The House Judiciary Committee and its subcommittees met this morning.
Judiciary
House Bill 5066 would prohibit the release of the addresses and names of people who make contributions to political campaigns. If someone were to release said information, misdemeanor penalties are spelled out in the bill. This bill was reported to the floor.
Delegate Evan Hansen (D – Monongalia, 079) proposed an amendment to include the State treasurer in the protection outlined in the bill. This amendment was adopted.
House Bill 5105 would prohibit the financial exploitation of people recovering from addiction. Any individual who is in charge of a person in recovery’s finances that takes advantage of said finances is guilty of a misdemeanor and, if convicted, shall be fined up to $1,000 or put in jail for up to a year, or both fined and confined.
House Bill 5198 would increase the penalty for crimes against people who have a mental disability.
House Bill 5203 would prohibit any municipality from issuing any municipal ID for voting in a municipal election. This bill was reported to the floor.
House Bill 5214 would require parents with child abuse and/or child neglect claims against them to be drug tested before their children can be placed back into their care.
House Bill 4656 would address absenteeism in students and shift the focus from punitive to preventative. This bill would remove having 10 or more unexcused absences as a status offense. This bill would also provide different services to prevent chronic absenteeism, such as financial help, mental health support services, or transportation to school if needed.
House Bill 4799 would establish the cold case task force for the State of West Virginia. This task force would investigate and prosecute offenders in cold cases. The cold case task force would be authorized to cooperate with federal, state, and local law-enforcement agencies.
House Bill 4842 would clarify the civil cause of action for people exposing intimate images. This civil action would be similar to the civil cause of action for people who commit sexual extortion.
House Bill 4850 would require online training to be provided for Executors/Executrixes of an Estate.
House Bill 5341 would create a domestic violence registry. This registry would include several pieces of information about the names of the people who have been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor offense of domestic violence. This information would include, but is not limited to, the address where the person will reside or resides at the time of registration, their Social Security number, a full-face photograph, a brief description of the crime or crimes for which the registrant was convicted, fingerprints and palm prints, and motor vehicle information.
Legal Services
House Bill 5401 would clarify how voting in West Virginia elections works while residing overseas. This bill would clearly state that any individual who is a United States citizen who is temporarily living abroad and was a West Virginian resident can vote in the state and federal elections. This bill was reported to the Judiciary.
House Bill 5416 would give trustees and pastors the authority to make a deal with only one trustee and the pastor, whether it be for borrowing money or encumbering property. This bill was reported to the Judiciary.
House Bill 5067 would clarify the authority to enter into agreements with law-enforcement agencies of the Department of Homeland Security to seek certain grant funds. This bill was advanced to markup and discussion.
Homeland Security
House Bill 5444 would increase the amount of fees to be paid by parolees based on their ability to pay, which would be an increase from $40 to $50. This fee would be only for the supervision. This bill was sent to the Judiciary.
House Bill 5449 would repeal the Addiction Treatment Pilot Program since the pilot program no longer exists.
House Bill 5454 would change the authorities of the select committee’s oversight of the West Virginia Fusion Center. This bill would also direct the Legislative Auditor to conduct an annual audit of the Fusion Center.
House Bill 5206 would make certain acts of panhandling and solicitation illegal, fire departments, school organizations, and 501(c)(3) organizations are exempt from this.
Courts
House Bill 5406 would make the WV State Police Forensic Laboratory responsible for certification, standards, and administration of secondary chemical tests. The bill also makes the forensic laboratory responsible for approval of the devices and methods of preliminary breath analysis.
In addition to these changes, this bill would also give the rule-making authority to the State Police, rather than the Bureau of Public Health.
House Bill 4604 would increase the compensation of all panel attorneys and guardians ad litem up to $100 an hour. Â The bill also creates an assistant guardian ad litem position.
