Thursday, March 12, 2026
Thursday, March 12, 2026
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Redistricting Bill Advanced to Amendment Stage

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House members meeting Tuesday afternoon advanced House Bill 106, which seeks to reapportion the House of Delegates districts, to 2nd reading for Thursday. A motion to substitute a Minority Report in lieu of the bill was voted down.

On the House Calendar and advanced to 2nd Reading were two supplemental bills, House Bill 104 and House Bill 105.

Also, House Bill 102 was reported from the House Finance Committee, taken up for immediate consideration and read a first time. This bills would clarify the authorization of the Higher Education Policy Commission to sell, lease or convey property and to designate where proceeds are to be deposited.

Finally, a proclamation was received from the Governor amending the special session call to include to include a bill House Bill 107, which makes a supplementary appropriation of unappropriated moneys to the Secretary of State. The bill was sent to the House Finance Committee for consideration.
The House will reconvene tomorrow, Thursday, August 4th, 2011 at 12:00 p.m.

The House will reconvene tomorrow, Thursday, August 4th, 2011 at 12:00 p.m.

The Joint Marcellus Shale Committee will meet tomorrow in Room 451M at 9:00 a.m.

Senate Amends, Passes Redistricting Bill

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The Senate amended and passed Senate Bill 1006, which reapportions Senate districts, during an afternoon floor session.

The passage came following two amendments. The first amendment was a technical change that restored the entire town of Glenville back into the 12th Senatiorial District. The second amendment ensures that Welch remains in the 8th Senatorial District. The bill now heads to the House for consideration.

The Senate also received a proclamation from the Governor that amended the original call to include Senate Bill 1007, which makes a supplementary appropriation of unappropriated moneys to the Secretary of State. The bill now heads to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration.

The following Senate Committees will meet this afternoon:
Redistricting -2 p.m.-208W

Finance -3 p.m.-451M

The Senate will reconvene at 5 p.m..

House Redistricting Bill Reported to Floor

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House of Delegates members met at 3:00 p.m. today to receive committee reports for three bills on the special session agenda.

Two bills, House Bill 104 and House Bill 105 make supplementary appropriations of public funds.

The third bill, House Bill 106 seeks to reapportion the House of Delegates districts. All three measures were reported to the floor from their respective committees with the recommendations that they do pass and will be on 1st Reading tomorrow on the House Calendar.

The House Finance Committee will meet immediately upon adjournment in Room 460M to discuss House Bill 102.

The House will reconvene tomorrow, Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011 at 2:00 p.m.

The following interim committees have been cancelled for today:

Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability at 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.

The following interim committees have been cancelled for tomorrow:

Joint Committee on Health Subcommittee A at 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

Joint Standing Committee on Education at 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.

Redistricting Bill Advances to Third Reading, Coal Severance Bill Moves to Finance

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Senate Bill 1006, which deals with reapportioning of Senatorial districts advanced to third reading with the right to amend during an afternoon floor session in the Senate Chamber.

Senate Bill 1002, which would distribute a portion of the severance tax on coal to the counties from which the coal is mined, was recommended for passage by the Economic Development Committee and was then read a first time before being sent to the Finance Committee.

The Senate also advised and consented to all of the confirmations that came out of the Committee on Confirmations this morning.

The following interim committees scheduled for this afternoon have been cancelled:
Post Audits

Finance Subcommittee B

Joint Committee on Health

The Senate will reconvene at 11 a.m. tomorrow.

House Holds Public Hearing on Redistricting

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The House of Delegates held a public hearing on redistricting in the House Chamber this evening at 5 p.m. Many citizens gave opinions as to how they believe the House should proceed with regard to the redistricting process. The majority of the citizens that spoke advocated for 100 single-member districts.

The House of Delegates will continue its work on the redistricting process when the House Select Committee on Redistricting meets tomorrow at 9 a.m. in room 215E.

Senate Unveils Full iPad Utilization in Chamber

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Prior to the Special Session to address Redistricting, the Senate opened it’s doors to an open, transparent system. Announcing receipt of iPads for each Senator, the Senate president unveiled the implementation of the newest mode of communication to it’s 34 member body.

Not only have the devices proven fiscally responsible, they also will open communications throughout the Capitol. The Senate Chamber application, providing bills, messages from the House, resolutions, the daily calendar and the order of business, was programed in-house by legislative staff.

Existing programs include the Senate Chamber app, a note taking app, a spreadsheet app and a PDF application initiate the iPad plan. In the coming weeks, lawmakers will expand the venue to include email and other fast reaching modes of communication not only for lawmakers but also for constituent services.

The introduction of the iPad brings the Senate a step toward being fully paperless. As one member noted, the iPad is close to being her office in hand.

Redistricting Headlines Agenda as Senate Convenes 1st Extraordinary Session of 2011

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The Senate met shortly after Noon today to convene the First Extraordinary Session of 2011. They received the Executive Proclamation which consists of seven items, including redistricting, for the Legislature to consider.

The Senate introduced five bills on the floor today. The introduced legislation included Senate Bill 1001, which would reduce the consumers sales and service tax on food, Senate Bill 1002, which would distribute a portion of the severance tax on coal to the counties from which the coal is produced, Senate Bill 1003, which would clarify the requirement for deposit and transfer of higher education proceeds from real property, Senate Bill 1004 which deals with appropriations of public money to various accounts and Senate Bill 1005 which would amend and increase appropriations to the Department of Transportation.

The Senate Select Committee on Redistricting will meet today at 3 p.m. in Room 208W

The following committee will meet tomorrow:
Confirmations-10:45 a.m.- Senate Chamber

The Senate will reconvene at 6 p.m. this evening.

Due to the Special Session the following interim committee meetings scheduled for August 1 and August 2 have been cancelled:

LOCEA – 3 p.m. – August 1

Judiciary Subcommittee C -4 p.m.- August 1

Government Organization Subcommittee C -5 p.m.- August 1

Intern Committee -5 p.m.- August 1

Joint Select Committee on Marcellus Shale -6p.m.- August 1

Joint Standing Committee on Government Organization -3 p.m.- August 2

UPDATE

Senate Bill 1006, which deals with reapportioning of Senatorial districts, originated in the Senate Select Committee on Redistricting earlier today and was read a first time during this evening’s floor session.

The following Senate committees will meet tomorrow:
Economic Development-9 a.m.-208W

Confirmations-10:45 a.m.- 219Mr

The Education Subcommittee B interim meeting originally scheduled for tomorrow at 11 a.m. has been cancelled.

The Senate will reconvene at 11 a.m. tomorrow.

Redistricting Main Topic as House Convenes for 1st Special Session of 2011

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This afternoon, the House convened for the 1st Special Session of 2011 in order to receive the Executive Proclamation, that lists seven items including redistricting for the Legislature to take up for consideration.

Three bills were introduced during the floor session. They were House Bill 101, which would reduce the consumers sales and service tax on food, House Bill 102, which would clarify the requirement for deposit and transfer of proceeds from the sale of real property, and House Bill 103 which would reallocate and distribute the severance tax on coal to the counties from which the coal is produced.

The House is adjourned until 3 p.m. tomorrow, August 2, 2011.

The following committees will meet today:
Finance-3 p.m.- 460M
Redistricting (public hearing)-5 p.m.-House Chamber

The following committee will meet tomorrow:
Redistricting-9 a.m.- 215E

House Redistricting Committee Hears from NCSL Redistricting Expert

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The House of Delegates Select Committee on Redistricting met today in an informational hearing to hear an overview by Morgan Cullen from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) regarding redistricting laws from a federal standpoint. The redistricting process is constitutionally mandated and strictly governed by state and federal laws. Public involvement and comment has the potential to be higher than ever this time around due to an ease of communication with advents in technology.

He also stated that complying with the Voters Right Act, as is federally mandated, often leads to linking similar communities of interest together such as minority districts. Doing this can lead to oddly shaped congressional districts but he states this should not be a problem in the mostly rural, largely Caucasian population in West Virginia. He pointed out that two of the three Congressional Districts in West Virginia, the 1st and 3rd Congressional Districts must gain population while the 2nd must lose population to remain within the federally mandated guidelines of equal representation.

For more information on federal redistricting guidelines he presented members with the Redistricting Law 2010 journal, found online at the NCSL website.

Lawmakers Conduct Extensive Studies on Marcellus Shale During July Interims

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During the July Interim meetings, the Joint Select Committee on Marcellus Shale conducted two extensive hearings regarding the implications, the economies and the effects of horizontal drilling of natural gas within the Mountain State.

An in-depth explanation of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technology was provided by the Professor and Chair of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering Department from West Virginia University. West Virginia’s Deputy Tax Commissioner addressed the growth of Marcellus Shale development on the state’s severance and property taxes; while a spokespeople for the WV Environmental Council and the WV Surface Right Organization provided perspective from their vantage points.

The Joint Committee on Marcellus Shale is expecting to conduct three, 2 hour meetings during the August Interims (Aug. 1-3) to tackle a legislative draft proposal regarding the overall production process utilized via natural gas horizontal wells.