The House of Delegates convened at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 2 to consider multiple pieces of legislation, including the proposed House budget for fiscal year 2020.
House Bill 2020, a committee substitute passed out of House Finance committee last week, was on third reading on this day with amendments pending. The bill is split in 19 distinct sections and provides for the government appropriations within the state of WV for fiscal year 2020.
Finance Committee Chairman, Eric Householder, R-Berkley, explained the bill in sections for House members.
Noteworthy provisions in House Bill 2020 include $1.3 billion dollars for state roads, federal block grants equaling $550 million, $24 million for the State Legislature, $121 million for the WV Judicial Branch, and $40 million for the WV Executive Branch. The Department of Administration will receive $121 billion, an increase from last year to establish the WV Cybersecurity Office, $40 million for child welfare within the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Commerce will get $80 million.
Overall, the proposed House budget bill would see a $49 million deviation from the Governor’s original proposed budget.
“Here’s your budget, in record time,” Delegate Householder said. “We have included the promised pay raises to our state employees, we have funding for PEIA, and we have allocations for all of our state agencies.”
The budget bill went under several amendments that added technical clarification and further allocations for the state surplus fund.
Householder moved to make a technical amendment to the budget bill, which updated phone numbers of certain state agencies within the bill. The amendment was adopted unanimously.
A number of female Democratic Delegates offered an amendment that would give $125,000 to 9 sexual assault prevention programs across the state out of the surplus fund to help them establish more programs to help victims. After little discussion, this amendment was adopted.
An amendment was also adopted to the budget bill to also allocate $200,000 out of the surplus fund to give to the DHHR to update their newborn screening laboratories.
As amended, the House of Delegates passed the budget bill in a vote of 92-5.
Other bills that were passed by the House of Delegates on this day included Senate Bill 60, which is a bill to transition qualified state athletic trainers from certification to licensure.
Senate Bill 310 was also unanimously passed by the House. This bill would prohibit a health insurance contractor that covers dental services or a participating provider that has an agreement with a dentist from setting fees unless the services are covered services. The bill also provides that a dentist may not charge more for services and materials that are not covered under a dental benefits policy than his or her usual customary rate.
Senate Bill 408 underwent a technical amendment and then was passed with no debate. This bill would clarify who has the right to determine indigence for public defender services. The passage of this bill would give the authority to make the determination of the need for a public defender to the court administrator in circuits with one. In circuits with no administrator but a public defender’s office, a public defender employee makes the determination. Circuits with neither an administrator or a public defender office, the circuit court makes the determination.
Senate Bill 641 was also passed on this day. This bill would convert the existing revolving loan fund to a grant Primary Care Support Program for federally qualified health centers and federally qualified look-alike in order to secure federal medical assistance percentage funding.
Bills on second reading that were advanced on this day without amendment include Senate Bill 441 and Senate Bill 635.
Senate Bill 520, Senate Bill 635, and Senate Bill 668 all underwent technical amendments.
Senate Bill 3 was amended thoroughly by the House Judiciary Committee, which made efforts to combine Senate Bill 3 with similar provisions from the House’s version of the bill, House Bill 2001. The strike and insert amended included language from House Bill 2001 pertaining to pole attachments and feasibility studies, but kept most of the language in Senate Bill 3 the same. The amendment was adopted and the bill was advanced to third reading.
Senate Bill 72 was also amended by the House Judiciary Committee. This amendment would add a sentence to the Sexual Assault Victim’s Bill of Rights that pertains to protections for children.
Bills on first reading were all advanced.
The House of Delegates is in Recess until 4 p.m. today, Saturday, March 2. The House will reconvene to receive committee reports.
Committees Meeting Today After Floor Session:
-The House Health and Human Resources will meet at 2 p.m. in 215-E.
-The House Committee on the Judiciary will meet at 3 p.m. in 418-M.
-The House Committee on Finance will meet at 3 p.m. in 460-M.
The House of Delegates met briefly at 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 2 to receive committee reports and advance Resolutions.
The House of Delegates is adjourned until 11 a.m. on Monday, March 4.
Committees Meeting Monday Before Floor Session:
-The House Education Committee will meet at 9 a.m. in 434-M.
-The House Government Organization Committee will meet at 9 a.m. in 215-E.
-The House Committee on the Judiciary will meet at 9:15 a.m. in 418-M.
-The House Rules Committee will meet at 10:45 a.m. behind the House chamber.
