House Rules met this evening to hear about two bills; both bills advanced to the markup and passage stage for a future meeting.
House Bill 3411 repeals code relating to expired legislative commissions including the Legislative Building Commission, the WV Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission and Fund, The Council of Finance and Administration, the Steering Committee for the WV Enterprise Resource Planning Board, the WV Sentencing Commission, the Toll Road Study Commission, the Select Committee on Outcomes-based Funding Models in Higher Education, Equal Pay Commission, Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on State Water Resources, Commission on Interstate Cooperation, and the Legislative Oversight Committee on WV Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority. Additionally, the bill removes legislative membership from the Employee Suggestion Award Board, the WV Forest Management Review Commission, the WV Economic Development Strategy, the WV Fusion Center, and the State Board of Risk and Insurance Management. Finally, the bill moves the duties of the Joint Commission of Government Operations duties to the Joint Committee on Government Organizations.
House Bill 3412 allows the Legislature to clarify what is and is not a public record through individual chamber rules or Joint Rules. The bill’s goal is not to exempt the Legislature from record release but to clarify what should be released as a legislative record. Examples of what would not be considered legislative records included draft legislation and draft amendments, which were never introduced.
