the presenters. 

Senate Finance will meet 9:30 a.m. Thursday in 451M.

House Sub-committee on Anti-Competitive Behavior Reports Seven Bills

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The House of Delegates sub-committee on Anti-Competitive Behavior met today and reported seven bills to the committee on Government Organization. The bills were HB 2286, HB 2287, HB 2278, HB 2285, HB 2288, HB 2289 and HB 2250.

House Bill 2286 would change how voter registration works at the DMV. Steve Conley, the Deputy Secretary of State said that the DMV and County Clerks cannot support automatic voter registration and that it is unmanageable for them. He suggested that the previous legislation changing voter registration to an opt in to opt out be repealed or HB 2286 go forward in order for automatic voter registration to continue. HB 2286 was reported to the committee on Government Organization with no recommendation.

House Bill 2287 would remove ineligible voters from the county clerk’s record and was reported to the committee on Government Organization with the recommendation that it is adopted.

House Bill 2285 would modify a rule regarding sanitarians. Included would be redefinitions of some of the language of the rule and an added 60-day grace period with a $50 late fee for finishing continuing education for sanitarians. This bill was amended by Delegate Pat McGeehan (R-Hancock) and was reported to the committee on Government Organization with recommendation that it is adopted. Delegates Mike Caputo (D-Marion) and Jon Williams (D-Monongalia) opposed the amended bill’s passage.

House Bill 2288, House Bill 2289, House Bill 2250, and House Bill 2278 were also reported to the committee on Government Organization with the recommendation that they are adopted.

Senate Agriculture Reports One Bill, Postpones Other Bill

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The Senate Committee on Agriculture & Rural Development has reported SB 25 to the floor with the recommendation that it pass.

SB 25 would establish a credit against personal and corporate income taxes for farmers who donate edible agricultural products to food banks and other nonprofit food programs serving those in need.

A representative thanked the committee on behalf of West Virginia food banks across the state.

The committee also considered SB 27, which would permit home-based, micro-processing foods to be sold at farmers markets under certain requirements, before deciding to postpone their decision on the bill until the next meeting after they are able to find more information on ensuring those foods would be safely administered.

Local West Virginia farmer Pamela Kessler shared her support for SB 27’s passage with the committee. She said she has struggled with being able to provide her clients with the products they wish to buy from her.

“Not being able to give your customers what they want, that hurts,” Kessler said. “It feels like we are being handcuffed.”

Her husband and six children were present with her at the meeting.

Bill to Help WV Schools for the Deaf and Blind Approved in House Education Committee

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HB2123 would make the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind eligible to participate in any and all funding administered for distributed by the West Virginia School Building Authority. It was approved by the Education Committee and will be reported to the House floor with the recommendation that it do pass but first be referred to the House Finance Committee. 

During this committee meeting, the WV Higher Education Policy Commission presented an overview and fiscal year 2018 budget analysis. It reported that graduation from WV four-year institutions is up by 16 percent and that the demand for four-year degree holders is increasing. 

A Sub-Committee on K-12 was created and will be chaired by Delegate Upson. Members of the sub-committee include Delegates Dean, Baldwin, Westfall, and Thompson.

Senate Economic Development Consider Bill to Revitalize Historic Districts

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The Senate Committee on Economic Development considered a bill Wednesday that would help provide more funding to rehabilitation projects for certified historic structures throughout the state.

The bill, SB 238, would raise the tax credit allowed for these projects from 10 percent to 25 percent. 

After hearing from several different supporters of the bill, including representatives from the West Virginia State Preservation Office and the City of Fairmont, the committee voted to postpone their decision on the bill until the next meeting.

Mike Gioulis of Revitalize West Virginia Downtowns said every county except for Clay has a historic district that could benefit from the tax credit increase.

Gioulis said the increase would also attract more projects to the state, that would in turn create more jobs and raise property values for historic cities.

Currently, West Virginia has the lowest tax credit of all surrounding states.

Two Bills Reported from Senate Workforce

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The Senate Workforce Committee reported SB 191 and SB 222 to the floor Wednesday with the recommendation to pass.

SB 191 would remove the requirment that programs be jointly administered by labor and management trustees in order to qualify for tax credits for apprenticeship training in construction trades. 

Senator Glenn Jeffries (D-Putnam) suggested two amendments to the bill. The first, which would have added $2 to the applicable minimum wage for those in apprenticeship programs in order to attract individuals who want to learn trade, was rejected by the committee primarily for legal concerns.

The second, which would add a subsection to the bill requiring employers to run apprentices through the E-Verify system in order for them to qualify for the tax credits in the bill, was adopted. The committee approved reporting the amended version of the bill to the floor for passage.

SB 222 would disqualify an individual from receiving benefits for any week, or portion of a week, in which he or she left or lost his or her job as a result of a strike.

Local labor attorney Patrick Maroney said adoption of the bill would be an “intrusion by the state” that would “do more harm to both the company and employees” than good.

He added that the current statute should remain in place, as it has been “very, very good” at maintaining company-employee bargains for nearly 60 years.

However, the committee overall approved the bill to be reported to the floor with the recommendation to pass.

Senators Robert Beach (D-Monongalia) and Richard Ojeda (D-Logan) opposed the bill’s passage.

Bill Strengthening the Whistle-blower Law Passes in House

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Today, in the House of Delegates HB 2006 was passed. The bill increases the penalties for violating the Whistle-blower Law and authorizes the termination from employment for a violation, instead of the current allowance of a suspension not to exceed six months. 

HB 2099 was read for the first time today. This bill defines the act of leaving the scene of a crash involving death or serious bodily injury as a felony. It also establishes the act of leaving the scene of a crash that does not proximately cause death or injury as a misdemeanor and defines bodily injury and serious bodily injury. 

HB 2455 was introduced today. The bill would create a searchable online database containing past and recent budget and expenditure information creating and maintaining a searchable online budget database to easily access the details on how the state is spending their tax dollars and what performance results are achieved by those expenditures. The State Auditor and Legislative Auditor working in concert are authorized to establish any methods or procedures as necessary to accomplish the intent and goal of this article.

Committee Meetings Today

Finance: 2 p.m. in 406M

Sub-Committee Anti-Competitive Behavior: 2 p.m. in 215E

Judiciary: Continuing at 2:30 p.m. in 410M

Education: 2:30 p.m. in 434M

Gov. Org.: Continuing at 4 p.m. in 215E

Committee Meetings Tomorrow

Banking and Insurance: 10 a.m. in 215E

Senior Citizens Issues: 1 p.m. in 215E

Energy: 2 p.m. in 410M

Health and Human Resources: 2 p.m. in 215E

The House is adjourned until 11 a.m. tomorrow. 

Senate Passes Six Bills Today

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The Senate met today and passed six bills. The bills passed were SB 151, SB 169, SB 170, SB 171, SB 176, and SB 237.

Senate Bill 237 would repeal obsolete rules of the Department of Revenue.

Senate Bill 169, Senate Bill 170, Senate Bill 171 and Senate Bill 176 would repeal obsolete and unfunded programs. These programs have been moved to federal funding, were never funded or are no longer necessary. They repeal a state hemophilia program, programs of All-Inclusive Care for Elderly, an article concerning detection of tuberculosis, high blood pressure and diabetes, and an article providing assistance to Korea and Vietnam veterans exposed to certain chemical defoliants.

Senate Bill 151 would authorize the Department of Administration to promulgate the legislative rules.

There were 11 bills that were introduced today. Included were SB 319 and SB 326.

Senate Bill 319 would modify requirements for employing nurses in public schools.

Senate Bill 326 would require the Department of Defense family advocacy groups be notified about abuse or neglect of military member’s child.

The following committees meet today:

Economic Development at 1 p.m. in 208W.

Agriculture at 2 p.m. in 208W.

Pensions at 2 p.m. in 451M.

Finance at 3 p.m. in 451M.

Judiciary at 3 p.m. in 208W.

Finance will also meet tomorrow at 9:30 a.m.

 

 

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

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