The Senate passed a bill on Monday to strengthen the rights of West Virginia children in foster care.
Senate Bill 886 would mandate that children be informed of their rights in an age-appropriate manner and provides them with a written copy of these rights in their primary language. This legislation aims to empower foster children by ensuring they understand their rights and have the ability to advocate for themselves.
Also of note on Monday, Senate Bill 506, the legislation to provide a pay bump for teachers who live in particularly expensive areas, was referred to the rules committee on third reading. This procedural move parks the bill for now. It could always be moved out of the rules committee sometime before the Regular Session ends.
The bill is meant to address the many places in West Virginia where teachers can cross the border to other states and make more money in available teaching positions there. Under the legislation, the regional housing market would be compared to the median home price for West Virginia. The raises would be based on those calculations and would be conducted on an annual basis.
Finally, the Senate rejected a bill that would have recognized the authority of the Agriculture Commissioner to intervene in matters that negatively affect agritourism. Senate Bill 916 was rejected on a 21-13 vote.
UPDATE:
The Senate reconvened at 7:30 p.m. to finish the day’s calendar, receive committee reports and read bills a first time.
The Senate adjourned until tomorrow, April 1, at 11 a.m.
Morning Meetings for April 1:
Education at 9:30 a.m. in 451M
Gov. Org at 9:30 a.m. in 208W
