Today’s House floor session was brief compared to the last few days. During Senate messages, the House read Senate Bill 200 – Budget Bill for the first time.

Senate Bill 200 is the Senate’s version of the 2025 budget. It does not include fiscal impacts made by House bills passed, only those of Senate Bills passed. Just as the House’s version, which advanced from the Finance Committee this morning, does not reflect Senate actions, only actions of the House.

The Senate’s proposed general revenue budget for FY25 is $4.934 billion. The Governor’s requested budget is $5,222,841,436. The House version (HB 4025) is $5,001,963,518. The finance chairs and leadership from the House and the Senate will have to meet and prepare a compromise bill before the end of the session.

The House adopted a resolution and passed two bills today. Several bills were amended.

House Resolution 9 reaffirms the sisterhood partnership between West Virginia and Taiwan.

Senate Bill 240 increases the amount of fees a sheriff may charge when serving, summoning, and levying. The bill also increases the portion of fees that shall be directed to the Deputy Sheriff Retirement Fund.

Senate Bill 752 authorizes the Department of Agriculture to complete land transfers to the Village of Barboursville all the land known as Huntington State Hospital institutional farm to provide public services. The bill also authorizes the transfer of lots owned by the Department of Agriculture to the City of Ellenboro for public services.

The House is in recess until 5 p.m.

Committee Meetings today, Feb. 29
The Committee on Energy and Manufacturing will meet at 1:15 p.m. in Room 460.
The Finance Committee will meet at 2 p.m. in Room 460.
The Committee on Economic Development and Tourism will meet at 3 p.m. in Room 410.
The Rules Committee will meet at 4:45 p.m. behind the House Chamber.

The House returned to session to receive committee reports.

The House is adjourned until tomorrow, March 1, 2023 at 11 a.m.

Committee Meetings tomorrow, March 1
The Finance Committee will meet at 9 a.m. in Room 460.
The Committee on Government Organization will meet at 9 a.m. in Room 215E.
The Judiciary Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. in Room 410.
The Education Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. in Room 434.

As Crossover Day in the Legislature progressed, the House passed several more bills during the afternoon and evening hours of the floor session.

Crossover Day is the last day to consider bills on third reading in house of origin. This does not include the budget or supplementary appropriation bills.

A few of the bills which passed include:

House Bill 5241 requires the Insurance Commissioner to audit PEIA claims for the treatment of PTSD of first responders. The bill requires an annual review with a report submitted to the Interim Joint Health Committee, the Interim Committee on PEIA and Insurance, and the Interim Committee on Volunteer Fire Departments and Emergency Medical Services.

House Bill 5297 prohibits delaying or quickening puberty and hormonal therapy for the purpose of assisting a minor with gender transitioning. The bill strikes sections from last year’s bill which allowed for pubertal modulation and hormone therapy for severe gender dysphoria. Two amendments were offered and failed. The amendments sought to keep the language from last year and to allow for hormonal therapy to prevent suicide. Proponents of the bill said these amendments were not necessary as nothing prohibits the prescribing of hormone therapy medication for regulating psychiatric disorders if it’s the lowest dose possible and isn’t used for the purpose of assisting with a gender transition. Opponents stated their concern is the children who will commit suicide because they cannot get the access they need to the hormone therapy medication, as the language has been stricken.

The bill allows for hormone therapy to be used in four instances for a minor: (1) individual born with ambiguous sex development disorder, (2) sex development disorder where individual does not have normal sex chromosome structure, sex steroid hormone production, or sex steroid hormone action, (3) treating infection, injury, disease, or disorder caused or exacerbated by a gender transition procedure, and (4) physical injury, physical disorder or physical illness where individual could die or have impairment of major bodily function.

House Bill 5514 would require newly elected or appointed members of local boards of education to receive training on fiscal management in their orientation training provided by the State Board of Education. The bill also requires the training be provided within 30 days of being sworn into the office. The bill increases the annual training required to 12 hours including new subjects. The bill also increases board members’ pay per meeting to $260 while reducing the maximum number of paid meetings per year to 40.

House Bill 5358 authorizes the creation of the position of the WV Corrections and Rehabilitation Ombudsman within the Office of Inspector General. The Ombudsman would establish a system to receive complaints reporting allegations of abuse, death, critical incidents, or any other condition affecting the health or welfare of inmates or residents in the correctional or juvenile system. The Ombudsman would review and make recommendations for policies and procedures and legislative proposals for reform. Additional responsibilities are listed in the bill. The bill requires annual reporting and includes penalties for noncompliance and retaliation.

House Bill 5668 creates the Responsible Gaming and Research Act. The bill provides for data collection on gaming operations within the state to ensure the integrity of gaming and to understand responsible gambling and problem gambling. The data can be shared for scholarly purposes. The bill requires an annual report on the impact of casinos, iGaming, racing, iLottery, and sports wagering; and on problem gamblers and gambling addiction in WV to the Joint Committee on Government Finance.

The House recessed for thirty minutes, with a Rules Committee meeting happening at 3:15 p.m.

The House returned to session at 3:30 p.m.

House Rules moved House Bill 5331 to the House Calendar and House Bill 4700 to the active Special Calendar. The House continued with the agenda.

More bills passed this afternoon:

House Bill 4700 allows the Lottery Commission to create a list of reasons for which a patron of sports gaming may be banned from engaging in sports betting. The list shall include but is not limited to a prior conviction of assault or battery on athletic officials, prior violation of an order of the commission, and if a person had engaged in a pattern of harassing sports officials, coaches, or participants to the extent of posing a threat to patrons or participants.

House Bill 5685 was amended on third reading. The amended bill requires the Bureau of Medical Services to study all benefits and eligibility provided by the program in WV’s surrounding states and the five lowest per capita cost states for three years. For any benefit or eligibility in WV Medicaid that exceeds any of those states, the BMS must report the differential and offer a recommendation for continuing or discontinuing the benefit or eligibility. A report shall be submitted and include a six-year projection for expenditure for the identified benefit on December 31, 2024. The BMS shall submit reports every three years. The bill also requires BMS to annually submit on December 1 a report that analyzes how to achieve a one percent state match budget reduction from the previous fiscal year. The BMS shall also submit a report annually on December 31 on WV’s improper payment rate.

Additionally, the amended bill requires a study to determine if state agencies impacted by state Medicaid funding can be financially covered by the state Medicaid program or more efficiently covered by the state Medicaid program. The study shall be submitted with recommendations concerning state budgetary savings to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance. Another study shall take place to determine if existing waiver programs have generated financial offsets as originally planned. The initial study shall be submitted by December 31, 2024, to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance. An additional study must take place concerning the strategies that may begin with a benefit cliff in the state.

House Bill 5698 establishes a framework for controlling and processing personal data in the state. The bill gives consumers the right to view, modify, and delete personal data.

The House is adjourned until tomorrow, February 29, 2023 at 11 a.m.

Committee Meetings tomorrow, Feb. 29
The Finance Committee will meet at 9 a.m. in Room 460.
The Judiciary Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. in Room 410.
The Rules Committee will meet at 10:45 a.m. behind the House Chamber.
The Committee on Economic Development and Tourism will meet at 3 p.m. in Room 410.
The Committee on Energy and Manufacturing will meet after the floor session in Room 460.

The House of Delegates started its floor session at 8 a.m. today. The House passed 24 bills before recessing until 11:45 a.m.

All resolutions on unfinished business were moved to the foot of the agenda today.

The Rules Committee met this morning and moved House Resolution 9 to the floor. The committee also moved Senate Bills 331, 603, 712, and SB 714 and House Bill 5245 from the active Special Calendar to the inactive House Calendar.

A few of the bills passed in the morning session include:

House Bill 4313 creates a new article of code titled Parents’ Bill of Rights. The bill lists specifically recognized parental rights; the list is not exhaustive. The rights listed include: (1) to direct the education and care of the child, (2) to direct the upbringing and moral or religious training of the child, (3) to apply to enroll the child in any educational setting of which is authorized by law, (4) access to all school records relating to the child, and (5)to make health care decisions for the child unless otherwise prohibited by law. The bill allows parents to sue the state, any agency or locality, any government official, or “any person acting under the color of the law” for violating the new article.

Proponents of the bill see it as a way of providing parents with the right to raise their children as they see fit. Opponents felt the bill was stating parents have these rights unless the state says otherwise. They also felt lawsuits would arise.

The bill passed 83 in favor and 14 opposed. The bill advances to the Senate.

House Bill 4734 authorizes a bonus of 3 percent for correctional officers and non-uniformed administrative staff who have three years or more of service on July 1, 2024. The bill would also authorize a 3 percent sign-on bonus to be paid upon the accumulation of three or more years of service to be calculated once the employee reaches three years.

House Bill 4822 increases the limit on the annual matching grants available for eligible state, county, municipal, and regional governmental entities or authorities that apply to and participate in the Department of Economic Development’s Certified Sites and Development Readiness Program from $25,000 to $75,000.

Proponents of this bill stated it would help businesses and bring more people to the state. They felt it could help small businesses. Opponents feared this bill could lead to more chains and fewer mom-pop shops.

The bill passed 86 in favor and 13 opposed. The bill heads to the Senate.

House Bill 4883 increases the annual salaries for state police personnel by $2,900 and teachers by $2,460. The bill also increases the monthly salaries for school service personnel by $140.

House Bill 5077 requires anyone seeking candidacy for House of Representative in the US Congress must have their primary residence be within the Congressional district of which he or she is running for at least one year preceding the election.

The House returned briefly for a performance from the WV School for the Deaf and Blind. Then, the House recessed until 12:15 p.m.

The House of Delegates passed 34 bills today.

House Bill 5180 removes certain requirements for standardized achievement tests for homeschooled children. The bill was amended to include Raylee’s Law, a bill that has been offered for the past few years, including this year.

The amended bill would allow a county superintendent to delay the authorization of homeschooling of a currently enrolled public-school student if there is a pending abuse or neglect investigation against the custodial parent/guardian with whom the child resides, or the person instructing the child. The report initiating the investigation must be from the schoolteacher or other school personnel within the child’s school district, a mandatory reporter.

County superintendents shall develop and institute a policy that they are context when reports of suspected abuse or neglect are reported. Once the superintendent has been notified, they must request confirmation from the Department of Human Service. The Department must confirm within 48 hours of the request. If the complaint is not substantiated within 14 days of initiation, the superintendent shall authorize homeschooling. The purpose of this amendment is to protect a child from being pulled from public school once a report of abuse or neglect is made.

The amendment was adopted, and the bill passed with 99 in favor, none opposed, and one absent. The bill advances to the Senate.

House Bill 4621 prohibits the public dissemination or publishing of a booking photo unless the person pleads guilty, the person is a fugitive, the person is an imminent threat to an individual or public safety, or a judge orders the release of the booking photo based on legitimate interest. The bill also requires the remove-for-pay publications or websites to remove unauthorized photos at no cost.

The debate on this bill was lengthy. Proponents felt this bill is important to protect those who are innocent until proven guilty. They stated that in the court of public opinion, booking photos sway to the presumption of guilt. When booking photos are released, it can make finding jurors difficult because they may have already seen the photo and assumed the person is guilty. They stated the publishing of these photos can hurt people’s career and job prospects, even if they were not guilty of the crime. They also took issue with publishers holding these photos “for ransom” to be removed. Proponents also noted that the arrested individual’s name and age can still be released.

Opponents stated that booking photos should be released to not only protect the victim and public but to also protect the defendant. They stated with the release of a photo, the individual’s family will know where to find them. They stated that only releasing names could be confusing as individuals could have the same name.

The bill passed 54 in favor and 46 opposed. The bill advances to the Senate.

House Bill 4744 requires the WV Parkways Authority to hold public hearings with 14 days’ notice in each county through which the Turnpike passes when proposing increases to the toll rates. Each person attending must be given the opportunity to speak at the public hearing. The Authority must show operational or maintenance cause for the rate increase.

House Bill 5151 adjusts the definition of “fictive kin” to include foster parents with whom the child has previously been placed.

The House is in recess until 4:30 p.m.

The House reconvened to take up bills on second and first reading. Several bills were amended.

The House is adjourned until 8 a.m. tomorrow, February 28.

Committee Meetings today, Feb. 27 
The Finance Committee will meet at 3:30 p.m. in Room 460. 
The Committee on Economic Development and Tourism will meet at 3:30 p.m. in Room 410.
The Committee on Technology and Infrastructure will meet at 3:45 in Room 434.

The Committee on Government Organization will hold a public hearing on SB 714 – Transferring duties and licensing from Board of Osteopathic Medicine to Board of Medicine at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 27, 2024 in Room 215E. Due to no speakers in attendance, the public hearing adjourned shortly after gaveling in.

Committee Meetings tomorrow, Feb. 28
The Rules Committee will meet at 7:45 a.m. behind the House Chamber.

Today, the House of Delegates adopted four resolutions and passed 12 bills, completing action on one bill. 

House Concurrent Resolution 21 names a bridge that carries I-70 over US 53 and Gabe’s Creek in Kanawha County as the “Louie Patton Memorial Bridge.” Patton served in the US Army during the Vietnam War. Patton helped construct I-19 from Charleston to Flatwoods and assisted in the construction of the Toyota Plant in Buffalo, WV. Patton passed away on July 11, 2020.

House Concurrent Resolution 67 names the bridge that carries US Route 60 over Hurrian Creek near the intersection of US Route 60 and State Route 34 as the “U.S. Army SGT Kenneth R. Lucas Memorial Bridge.” Lucas served in the US Army as a Sergeant in the Tank Company, 14th Armored Cavalry. After his service, he returned to WV and worked at Union Carbide for many years. Lucas passed away on February 28, 2023.  

House Bill 600 completed legislative action. The bill amends the criteria for reenlistment and retention bonuses for the WV National Guard. The bill allows the Adjutant General to determine eligibility for bonuses based on satisfactory service and military training and expertise. 

House Bill 4999 expands the exception of spousal privilege to include cases of crime against grandchildren, minors, or any person with a mental disability. 

House Bill 5031 adds human smuggling under the section of the code related to human trafficking and provides for the same penalties. The bill defines “illegal aliens,” and states illegal aliens are not eligible for restitution. However, the state can receive the restitution. 

House Bill 5105 removes the requirement that students attending virtual public schools and private or parochial schools be vaccinated unless they want to participate in WVSSAC-sanctioned athletics. The bill was amended Friday to provide for a religious exemption to vaccinations. 

Proponents of the bill stated the amended bill gives parents the choice for their child’s health. Proponents stated whether they chose to vaccinate should be between them and their God. They also stated that just because there is an exemption doesn’t mean people won’t vaccinate.

Opponents stated that having this exemption puts the state at risk of spread of nearly eradicated diseases. They stated vaccines are needed to protect children. Other opponents felt the bill didn’t go far enough for religious freedom. 

The bill passed with 57 in favor and 41 opposed. The bill advances to the Senate. 

Resolutions introduced today can be viewed here. 

The House is in recess until 4 p.m.

Committee Meetings, today Feb. 26
The Committee on Government Organization will meet at 2:30 p.m. in Room 215E.
The Finance Committee will meet at 2:45 p.m. in Room 460.
The Judiciary Committee will meet at 3 p.m. in Room 410
The Education Committee will meet at 3:30 p.m. in Room 434.

Committee Meetings tomorrow, Feb. 27 
The Committee on Economic Development and Tourism will meet at 3 p.m. in Room 410.