After completion and passage of the Fiscal Year 2010 Budget lawmakers were called into the First Extraordinary Session of 2009. Each bill on the Governor’s Call was discussed, debated and passed. These included:

House Bill 102 – which adjusted gross receipts from pari-mutual racetracks with West Virginia Lottery racetrack table games. It increased percentages of racetrack table games revenues that are distributed to host counties and municipalities.

House Bill 103 – created the Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio Act which established a minimum alternative and renewable energy portfolio. By the year 2025, at least 25 percent of the electric energy sold to retail customers in this state is to be generated from alternative and renewable energy resources.

House Bill 104 – continues the Motor Fuel Excise Tax Shortfall Reserve Fund although a specific date (June 30, 2013) has been set to terminate the fund.

House Bill 105 -reclassifies retail liquor licenses. Liquor licenses run on a 10 year cycle and are up for re-bidding. The measure allows standalone stores to opt out of competitive bidding and would allow them to pay the minimum bid plus 10 percent.

House Bill 109 – establishes zones of educational innovation that will allow school employees to collaboratively devise and implement 21st Century school improvement strategies that are currently restrained and/or restricted by policies issued by the state board or the West Virginia Code.

House Bill 113 – reissues revenue bonds for tourism and education and provides a procedure for selecting projects which are to receive moneys from the bonds.

Senate Bill 1001 – helps struggling third- and fourth-grade students get back up to par with their peers through a summer instruction program. The additional in-school, after-school or summer school instruction would cover deficiencies in reading, math, or language arts.

Senate Bill 1002 – allows the development of pay rates and employment requirements to support the recruitment and retention of certain classified service positions at Mildred Mitchell-Bateman Hospital and William R. Sharpe Hospital. The Legislature found that the two mental health facilities have extreme difficulty in recruiting and retaining health care providers and other employees who assist in the direct service of medical care to patients.

Senate Bill 1003 – establishes the High- Technology Business Property Valuation Act which would make some high tech materials and tangible personal property exempt from the consumers sales and service tax and the use tax. In addition the bill calls for taxing high-tech companies at their salvage value, which is five percent of actual value. The measure is designed to encourage high-tech companies to locate Internet “server farms” in the state.

Senate Bill 1006 – revises dates for action with respect to hiring, termination, resignation or transfer of teachers and school personnel so that hiring determinations may be made earlier in the year to better allow county boards to recruit new teachers. It also allows county school boards to hire graduating college seniors, pending their obtaining a teacher’s certificate. This change permits school boards to participate at job fairs.

Senate Bill 1009 – provides a tax deduction for creation of trusts to support children with autism and also establishes the procedure of creating the funds.

Senate Bill 1010 – allows a county commission to adopt an ordinance that limits the areas of the county in which a business may offer “exotic entertainment”. However, changes in an ordinance prior to the passage of this bill may not affect an existing business.

Senate Bill 1011 – expands the Office of Coalfield Community Development’s authority to develop post-mining land use plans for mountaintop-removal sites. This would assure the participation of the office in working with local economic development authorities in developing post-mine sites.

Senate Bill 1014 – provides $26.5 million to assist flood victims throughout the state.

Senate Bill 1015 – provides $21 million to ease the backlog of past-due payments owed by the state’s Public Defender Services. The program reimburses attorneys who are asked by judges to represent poor people in criminal and other cases.

The Legislature has adjourned Sine Die and will return to Charleston for June Interim Meetings on June 15-17.

In a late afternoon session the Senate passed the following six bills that had been read a first time earlier today:

House Bill 102 relates to the allocation of adjusted gross receipts from pari-mutuel racetracks with West Virginia Lottery racetrack table games.
House Bill 103 deals with the Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio Act.
House Bill 104 relates to the Motor Fuel Excise Tax Shortfall Reserve Fund.
House Bill 105 relates to the issuance of retail licenses for the sale of liquor.
House Bill 109 creates the School Innovations Zones Act.
House Bill 113 relates to revenue bonds for tourism and education and provides a procedure for the selection of projects to receive money resulting from such bonds.

The Senate also concurred with House amendments on five other bills and approved them for passage. The amended bills that passed were Senate Bill 1001, Senate Bill 1003, Senate Bill 1006, Senate Bill 1010 and Senate Bill 1011

The Senate adjourned Sine Die.

In its late morning floor session the Senate passed three bills and read six bills a first time. The passed bills include Senate Bill 1009 which provides tax deduction for trust funds for children with autism, and two supplemental bills. Senate Bill 1014 is a supplemental appropriation for flood recovery and Senate Bill 1015 makes a supplemental appropriation from the Excess Lottery Revenue Fund to Public Defender Services.

These bills will now head to the House for consideration.

The Senate also advanced the following six bills to second reading:

House Bill 102 relates to the allocation of adjusted gross receipts from pari-mutuel racetracks with West Virginia Lottery racetrack table games.
House Bill 103 deals with the Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio Act.
House Bill 104 relates to the Motor Fuel Excise Tax Shortfall Reserve Fund.
House Bill 105 relates to the issuance of retail licenses for the sale of liquor.
House Bill 109 creates the School Innovations Zones Act.
House Bill 113 relates to revenue bonds for tourism and education and provides a procedure for the selection of projects to receive money resulting from such bonds.

The Senate Finance Committee will meet today at 1:15 p.m. in Room 451M.

The Senate will reconvene today at 3:00 p.m.

The Senate passed six bills in their afternoon floor session, reading all of the bills a second time and then suspending the constitutional rules and reading them a third time to speed up the legislative process. The following bills passed this afternoon:

Senate Bill 1001 creates critical skills instructional support programs for third and eighth grades.
Senate Bill 1002 relates to recruitment and retention of certain employees at Mildred Mitchell-Bateman Hospital and William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital.
Senate Bill 1003 creates the High-Technology Business Property Valuation Act.
Senate Bill 1006 relates to hiring, terminating, transferring and reassigning teachers and school personnel.
Senate Bill 1010 provides county commissions with authority to regulate location of exotic entertainment businesses.
Senate Bill 1011 relates to post-mine land use development.

These bills will now move to the House for consideration.

The Senate Finance Committee will meet tomorrow, Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009 at 9:30 a.m. in Room 451M.

The Senate will reconvene at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow.

During a morning meeting of the Senate five bills were reported out of their respective committees. Three of the bills were reported out of the Education Committee and were read a second time prior to being referred to the Finance Committee for its consideration.

Senate Bill 1001 would create critical skills instructional support programs for third and eighth grades.
Senate Bill 1006 relates to the hiring, termination, transferring and reassigning of teachers and school personnel.
Senate Bill 1008 would create the School Innovation Zones Act.

Two other bills were reported out of the Judiciary Committee after being amended. They are:

Senate Bill 1004 which relates to the allocation of adjusted gross receipts from pari-mutuel racetracks with racetrack table games; and, Senate Bill 1007 which relates to the issuance and classification of retail liquor licenses. These bills were referred to the Finance Committee for further evaluation.

The Senate Finance Committee meets today, Monday, June 1st, 2009 at 1:00 p.m. in Room 451M.

The Senate is in recess until 3:00 p.m. today.

Following the conclusion of the Regular Session, the Legislature convened for the First Special Session of 2009. The agenda consists of 13 bills in each chamber with each the Senate and the House having their own versions.

To expedite the process, lawmakers read all 13 of the bills for a first time prior to the legislation being referred to committee.

The following House committees will meet tomorrow:

Finance- 11:00 a.m – 462M
Judiciary – 10:00 a.m. – 434M
Government Organization – 1:00 p.m. – 215E

The following Senate committees will meet tomorrow:

Economic Development – 9:00 a.m. – 451M
Judiciary – 10:00 a.m. – 208W

The Senate will reconvene at 11 a.m. tomorrow and the House will reconvene at 5 p.m.