Page 235 – Wrap Up

Senate Completes Legislation on Bill Related to Higher Education

Senate Floor Session

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March 14, 2017

The Senate has completed legislation on three bills today.

HB 2542 will provide more flexibility in human resources and personnel to institutions of higher education.

HB 2590 will update the meaning of “federal taxable income” and certain other terms used in the West Virginia Corporation Net Income Tax Act by bringing them into conformity with their meaning for Internal Revenue Code’s definitions. This bill is effective from passage.

HB 2594 will update the meaning of “federal adjusted gross income” and certain other terms used in the West Virginia Personal Income Tax Act. This bill is effective from passage.

The Senate has also passed seven bills to be sent to the House for further consideration.

SB 25 would establish a credit against personal and corporate income taxes for farmers who donate edible agricultural products to food banks and other nonprofit food programs serving needy persons.

SB 256 would prohibit school personnel who have engaged in sexual misconduct with students or minors from being assisted to find new employment without having that misconduct reported to the appropriate authorities and investigated.

SB 326 would require department of defense family advocacy groups to be notified about any abuse or neglect of a child of a military person.

SB 364 would incorporate changes made to the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement.

SB 440 would specify where the Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority may invest its excess funds.

SB 455 would remove archaic language regarding commitment orders and to require that the sentencing court complete a certified commitment order in the form provided in this section or in a similar form containing the same information. This bill also clarifies that the sentencing court is required to transmit the certified commitment order to the Commissioner of the Division of Corrections.

HB 2167 would add senior citizens to the Silver Alert program.

Members of the Senate also adopted SR 35 to congratulate Wirt High School’s wrestling team for winning the Class A state championship and SR 36 to designate today as West Virginia State University Day at the Capitol.

Senate Bills 597-604 were introduced.

Senate Bills 28, 187, 302, 303, 306, 454, 466 and 497 were advanced from second reading. Senate Bills 255 and 531 were requested to lie over one day in second reading.

Of those bills advanced, SB 28 was amended by Senators Ron Stollings, D-Boone, and Robert Karnes, R-Upshur, to create a pilot program for the trails by limiting the bill to two trails for the next five years to determine their success. Once this amendment passed, Stollings again amended the bill to change the law enforcement authority from deputy sheriffs under county jurisdiction to recreation officers who he said would be able to cross through counties and would be much more knowledgeable in maintaining the trails.

Committee Meetings Today

Energy, Industry and Mining: 1:30 p.m. in 208W

Health and Human Resources: 1:30 p.m. in 451M

Government Organization: 2 p.m. in 208W

Education: 2 p.m. in 451M

Judiciary: 3 p.m. in 208W

Finance: 3 p.m. in 451M

Transportation and Infrastructure: 4:30 p.m. (or once Judiciary and Finance have adjourned) in 208W

Committee Meetings Tomorrow

Economic Development: 1 p.m. in 208W

Agriculture and Rural Development: 2 p.m. in 208W

Pensions: 2 p.m. in 451M

The Senate is adjourned until 11 a.m. tomorrow.

Mining and Environmental Safety Bill Approved in Senate Energy

Senate Committee

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March 14, 2017

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The Senate Energy, Industry and Mining Committee has approved a bill concerning coal mining, coal mining safety and environmental protection.

The bill, SB 582, would address these issues through various measures, including the establishment of a Special Reclamation Water Trust Fund to protect water sources, the formation of a staff of mine rescue teams to assist in emergency situations and the creation of new mine inspection requirements to prevent possible dangers or hazards from bring harm to employees, employers and the surrounding population.

The bill was assigned to a subcommittee for further evaluation.

Senator Dave Sypolt, R-Preston, will serve as Chair of the committee, and Senators Chandler Swope, R-Mercer, and Glenn Jeffries, D-Putnam, will serve as members.

The bill will be referred to Finance once reported to the floor.

House Passes Elimination of Courtesy Patrol

House Floor Session

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March 14, 2017

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Today, the House of Delegates passed three bills and adopted six resolutions including a bill to eliminate the West Virginia Courtesy Patrol.

HB 2007 would eliminate the courtesy patrol and sends any of the remaining funds from the program to the State Road Fund.

HB 2119 would repeal the West Virginia Health Benefit Act.

HB 2518 would allow pharmacists or pharmacy interns to administer flu and HPV immunizations.

HCR 5 names a bridge in Grafton, Taylor County the U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Fredrick Burdett Warder Memorial Bridge.

HCR 6 names a portion of County Route 3/5 in Kanawha County the U.S. Army SPC 4 Thurman “Duwayne” Young Memorial Road.

HCR 13 names a bridge over Big Sandy Creek in Newton, Roane County the U.S. Army SSG Brian Curtis Rogers Memorial Bridge.

HCR 36 names a bridge along County Route 35 in Cabell County, locally known as the Green Valley Bridge as the U.S. Army PFC John Ira Pinkerman Memorial Bridge.

HCR 37 names a bridge over the CSX Railroad in Putnam County the U.S. Army SPC 4 William L. Amos Memorial Bridge.

HCR 60 names a bridge over County Route 33 in Marion County the William “Bill” R. VanGider Memorial Bridge.

Committee Meetings March 14:

Political Subdivisions: 1:30 p.m. in 434M

Health and Human Resources: Public Hearing for SB 347 at 2 p.m. in 215E; meeting following the hearing

Industry and Labor: 5:30 in 215E

Committee Meetings March 15:

Finance: 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. in 460M

Judiciary: 9 a.m. in 410M

Education: 9 a.m. in 434M

Gov. Org.: 9 a.m. in 215E

Rules: 10:45 a.m. in room behind House Chamber

Ag. And Natural Resources: 5 p.m. in 215E

The House is adjourned until 11 a.m. tomorrow.

Senate Transportation Approves Bills Related to DOH and DMV

Senate Committee

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March 14, 2017

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The Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has approved two bills to be reported to the floor with the recommendation that they pass.

SB 15 would eliminate the sunset on Division of Highways (DOH) public-private partnership agreements and, therefore, allow the division to enter into comprehensive agreements with developers after June 30, 2017—the current sunset date.

Mike Clowser, executive director of the Contractors Association of West Virginia, spoke in favor of the bill’s passage, saying that the bill would allow the division to “capitalize” on future infrastructure opportunities.

SB 477 would increase the State Road Fund by increasing Division of Motor Vehicle (DMV) administrative fees and motor fuel excise taxes, including titling, registration, driver licensing, identification card issuance and abstract fees. Every five years, the DMV fees will increase based on the U.S. Department of Labor Consumer Price Index.

This bill increases the flat rate component of the motor fuel excise tax from 20.5 cents to 30.5 cents per invoice gallon of motor fuel and upon each gallon equivalent of alternative fuel. The bill also increases the minimum average wholesale sales price of motor fuel from $2.34 to $3.04. All changes are effective July 1, 2017.

The fiscal note shows the bill would generate $34 million annually for the state.

Senator Robert Beach, D-Monongalia, spoke in support of the bill and said it had been until 2011 since the legislature has brought in as much funding for the DOH as this bill would bring.

Louie Southworth said on behalf of Go Mart gas stations that he was very concerned about raising the price of gas, since all bordering states except for Pennsylvania would have lower gas prices that could draw sales out of the state, particularly in border counties.

Senator Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, said she agrees with Southworth, since she lives nearly 2 miles away from Virginia and plans to get gas across the state border to save money for her family.

Clowser voiced his support for the bill and said “we have no choice with no funding coming in” but to raise gas prices in order to raise revenues for the state.

He listed several statistics to show how West Virginia’s funding for infrastructure has been steadily declining and how the state could save money by having citizens drive on roads that don’t damage their cars, as well as providing thousands of jobs to rebuild those roads.

Both bills approved in this committee meeting will be referred to Senate Finance once reported to the floor.

The committee will recess until 4 p.m. today, or after today’s Senate Finance Committee meeting adjourns.

House Committee on Industry and Labor Discusses Three Bills

House Committee

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March 14, 2017

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The House Committee on Industry and Labor met today to discuss three bills. The bills were HB 2776, HB 2897, and HB 2857.

House Bill 2776 would create a special revenue funding source for the Division of Labor. This bill was laid over until later after some discussion regarding it.

House Bill 2897 would raise the amount required for competitive bidding of construction contracts by the state and its subdivisions. The bill would also entail that if an emergency is declared, then the bidding requirement can be exempted. The bill was amended by the committee. The bill was referred to the Committee on Government Organization with the recommendation that it pass as amended.

House Bill 2857 would create the West Virginia Safer Workplaces Act.

The committee is in recess until 5:30 p.m.

Subcommittee on HB 2781 Discusses Voter IDs

House Committee

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March 14, 2017

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The Subcommittee on HB 2781 met today to discuss the proposed Voter ID bill.

House Bill 2781 would require a person desiring to vote to present documentation identifying the voter to one of the poll clerks. The valid IDs would include a West Virginia driver’s license, passport, employee ID card produced by the state or institutions of the state, and military ID card. Those failing to provide those forms of identification would be able to vote under a provisional ballot. Those living in a residential care home would be exempt along with those who have a religious objection to photography. The bill would also repeal the automatic voter registration program.

The subcommittee discussed the effectiveness of the provisional ballots today. Council said voters who go to the wrong precinct already fill out a provisional ballot, but under this new law, they can be told where their correct precinct is in order to fill out the correct ballot. When council was questioned about how many provisional ballots may be thrown out they said about 12 in 100. However, whether or not to count provisional ballots is up to the clerks of the county and all or none may also be counted. There is also a higher likelihood of a provisional ballot being thrown out if the person voted in the wrong precinct.

In the next committee meeting, they will be exploring how this bill could affect the Department of Motor Vehicles and the accessibility of photo IDs.

The subcommittee will meet again at 8 a.m. on Thursday, March 16, and hopes to have a recommendation at the end of that meeting.

Firearm carry in recreational areas approved by House Ag. and Nat. Resources

House Committee

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March 14, 2017

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The House Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources met today and discussed four bills.

HB 2552 would increase the pet food registration fee and direct that the additional money to the West Virginia Spay and Neuter Fund. The money is paid by the manufacturer when it registers its product to the Department of Agriculture for quality testing. The bill increases the registration fee from $50 to $150 for products over 10lbs. The $50 would continue to cover the cost of testing and additional $100 would then be deposited into the Spay and Neuter Fund. The bill was approved by the committee and will be reported to the floor to be referred the Committee on Finance.

HB 2679 would prohibit county park commissions from prohibiting firearms in their facilities and to clarify that a firearm may be carried by a person for self-defense in state parks, state forests and state recreational areas managed by the Department of Natural Resources. The bill was approved by the committee and will be reported to the floor to be referred to the Committee on Judiciary. Although, request was made to waive the second reference.

SB 410 would permit the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources identification tag to be used to identify a trap. The bill was approved and will be reported to the floor to be referred to the Judiciary Committee.

HB 2949 would exempt specified Division of Natural Resources’ contracts for some replacement, repair, or design for repairs to facilities from review and approval requirements of the Division of Purchasing. The bill was approved by the committee and will be reported to the floor to be referred to the Committee on Government Organization.

HB 2821 WV Farm-to-Food Bank Tax Credit – This bill would establish a credit against personal and corporate income taxes for farmers who donate edible agricultural products to food banks and other nonprofit food programs serving needy persons. Must submit a tax credit review every two years. Language is almost identical to SB 25 which has passed the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and the Senate Finance Committee. Recommended it do pass, but first referred to Finance.

Legislature Releases Budget Framework

House Floor Session

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March 13, 2017

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Senate President Carmichael (R-Jackson) and House of Delegates Speaker Armstead (R-Kanawha) released their framework for the legislature’s budget bill today.

President Carmichael said the plan would be to spend no more that we have.

In their proposed framework there would be no tax increases and would limit the budget to $4.055 billion dollars as opposed to Governor Justice’s proposed $4.5-Billion-dollar spending limit.

President Carmichael said, “The people of West Virginia can’t afford to write that check. We must live within our means.”

Speaker Armstead said tax increases to boost the economy has been debunked and the legislature is committed to lessen spending.

President Carmichael then reiterated that he isn’t talking about cuts but rather sustaining what they already have. The framework that they are providing would contain government growth and reduce spending in that way.

President Carmichael said he would not support the governor’s proposed tax increases but he will support his tax reforms. One such reform would be the bill that would repeal the income tax and replace it with a consumption tax. This bill is currently in the Senate.

When questioned about how the cuts will effect agencies’ current operations President Carmichael said that any cuts will hurt how they currently operate. He wants to see them become more efficient and responsible with the funds they do have. He also said that he is willing to go into those off limits territories when it comes to cutting the budget.

Speaker Armstead said in regards to education, “When we talk about education cuts, we are not talking about cutting in to the classrooms. We are talking about cutting the education bureaucracy on a state level.”

When asked about the Governor’s reaction President Carmichael said, “James seems as though he will be cooperative and we as a legislature are willing to work with him. But all we can do is control our own behavior.”

President Carmichael commented on the state of budgeting practices and said, “We are announcing that we are planning on living within our means and its news.”

Although there is no proposed budget bill from the legislature yet, President Carmichael and Speaker Armstead are confident that the budget will be passed by day 60 of the legislature. They explained that the drafting of the actual budget bill won’t take long, it is knowing what they want in the bill that takes a while and since they are announcing the framework on day 34, the rest should fall in to place shortly.

Senate Banking and Insurance Approves Bill Related to Pharmacy Audit Procedures

Senate Committee

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March 13, 2017

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The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee has approved two bills to be reported to the full Senate with the recommendation that they pass.

SB 434 would update the West Virginia Guaranty Association Act.

Brian Helmick, legal counsel to the West Virginia Guaranty Association, addressed concerns from the committee.

Helmick said the Act has not been updated for the past 47 years since it first passed.

The bill will be referred to Senate Judiciary once reported to the floor.

SB 522 would define audit procedures between pharmacy benefits managers and pharmacies.

Matt Walker was available on behalf of the West Virginia Independent Pharmacy Association to answer questions.

Six bills Discussed by House Judiciary

House Committee

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March 13, 2017

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Today the Judiciary Committee met. The following bills were discussed:

HB 2796 would allow the guard to contract for specialized technical services with the federal government, its instrumentalities and agencies, any state, territory or the District of Columbia and its agencies and instrumentalities, municipalities, foreign governments, public bodies, private corporations, partnerships, associations and individuals for specialized technical services to support specific activities related to national security, homeland security and other military-related programs.

HB 2811 would clarify the tanks discussed in this article have the capacity of 210 barrels or less, containing oil or brine water are not regulated in the article 22-30-3 of West Virginia Code.

HB 2845 would establish that the Division of Corrections is responsible for inmate’s housing costs beginning the day after the inmate’s conviction.

HB 2546 would allow uniform costs to be deducted from an employee’s final paycheck if the uniform is not returned.

HB 2676 would authorize the Director of Security and security officers who are employed by the Divisions of Culture and History to carry a firearm or concealed weapon upon the West Virginia Complex and state property for the security and protection of visitors and employees of the Division of Culture and History.

HB 2868 would clarify that presumed abandoned property in the form of amounts owed by an insurer on a life or endowment insurance policy or an annuity that has matured or terminated and obligations related which are guided by policies, requirements, and interpretations of the Insurance Commissioner.