The House Finance Committee advanced a bill that would require defibrillators at any secondary school athletic event and practices.
House Bill 4497, as amended, would make this a requirement for the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activity Commission for the duration of the high school or middle school event or practice. The bill also requires the commission to have a posted emergency action plan.
The committee also advanced an originating bill that creates a new tax credit for 501(c)3 charitable organizations registered in the state. The organization could claim the credit, which is an aggregate amount of $300,000 per year, for cars donated or sold to it for donating vehicles to low-income workers. Workers who qualify under the bill would be at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. The credit is on a first-come first-serve basis.
Another bill advanced by the committee would establish a severance tax rebate for metallurgical coal mines. Â Under the bill, a coal operator could qualify for the rebate if it has experienced a total increase of all mines operated. The operator would have to show an overall increase of production from all mines or it would not be able to claim the rebate.
Large seam metallurgical coal would be included in this calculation under House Bill 4439 but not small steam coal mines because of the severance tax was lowered in a bill that passed last year below the maximum required for the rebate of 5%. The committee substitute added further clarification to limit the rebate to 80% of the aggregate total of severance taxes of the rebate year compared to the base year, which was initially established.
