The Senate met on Thursday morning and adopted Senate Resolution 62, which would designate March 12, 2026, as West Virginia Athletic Trainers’ Day.
The Senate also completed legislative action on several bills, advanced bills on third reading, and received messages from the House.
House Bill 4002 would establish the West Virginia Collaboratory.
The West Virginia Collaboratory would be housed at Marshall University and facilitate the dissemination of the policy and research expertise of state institutions of higher education.
The following includes, but is not limited to, what the laboratory must do with the funds available by appropriation of the Legislature:
- Conduct, manage, or participate in research projects and opportunities that may be of interest to citizens and policymakers.
- Conduct research in areas of workforce development, public education, economic development, and natural resource management.
- Support research programs at institutions of higher education within the Collaboratory’s areas of focus and expertise
- Identify, pursue, and support research development opportunities through technology research and development, including funding opportunities and partnerships between institutions of higher education, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and both private and public businesses.
The bill completed legislative action and was sent to the governor’s desk.
House Bill 4008 would amend and expand the West Virginia Business Ready Site Program to improve the state’s industrial site development. The bill aims to certify and enhance sites for economic development by providing funding for infrastructure improvements.
Key provisions would include:
- Site Certification: The bill would establish a certification process to assess and select sites based on their readiness for industrial development, focusing on criteria like utilities and transportation access.
- Funding Assistance: It would provide matching grants and microgrants to support site improvements, covering up to 50% of costs for addressing infrastructure deficiencies.
- Utility Infrastructure: The bill would allow utilities to recover costs for infrastructure development, making sites more attractive for industrial projects.
- Certified Sites Fund: A new fund would be created to support the program, drawing from appropriations and other resources.
The bill completed legislative action and was sent to the governor’s desk.
House Bill 4481 would establish the West Virginia Load Forecast Accountability Act.
The bill establishes oversight and reporting mechanisms for electric load forecasting in the state. The bill aims to ensure that electric load forecasts, used for planning future energy needs, are reliable, consistent, and aligned with the state’s long-term energy goals.
The Public Service Commissions (PSC) would be given the authority to review and validate load forecasts submitted by utilities to PJM Interconnection. This includes evaluating the methods, data, and assumptions used in the forecasts.
The bill passed the full Senate and was reported to the House of Delegates to concur.
As of this writing 129 bills, including 66 Senate bills have completed legislative action.
The Senate is in recess until 3 p.m.
