Blog – Page 402

In the House

admin

-

January 29, 2003

As of 4 p.m., Wednesday, January 29, 2003, the 22nd day of the 2003 Regular Legislative Session, 779 bills have been introduced in the House of Delegates. Five bills were passed by the House this week and will now go to the Senate for its consideration. Of those, four were Sunset Bills.

Engrossed Committee Substitute for House Bill 2090 would require the Ethics Commission to establish a code of conduct for state administrative law judges. The code of conduct would require the judges to avoid impropriety while maintaining the integrity and impartiality of the ofﬁce, while both on and off duty. The code also would establish civil penalties and sanctions for violations.

Sunset bills passed by the House

Engrossed House Bill 2486 would continue the Public Employee’s Insurance Agency (PEIA) until July 1, 2005.

Engrossed House Bill 2554 would continue the Marketing and Development Division of the Department of Agriculture. This division regulates and licenses individuals involved in marketing of agricultural products, as well as providing grading, inspection, and market news services to the West Virginia agricultural industry.

Engrossed House Bill 2555 would continue West Virginia’s membership in the Southern Regional Education Compact. Membership in the Southern Regional Education Compact provides services to West Virginia, which include identifying best practices and predicting future trends in all member states, which assists West Virginia in determining the best allocation and use of resources so as to meet educational needs.

Engrossed House Bill 2670 would continue the Ofﬁce of Judges until July 1, 2009. The Ofﬁce of Judges is responsible for establishing procedures for the hearing and determining of disputed claims, as well as the delegation of necessary powers to administrative law judges or hearing examiners so the administrative review of disputed claims can be conducted.

A sampling of bills introduced in the House

House Bill 2671 would simplify the process for adopting a child from a foreign country. The bill would set forth a speciﬁc process by which people wishing to adopt a child from another country must follow to have the adoption recognized by the state.

House Bill 2674 would require the Governor’s Cabinet on Children and Families to develop and implement a pilot plan establishing a system of family resource centers and provide grants to local centers.

House Bill 2741 would establish a Citizen Review Panel to evaluate the procedures of Child Protective Services. The 15-member panel would consist of doctors, lawyers, child advocates, social service providers and other specialized individuals. All information garnered by the panel would be conﬁdential.

House Bill 2558 would require that a public utilities company have a place where a person can make a payment somewhere within the county where the company provides service.

House Bill 2546 would modify the criminal intent requirement for animal cruelty crimes and to increase the ﬁne applicable to convicted persons. The bill would create a felony offense for intentionally torturing or maliciously killing animals and would mandate that a person convicted of animal cruelty be prohibited from possessing, owning or residing with animals for varying periods depending on whether the person is convicted of a misdemeanor or felony.

House Bill 2693 would provide the West Virginia State Police with the ability to deﬁne and draw DNA samples from convicted felons for the purpose of maintaining a DNA database. Anyone convicted of a felony offense would be subject to have some form of blood, tissue or other bodily ﬂuids taken as a sample for the purpose of analyzing and ﬁling away the DNA information.

House Bill 2691 would authorize nonlicensed personnel to administer medication in nursing homes.

House Bill 2527 would establish the “Clean Elections Act”. This measure would create a voluntary system of public funding to qualiﬁed political candidates who agree to accept spending limits and do no other private fund raising.

House Bill 2528 would create a 10-member ﬂood task force and nine-member advisory panel. The task force would establish policies for the coordination of local, state and federal governmental responses to ﬂooding, as well as examine ﬂood prevention initiatives and review the status of ﬂood mapping.

House Bill 2533 would create the West Virginia Highway Authority (WVHA), which would include representatives from Cabell, Mason, Jackson, Putnam and Wayne counties. The purpose of the WVHA would be to advance the construction of a modern highway through Cabell, Mason, Jackson, Putnam and Wayne counties, as well as improving the tourism industry in the area.

House Bill 2688 would gradually eliminate the consumer sales tax on food and food products sold for human consumption when the food is taken off the premises where sold.

House Bill 2748 would prevent mail order or Internet sales of cigarettes or tobacco products to persons under the age of 18. The bill also would establish criteria for verifying the ages of potential customers.

In the Senate

admin

-

January 29, 2003

0

As of 4 p.m., Wednesday, January 29, 2003, the 22nd day of the 2003 Regular Legislative Session, 399 bills have been introduced in the Senate. Of those, the following 15 were passed by the Senate this week and will now go to the House for its consideration:

Engrossed Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 39 would make a false alarm a felony in certain cases. For example, this bill would not include any juvenile who pulls a false alarm; although, appropriate sanctions would be applied to the vandal.

Engrossed Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 109 would allow judges and magistrates to place third parties on notice of provisions of an order affecting the care and education of a child if the judge or magistrate ﬁnds that a third party has reason to be made aware of the speciﬁcs of a provision in an order.

Engrossed Senate Bill 120 would change the qualiﬁcation rank for Adjutant General to Lieutenant. More speciﬁcally, this bill would change the appointment qualiﬁcation for adjutant general from major general to lieutenant general.

Engrossed Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 178 would make clariﬁcations to the Code section pertaining to the subject matter jurisdiction of the Family Court. It would implicitly indicate that the court has jurisdiction of child and spousal support as well as distribution of property.

Engrossed Senate Bill 186 would deﬁne “aggrieved persons” for purposes of judicial review of a decision of the Board of Zoning. An “aggrieved person” means a person who is denied the relief sought or suffers a peculiar injury, prejudice or inconvenience beyond that of the other residents of the county or municipality.

Engrossed Senate Bill 189 would allow an out-of-state bank that is seeking to acquire or establish a West Virginia branch to send a required written notice to the Banking Commissioner. This would provide the home-state regulator with an extra copy of the branch application so it can be delivered to the West Virginia Division of Banking.

Engrossed Senate Bill 190 would increase the frequency of the required examinations of books and records of certain ﬁnancial institutions. Namely, those financial institutions with assets of more than $250,000,000 and those with a composite rating of either three, four, or ﬁve. This would track current practices consistent with cooperative agreements with federal regulators.

Engrossed Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 191 would eliminate the need for a hearing before the Commissioner of Banking in those cases in which a state chartered credit union seeks to convert to a federal charter. It also would change the required notice from the current seven to 30 days to 14 to 60 days prior to the meeting and it would eliminate certain present Code provisions governing the conversion of a West Virginia state-chartered credit union to a charter from another state.

Engrossed Senate Bill 192 would require a bank holding company intending to change its status to a ﬁnancial holding company to give the West Virginia Commissioner of Banking notice of the intended change by submitting copies of the federal ﬁlings.

Engrossed Senate Bill 205 would modify criminal intent for animal cruelty crimes; ﬁnes. This bill would change the mental state for the crime of killing, injuring or poisoning an animal by adding “knowingly” or “recklessly” to the mental state.

Engrossed Senate Bill 215 would make supplementary appropriations to the Department of Health and Human Resources’ Health Care Authority.

Sunset bills passed by the Senate

Engrossed Senate Bill 281 would continue the Department of Environmental Protection.

Engrossed Senate Bill 282 would continue the Division of Motor Vehicles.

Engrossed Senate Bill 283 would continue the Public Service Commission.

Engrossed Senate Bill 284 would continue the Division of Purchasing within the Department of Administration.

A sampling of bills introduced in the Senate

Senate Bill 362 would establish the Public/Private Transportation Act of 2003. This act would provide prerequisites for the development of a transportation facility. It also would provide for the creation of a Public Private Transportation Oversight Committee.

Senate Bill 366 would authorize police to obtain a warrant to secure a blood sample from a person suspected of DUI. The law enforcement agency that employs the ofﬁcer would designate which type of secondary test is to be administered. If the person arrested refuses, the law enforcement ofﬁcer making the arrest shall designate either a breath or urine test.

Senate Bill 383 relates to the powers of the Alcohol Beverage Control Administration. This bill would permit the ABCA Commissioner to sell the Putnam County warehouse at terms of his/her choice and purchase a new one with the proceeds from and approval of the Governor.

Senate Bill 368 would lower the retirement age for certain state troopers. It would allow a member to retire with full beneﬁts upon attaining the age of 50 and completing 20 or more years of service.

Senate Bill 370 would allow certain vehicle auxiliary lighting devices when vehicles are used off road. This bill would require that the devices be turned off and covered when the motor vehicle is operated on a road or highway.

Senate Bill 390 would remove the requirement that a social security number appear on commercial driver’s licenses. It also would require that the commercial driver’s license must be marked “Commercial Driver’s License” or “CDL,” and must be tamper proof.

Senate Bill 373 would require that businesses pay personal property taxes to receive a business registration certificate. It also would require sheriffs to notify delinquent personal property owners and require the Tax Commissioner to suspend or refuse to issue a business registration certiﬁcate where business has not paid delinquent personal property taxes.

Senate Bill 379 would establish a panel to review procedures of child protective services. This bill would list the duties of membership, provide confidentiality requirements and provide immunity from liability.

Senate Bill 398 would exempt the interest on savings bonds from personal income tax in certain cases. This bill would include those people who are 65 and older.

Senate Bill 399 would provide for criminal history checks for certain people working with children on school property. This bill would require criminal history checks for people who are not employed by county boards of education but who work directly with children in grades kindergarten through 12 on school property.

From Idea to Legislation, Compromise, & Law

Jessica Stanton

-

January 29, 2003

0

From Idea to Legislation, Compromise, & Law

With the 2003 Legislative Session underway, many people are becoming increasingly interested in current issues being tackled by lawmakers. Gaining an understanding of the legislative process is a key component in following the path of bills; however, tracking pieces of legislation can oftentimes become overwhelming for those who are unfamiliar with the intricacies of the legislative process.
By simply having an idea, all West Virginians can become involved in State Government. This is where the law-making process begins. A citizen, corporation, professional association, non-proﬁt group or even a governmental agency can all vocalize their suggestions to a legislator.
Once proposed to a lawmaker, the bill must then be sponsored by one or more members. In the House, seven sponsors are limited to each bill or amendment while the Senate has no limit on numbers of sponsors.
After the bill is drafted, it is numerically identiﬁed and assigned to one or more committees by the Senate President or the Speaker of the House. The bill is then formally introduced in the appropriate chamber and committee references are announced.
After a committee concludes its work on the bill, it files a written report. This report can make “no recommendations”, propose that the bill “be rejected” or suggest the bill “do pass” in its original form, “with amendment(s)” offered by the committee; or, as a “committee substitute”.
Committees have the option to not review a bill or to not recommend the bill to the full membership. When this happens, the bill “dies in committee.”
Once the bill is reported out of the committee, it is then presented to the appropriate clerk, who reads the bill’s short title on the ﬂoor.
According to the State Constitution, a bill must be read three times before it can either pass or be rejected. The ﬁrst reading is the information stage and notiﬁes the membership that the bill will be considered. Once the bill advances to second reading, it is in the amendment stage and members may offer revisions and vote on proposed amendments. The bill then advances to third reading, which is the passage stage.
(Note: *There are times when the Legislature may look to suspend the Constitutional requirements that a bill be read on three separate days. This usually occurs when time is a factor. Any member can object to the suspension of rules and a vote of four-ﬁfths is needed to dispense the rule.)
If a bill is passed by one house, it is sent to the other body for its consideration. The entire process, from committee assignments to the voting stage, is repeated.
The second chamber can make changes to the legislation. If this occurs, the bill must be sent back to its house of origin for concurrence. If the ﬁrst chamber disagrees with the changes and the second body refuses to remove the revisions it made, a conference committee is appointed by the Speaker of the House or the Senate President. This committee consists of an equal number of representatives from both houses who iron out the differences.
If this committee reaches agreement, the House and Senate must adopt the conference committee report and once again vote on the passage of the bill. When a compromise cannot be achieved, another conference committee may be appointed or the measure dies in committee upon the Legislature’s adjournment.
Upon passage by both bodies, the bill is then sent to the Governor, who has ﬁve days to approve or veto a bill when the Legislature is in session. When session has ended, the Governor has 15 days to act on most bills before him; but, he must act on the Budget Bill and supplemental appropriation bills within ﬁve days. If the Governor does not act on bills within these time limits, the measures automatically become law without his signature.
The Governor has the option to veto bills when the Legislature is in session. When this occurs, a simple majority vote of the members is required to override the veto; however, when the Budget Bill or supplemental appropriation bills are vetoed, a two-thirds vote is necessary to overturn the action.
Thank you for your interest in the workings of the State Legislature. Community involvement is the foundation of State Government; so, be sure to follow bills on their path to becoming law during this year’s session.

Vol. XIV Issue 2

admin

-

January 22, 2003

0

In the House

admin

-

January 22, 2003

0

As of 4 p.m., Wednesday, January 22, 2003, the 15th day of the 2003 Regular Legislative Session, 498 bills have been introduced in the House. Of those, 10 were passed by the House this week and will now go to the Senate for its consideration:

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2054 would require county clerks to record a disclaimer of unenforceable restrictive covenants based on race, color, religion, ancestry, sex, familial status, blindness, handicap or national origin. This would void any restrictions in deeds from the county clerk that include the designations listed previous.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2052 would include nationally accredited institutions in the definition of eligible institution for purposes of the In-State Excellence Scholarship Program. The bill also would add to that deﬁnition any state allied health or hospital-based training program leading to state licensure.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2154 would provide for the establishment of ﬁve instructional student development and professional teacher development days during the school year. The bill would mandate that these days occur during the months of October, December, February, April and June.

House Bill 2224 would require the privatization, closure or merger of at least two of the State’s 16 higher education institutions by 2007. The bill named no speciﬁc institutions and left reorganization decisions to the discretion of the Higher Education Policy Commission.
House Bill 2300 would establish an education performance audit panel to strengthen focus on improving student, school and school system performance. The panel would consist of the State Board President, a state board member, the State Superintendent and several ranking Education Department employees. The panel would be responsible for submitting reports to the State Board of Education for review and action.

House Bill 2323 would establish a Division of School Personnel within the State Department of Education by July 1, 2003. The division would be responsible for developing a uniform standard of employment, advising counties in personnel matters and answering questions relating to hiring, employment, seniority and certiﬁcation.

House Bill 2402 would strike language allowing counties to establish kindergartens for children younger than age ﬁve but would encourage enrollment in early childhood education programs. The bill would mandate that such programs be made available. Also the bill would give county education boards the authority to approve head starts and other early childhood education programs in the county. Those programs, however, would have to meet standards set forth by the State Board of Education.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2122 would reduce the cap on medical malpractice non-economic loss claims from $1 million to $250,000 and require claimants to prove at least a 50 percent chance of recovery or survival had the physician administered alternative treatment. The bill also would establish a three-person compensation plan board responsible for proposing funding options for awards exceeding the $500,000 cap on malpractice non-economic loss incurred during trauma care. To monitor physicians, the bill would place any physician receiving three or more disciplinary actions within a ﬁve year period under the supervision of another physician for an undetermined amount of time.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2121 would establish the “All-Terrain Vehicle Safety Act,” which would regulate ATV operation on public property. The bill would prohibit unlicenced individuals under the age of 18 from operating an ATV on public lands and create free operation training programs available through the Department of Motor Vehicles. The bill also would make it illegal, with few exceptions, to operate an ATV on paved roads with centerlines.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2120 would eliminate the Workers’ Compensation Second-Injury Compensation Fund and require claimants to prove 50 percent wholebody disability, an increase from 40 percent required by current legislation. The bill also would address the Workers’ Compensation Fund deﬁcit by providing $20 million from
the tobacco settlement fund and by cutting weekly average wage compensation from 70 percent to 66 percent.

A Sampling of Bills Introduced in the House:

House Bill 2474 would add “sexual orientation” to the categories covered by the Human Rights Act and the Fair Housing Act. The bill would make it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in hiring, public access and housing access. The bill would define sexual orientation as disclosed or perceived homosexuality, heterosexuality or bisexuality.
Crimes-Alcohol and Drugs House Bill 2384 would provide criminal penalties for negligently or carelessly shooting and wounding or killing a human being while hunting under the inﬂuence of alcohol or drugs. The bill would include controlled substances in it’s deﬁnition of drugs and would specify a blood alcohol content of ten hundredths of a percent or more as under the inﬂuence of alcohol. Wounding a person would mandate a misdemeanor, while killing him or her would mandate a felony offense.

House Bill 2379 would provide the death penalty for the murder of law enforcement
ofﬁcers on active duty. The bill would apply only to ﬁrst and second degree murder cases.

House Bill 2521 would establish the school psychologist internship program. The bill would require collaboration between the State Department of Education and an institution of higher education for national certiﬁcation of school psychologists.

House Bill 2391 would authorize specialized motor vehicle registration plates bearing the logo “PRO LIFE.” The bill would mandate an annual fee of $15 per plate from plate-owners. A $10 dollar fee would be charged for the initial application and subsequent applications for duplicate plates. There are currently 18 different types of specialized motor vehicle registration plates.

House Bill 2476 would alter the apportionment of the membership of the House of Delegates by changing certain districts. The bill would divide the 14th delegate district into two single-member districts and create a 59th delegate district. The changes would affect certain areas of Mason and Putnam counties.

A Sampling of House Standing Committee Reports:

Banking and Insurance: The House Banking and Insurance committee reviewed several pieces of legislation this week. The following bills were reported out with recommendation that they do pass:

House Bill 2366 would provide for the issuance of uniform prescription drug cards. Committee members amended the bill so that it would exclude the Children’s Health Insurance Program and give the State Insurance Commissioner until Jan. 1, 2004 to prepare regulations. The bill would require insurance companies to issue cards in order to practice in the State.

House Bill 2441 would increase from $1 million to $4 million the capital stock and surplus needed to bank in the State. The committee moved the bill to House Judiciary.

House Bill 2443 would change language mandating yearly assessments, which the Division of Banking uses as funding. The bill was moved to House Judiciary.
Veteran’s Affairs and Homeland Security: A representative from the ofﬁce of Military Affairs and Public Safety (MAPS) delivered an overview of what the department has done and will continue to do to ensure the safety of West Virginia’s infrastructure. The representative said MAPS coordinates among 11 different ofﬁces and agencies in order to ensure that homeland protection and tragedy response are maintained at maximum readiness. The ofﬁce is prepared to respond to threats against the state with appropriate action. The ofﬁce coordinated responses to several Anthrax threats following September 11, 2001 and now has equipment in place to respond to equally dangerous situations. The ofﬁce has deployed Mass Casualty Trailers as well as a Mobile Communications Center and has placed them strategically throughout the state. The trailers contain mobile hospitals and decontamination equipment for potential situations which may involve weapons of mass destruction. The representative said the trailers also could easily be used for aid and relief in instances of natural disasters. The representative stated all states are in the midst of Homeland Security reorganization and he felt some states could look to West Virginia for a positive model to follow.

In the Senate

admin

-

January 22, 2003

0

As of 4 p.m., Wednesday, January 22, 2003, the 15th day of the 2003 Regular Legislative Session, 212 bills have been introduced in the Senate. Of those, the following eight were passed by the Senate this week and will now go to the House of Delegates for its consideration:

Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 4 would require that any default judgement handed down in a magistrate court be sent via registered mail to the last known address of the defendant in the case. The certiﬁed mail would be taxed as a cost of court proceedings.
Senate Bill 52 would eliminate the $100 bond required to be paid to the clerk of a circuit court before a summons is issued in order to sue out-of-state defendants involved in automobile accidents in West Virginia.

Senate Bill 93 relates to violence against public employees. This bill would create new penalties for assault or battery against a public employee if the employee was assaulted or
battered while participating in the scope of his or her duty. The penalties would be: assault – ﬁne of $50 to $100 and jail, not less than 24hours or more than six months; battery – not less than 24-hours or more than 12 months of jail time plus $100 to $500 ﬁne.
Senate Bill 82 would extend the time period for the study of the state system of Orphan Roads and Bridges to January 30, 2004. By that date a proposal would be required for submission to the Legislature that would formulate an Orphan Roads and Bridges policy. As such, this bill would extend the Orphan Roads and Bridges acquisition and maintenance program to December 31, 2005.

Sunset Bills Passed by the Senate:

Senate Bill 163 would continue the Drivers’ Licensing Advisory Board.

Senate Bill 164 would continue the Ofﬁce of Coalﬁeld Community Development.

Senate Bill 165 would continue the Commission for National and Community Service.

Senate Bill 166 would continue the Oil and Gas Inspectors’ Examining Board.

A Sampling of Bills Introduced in the Senate:

Senate Bill 168 would establish a state minimum salary supplement for certain professional personnel holding a nationally recognized professional certification; for instance, professional educators who hold a certiﬁcation in their ﬁelds of expertise.

Senate Bill 175 would reduce the threat of bio-terrorism by authorizing the Secretary of Health and Human Resources to establish a certiﬁcation process for facilities or other entities that have a legitimate need to possess potentially dangerous biological agents and toxins, by limiting lawful possession and transfer of these agents and toxins to certiﬁed entities, and by establishing criminal and civil penalties for violations.

Senate Bill 184 would make it illegal to “engage in a call” on a mobile phone while operating a motor vehicle. There are provisions in the bill which would allow the operation of a vehicle while using a hands-free-phone. The bill also allows for the use of a mobile phone in emergency situations.

Senate Bill 181 would remove the requirement that a home-school teacher have formal education of at least four years higher than the most academically advanced child they are instructing.

Senate Bill 171 would modify seat belt and child restraint requirements and change the offense of failure to wear safety belts to a primary offense. The bill would require all vehicle occupants to wear seatbelts, and would prohibit children under the age of 16 from riding in an open or closed cargo area of a passenger vehicle, van, pickup truck or uncovered open bed trailer.

Senate Bill 173 would exempt the sale of United States Flags from the consumers sales tax.

A Sampling of Senate Standing Committee Reports

Senate Finance Committee on Agriculture: The Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture met this week and was presented with a report covering many issues regarding the Department of Agriculture’s budget. The main problem discussed during the committee meeting was the projected difﬁculties should a major crisis arise, such as a virus outbreak or livestock contamination. Concerns addressed covered the loss of man power and the lack of proper equipment. Another issue was in regard to the Special Revenue account. A representative from the Department of Agriculture requested more funding to be allocated to staff.

Judiciary: The committee met and considered several legislative measures, including Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 170, which was approved and moved to the Senate Finance Committee. This measure would create the Women’s Right to Know Act. The bill would require that pregnant women be provided certain information in a prescribed form prior to undergoing an abortion. This is also referred to as “Informed Consent” and would create a minimum period of delay (24 hours) between when a woman decides to have an abortion and when she undergoes the procedure. The physician would have to give the woman considering the abortion certain information, which include: the name of the physician who is performing the procedure, any medical risks involved with having the abortion, the probable gestational age of the unborn child, and the medical risks involved if she should carry the child to term.

Senate Bill 186 was also presented to the committee counsel. The bill deﬁnes “aggrieved persons” for purposes of judicial review regarding a decision of the board of zoning. An aggrieved person is a person who is denied the relief sought or will suffer a peculiar injury, prejudice or inconvenience beyond which other residents of the county or municipality may suffer. The bill was sent on to the Senate with the recommendation that it pass.

Website Links Public to the Legislative Process

admin

-

January 22, 2003

0

Website Links Public to the Legislative Process

Access to the political process is a key component of our nation’s representative democracy. The increasing use of computers as a source of gathering and obtaining information provides legislative resources via the internet, thereby becoming an important part of linking citizens of this state with the West Virginia Legislature.
The West Virginia Legislature’s ofﬁcial website, located at www.legis.state.wv.us, contains valid and detailed information which is valuable in engaging the public in the legislative process.
When a user arrives at the website – there is a waiver for the visually impaired. With the advancement of computer programs that allow the visually impaired to access information on the website, it is provided in a “no frames” format.
If you are not visually impaired, please click CONTINUE to reach the homepage.
There are various points of interest on the West Virginia Legislature’s website. The most frequently used are: Bill Status and the Legislative Bulletin Board. The Bulletin Board features House and Senate Journals as well as the Daily Calendars.
The following is geared to assist the user in locating the above information.
Bill Status – The Bill Status option on the website allows an individual to ﬁnd full text of current and past legislation along with a history of its legislative actions.
To access Bill Status, simply select this link on the homepage. Select the year in which the legislation was introduced. The website provides the bill history and bill status from 1993 to the present session. Once the year is selected, access to various options concerning status of legislation will become available. A person may search by selected sponsor, affected Code section, short title,
topical subject, and actions ﬁrst-to-last or last-to-ﬁrst. Listings of all bills introduced, all bills passed by either the House or the Senate, all bills passed by both bodies, actions by the Governor on passed legislation, and all resolutions introduced are options.
There is also an option, for the year 2000 and beyond, to obtain bill text – which is the actual print version of the legislation. Follow directions on the screen to the “Bill Status On The Web” link. The user has the option of downloading legislation using Corel WordPerfect or opening an HTML version from the internet. Open either Senate or House bills and select the folder containing the bill number sought.
Legislative Bulletin Board – The Legislative Bulletin Board is also a valuable tool in obtaining additional information regarding the Legislative session. Access to the Senate and House calendars, listings of bills introduced, listings of bills to be introduced, abstracts, committee schedules, and topical indexes is offered. This information is obtained by clicking the link labeled “Legislative Bullentin Board” located on “Bill Status On The Web”.
The West Virginia Legislature’s Ofﬁcial Website gives citizens the opportunity to access their government 24 hours-a-day, 365 daysa-year. With these basic navigational directions, the information obtained from this internet site brings the legislative process and the workings of state government home.

Vol. XIV Issue 1

admin

-

January 16, 2003

0

In the House

admin

-

January 16, 2003

0

As of 4 p.m., Wednesday, January 15, 2003, the seventh day of the 2003 Regular Legislative Session, 290 bills have been introduced in the House of Delegates.
Four bills have been passed by the House and will now go to the Senate for its consideration. These are:

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2001 would restrict public access to military discharge forms recorded in the county clerks ofﬁce. This bill would require the clerk to record the form free of charge, in a secure area away from the general public and the record would be open for inspection and copying by the veteran and other individuals outlined in this bill. In addition, the clerk would be permitted access to these records of deceased persons for authentic genealogical or other research purposes.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2051 would expand the eligibility of part-time students for higher education adult part-time student grants. This bill removes the restrictions that a part-time student enrolled for only 3 credit hours is only offered the grant for two semesters and that independent students who have completed secondary education at least two years previous are not eligible for the grant. This bill also establishes a 10% set aside of the annual appropriation for grants to state community and technical colleges for non-credit and customized training programs. The bill further adds a requirement that adult part-time student grants must be available throughout the year for authorized distance education courses.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2077 would remove the requirement for the Joint Committee on Government and Finance to be given reports on the Colin Anderson Center (a state mental health hospital and facility) closure and the relocation of patients.

Committee Substitute for House Bill 2082 would expand the membership of the Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) to include the CEO of the Business Roundtable and an additional member of the Roundtable selected by its membership. The bill would also reduce the Chancellor’s salary to an amount equal to the compensation of the State Superintendent of Schools. It would require that the salaries of the HEPC’s direct staff must be proportional with the salaries of the State Department of Education staff.

A sample of bills introduced in the House:

House Bill 2123 relates to driving under the inﬂuence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs. This bill would reduce the allowable blood alcohol content for DUI from ten hundredths (.10) to eight hundredths (.08) of one percent of body weight.

House Bill 2148 would make armed assault or conspiracy to commit armed assault upon school property, personnel or students who are on school property a felony offense. This would be punishable by 25 years imprisonment and a $10,000 ﬁne. The bill also deﬁnes “armed assault” as an aggressive attack upon school property, school personnel or students who are on school property by using weapons of deadly force including, but not limited to, guns, bombs or other explosive devices, and knives, spears or arrows. This bill also deﬁnes “conspire” as two or more persons making an agreement to plot or contrive an armed assault upon school property, school personnel or students on school property, and who have acquired or made positive steps to gain weapons of deadly force to carry out such an assault.

House Bill 2064 would provide teacher retirement eligibility, with full pension rights, when a member’s age plus years of service equals or exceeds 80. This is provided that 10 years of the member’s total years of service may be out-of-state service or prior service or any combination of these not exceeding a total of 10 years.

House Bill 2175 would reorganize the executive branch of government, which includes consolidating the Department of Administration and the Department of Tax and Revenue into a new department of Finance and Administration. This bill further establishes ﬁve divisions in this new department and assigns the functions of current divisions, boards and ofﬁces to one of these new divisions. The new portions of this department would include a Division of Tourism, Natural Resources and Parks and an Office of Banking and Insurance, which would consist of the Divisions of Insurance and Banking. In 2004, the Board of Risk and Insurance Management (BRIM) would also be transferred to this new ofﬁce.

In the Senate

admin

-

January 16, 2003

0

As of 4 p.m., Wednesday, January 15, 2003, the seventh day of the 2003 Regular Legislative Session, 160 bills have been introduced in the State Senate.

A sampling of bills introduced this week:

Senate Bill 15 would prohibit open containers of nonintoxicating beer and alcoholic beverages in the passenger areas of motor vehicles on the public roads of the state. The bill is intended to conform the state’s laws applying to the use and possession of beer and alcoholic beverages in motor vehicles with federal law.

Senate Bill 119 would dissolve the Division of Personnel and the State Civil Service System. The bill provides that the various agencies of government would assume responsibility for their own hiring and ﬁring.

Senate Bill 115 would provide for a state do-not-call list by which individuals may indicate that they do not wish to receive unsolicited telephonic sales calls. The bill would also make calling a number on the do-not-call list an abusive telemarketing act or practice.

Senate Bill 24 would change the name of West Virginia State College to West Virginia State University. All things related to the function, conduct and control of the institution shall remain the same.

Senate Bill 152 would authorize the commercial sale of venison in restaurants. The bill states that any game birds or game bird meats sold by licensed retailers or venison sold by a licensed commercial retailer and raised for that purpose may be served at any hotel, restaurant or other licensed eating place in this state.

Senate Bill 78 would restrict mandatory overtime in certain health care facilities. The bill would establish a maximum workday and workweek for certain hourly wage health care facility employees, beyond which the employees cannot be required to perform overtime work, in order to safeguard their health, efﬁciency and general well-being as well as the health and general well-being of the persons to whom these employees provide services.

Senate Bill 149 would create the Prescription Drug Price Assistance Project. The bill would provide for eligibility criteria, fees and a co-payment schedule, create the “prescription drug price reduction fund”, set forth sources for the fund, provide that the Secretary of Health and Human Resources may transfer moneys from the fund to elderly low-cost drug programs established or maintained in this state, and authorize the department to coordinate with other programs.

Senate Bill 143 would provide high school diplomas to veterans who left elementary, middle or high school prior to high school graduation due to service in the military.

Senate Bill 70 would establish a minimum speed limit of 55 miles per hour for driving in the left hand or passing lane on interstate highways. It provides a ﬁne of $50 plus court costs for violations.

Senate Bill 23 would allow for corporate and personal income tax for employers who provide or pay for child day care services for their employees’ dependent children.

Senate Bill 49 would exempt farming equipment and livestock from the personal property tax. This would include all implements, equipment, machinery, vehicles, supplies, crops and livestock used to engage in commercial farming.

Senate Bill 107 would create a “sales tax holiday” for purchase of back-to-school clothing and school supplies during a three-day period in the beginning of August of this year.

Senate Bill 88 would create the Tobacco Free School Act. The bill would prohibit possession and use of tobacco products in all school buildings and grounds, as well as eliminate the exemption from tobacco restrictions areas not used for instructional purposes. This legislation would also increase the penalties for violations of this act and authorize the State Board of Education to further restrict tobacco use. It would also permit law-enforcement ofﬁcers to issue warnings in lieu of citations for violations.

Senate Bill 129 would increase the penalties for use or possession of tobacco or tobacco products by a person under eighteen years of age. The bill would also increase ﬁnes and community service requirements, and upon a second offense, provides for revocation of the person’s junior or graduated driver’s license until 18 years of age, or if the person does
not yet have a junior or graduated driver’s license, the person is ineligible to apply for any type of driver’s license until 18 years of age.