Senate Bill 581 amends West Virginia’s school attendance law to expand the definition of “excused absence” for students. Specifically, the bill allows students up to five annual college visits as an excused absence. It includes participation in specific student organizations like 4-H, FFA, SkillsUSA, Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), and Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) as valid reasons for excused absences. Students who participate in these sanctioned activities will be credited as present and not counted as absent. The bill requires that students make up any missed schoolwork and ensures that their class grades are not negatively impacted due to participation in these activities.
Additionally, students cannot be credited as present for these activities if they are currently suspended, expelled, or assigned to an alternative school program. The sanctioned organization must provide documentation proving the student’s participation, and the total number of excused absences for school-approved activities, college visits, and sanctioned organization activities cannot exceed 10 per school year. The bill also clarifies that these provisions do not interfere with the Every Student Succeeds Act, which does not differentiate between excused and unexcused absences.
Senate Bill 586 modifies the procedures for filling vacancies in various elected offices throughout West Virginia, establishing more stringent appointment requirements. Specifically, the bill prohibits appointing an individual to a vacant elected position unless that person has been a member of their registered political party for at least one year before the vacancy. For state and federal offices like the Governor, U.S. Congress, and state Legislature, the Governor must appoint replacements from a list of three qualified persons submitted by the relevant party executive committee. The bill also allows the Governor to appoint temporary acting officials for certain constitutional offices. It provides detailed procedures for filling vacancies in different types of positions, including judicial roles, county offices, and municipal elected positions. For magistrate positions, the bill introduces a new provision allowing circuit judges to fill vacancies or prospective vacancies due to upcoming resignations or retirements. It mandates that vacancies with unexpired terms longer than two years will be filled through a subsequent nonpartisan judicial election. The overall intent is to ensure that vacancy appointments maintain the political affiliation of the previous officeholder and provide a structured, consistent approach to filling unexpired terms across various levels of government.
Senate Bill 587 makes several significant changes to government contracting procedures in West Virginia. First, it increases the minimum competitive bid threshold for construction projects from $25,000 to $50,000 and establishes a 90-day bid validity period. The bill also clarifies contract negotiation procedures when bids exceed budgeted amounts, allowing for limited negotiations with the lowest qualified bidder. Most notably, the bill introduces the Government Construction Management At-Risk Contracts Act, which provides state and local government entities with the use of construction management at-risk contracts for large projects with an estimated total cost of $20 million or more. This new contracting method requires a two-step process involving a qualifications phase and a proposal phase, where firms are evaluated based on factors like financial resources, personnel capabilities, performance history, and other criteria. The evaluation will use a “best value” selection process that considers pricing and performance components. The bill mandates the creation of an evaluation committee, establishes detailed proposal requirements, and includes provisions for contract amendments and public record accessibility. The new contracting method is optional for government entities and will be in effect until July 1, 2030, with the Division of Purchasing required to report annually on its implementation and effectiveness.
Senate Bill 615 eliminates accelerated tax payment requirements for businesses in West Virginia across three different tax types: sales tax, use tax, and personal income tax withholding. Companies with average monthly tax payments exceeding $100,000 are required to make an additional, advanced tax payment of either the first 15 days of June’s tax liability or 50 percent of the previous month’s tax liability. This bill removes these accelerated payment provisions entirely, meaning affected businesses no longer need to make this extra tax payment in mid-June. Specifically, the bill amends sections of the West Virginia tax code related to sales tax (§11-15-16), use tax (§11-15A-10), and employer withholding tax (§11-21-74) to eliminate the accelerated payment requirements. This change provides cash flow relief for larger businesses by allowing them to maintain their standard monthly tax payment schedule without the additional mid-year prepayment.
Senate Bill 617 Â attempts to strengthen West Virginia’s laws against organized criminal activity by explicitly expanding the definition of criminal enterprises to include gangs. The legislation defines a “gang” as any organization of three or more people committing qualifying offenses and establishing new criminal penalties for gang-related activities. Specifically, the bill makes it a felony to knowingly become a member of a gang or organized criminal enterprise and assist in committing qualifying offenses, with potential punishments of up to 10 years in prison and/or a $25,000 fine. Additionally, the bill criminalizes recruiting or soliciting others to join a gang or participate in criminal activities, with penalties of up to 5 years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine. The legislation also includes provisions making it a felony to intimidate witnesses in gang-related prosecutions, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Senate Bill 621 updates West Virginia’s legal code to modernize court record keeping by explicitly authorizing digital record management. Specifically, it amends two sections of state law to clarify the duties of the Clerk of the Supreme Court of Appeals, requiring them to preserve both digital and physical court records during court sessions. The bill also modifies existing requirements for court order documentation, allowing orders to be kept digitally by the court clerk instead of exclusively in physical books. Additionally, the legislation removes the previous requirement that order books must be signed by a judge or presiding officer, which reflects the shift toward digital record-keeping. These changes are designed to provide more flexibility in court record management and acknowledge the increasing use of digital technologies in judicial administrative processes. The bill will take effect 90 days after its passage, giving courts and clerks time to implement the new digital record-keeping provisions.
Senate Bill 627 amends West Virginia law to allow the state’s director of natural resources to lease underground “pore spaces” (underground geological formations that can store carbon dioxide) in state-owned lands, including state forests, scenic areas, and wildlife management areas, with some significant restrictions. While the bill previously prohibited leasing pore spaces in state parks, it now permits such leasing with key safeguards: no surface disturbance will be allowed on state park property for drilling or injection activities, any well pad’s center must be at least 200 feet from a state park boundary (though the Secretary of Commerce can waive this requirement after evaluating potential impacts on the park’s viewshed, noise levels, and public enjoyment), and all lease proceeds must be exclusively used for improvements and maintenance in the specific lands where the pore space is located. The leasing process will involve competitive bidding, with bids advertised for at least 14 days, and the director can also directly award a lease if the Secretaries of Commerce and Economic Development certify it as part of an economic development project, ensuring the lease provides market-rate or higher royalties.
Senate Bill 650 modifies the regulations for teacher-pupil ratios and classroom support staff in West Virginia schools, specifically focusing on using full-time interventionists in early-grade classrooms. The bill clarifies that a full-time interventionist can be assigned to up to two classrooms to help satisfy staffing requirements, with a key exception: this does not apply to kindergarten and first-grade classrooms. For kindergarten and first grade, any assistant teacher, aide, paraprofessional, or interventionist must be assigned full-time to that specific classroom to meet the requirements. If a full-time interventionist is not available, a part-time interventionist can be used, but they can only be assigned to one classroom. The bill maintains existing classroom size limits (20 pupils for kindergarten and 25 for first through third grades). It provides flexibility for county school boards in staffing while ensuring that classroom support staff are adequately present to support student learning.
Senate Bill 652 expands cardiac arrest response requirements to elementary schools in West Virginia, mandating that all schools develop comprehensive cardiac emergency response plans that are venue-specific and practiced annually. The bill defines key terms like sudden cardiac arrest (when the heart unexpectedly stops beating) and automated external defibrillator (a portable device that can deliver an electric shock to restart the heart) and requires schools to create detailed plans for responding to cardiac emergencies both during athletic events and in other school settings. Schools must hold informational meetings before each athletic season about sudden cardiac arrest warning signs, and students cannot participate in athletic activities without submitting a signed form acknowledging a review of the school’s cardiac emergency response plan. The bill also requires coaches and athletic personnel to complete annual sudden cardiac arrest training, establishes protocols for student participation after fainting episodes, and mandates coordination with local emergency services. Additionally, the bill allows school boards to accept donations for automated external defibrillators and requires youth sports league teams using school grounds to follow similar emergency response guidelines.
Senate Bill 677 increases various fees related to securities registration and filing in West Virginia. Specifically, the bill modifies fees for broker-dealers, agents, investment advisers, and securities issuers across multiple state code sections. Key changes include raising the initial registration fees for broker-dealers to $300, agents to $70, investment advisers to $200, and investment adviser representatives to $75. The bill introduces a new $375 filing fee for Tier 2 Regulation A offerings for federal-covered securities, with a $200 renewal fee for subsequent 12-month periods. The bill also adjusts the annual sales report filing fee to one-eighth of one percent of the maximum offering price, with a minimum of $300 and a maximum of $1,800. Additionally, the bill maintains the State Auditor’s practice of setting up a special operating fund, which receives 25 percent of all fees collected, with any excess above that transferred to the General Revenue Fund.
Senate Bill 710 Â establishes comprehensive regulations for teledentistry practice in West Virginia, defining teledentistry as using telehealth technologies to provide dental services remotely. The bill requires providers to be licensed in the state, maintain professional liability insurance, and adhere to the same standard of care as in-person services. Providers must establish a bona fide patient relationship through an initial in-person examination and review of medical records, with limited exceptions for emergent care, public health programs, and initial orthodontic diagnoses. Before providing teledentistry services, providers must confirm patient identity, obtain informed consent, and verify the patient’s location. The West Virginia Board of Dentistry is tasked with developing rules for teledentistry practice, including standards for prescriptions, record-keeping, patient privacy, and collaboration between providers. Violations of these provisions can result in disciplinary action.
