As of 5 p.m., Wednesday, April 1, 2009, the 50th Day of the 79th Legislature’s 1st Regular Session, 1,340 bills have been introduced in the House of Delegates. Of those, 175 have passed and have been sent to the Senate for its consideration. Some of bills passed this week were:
House Bill 2133 would increase the penalties for littering. The minimum fine for depositing less than 100 pounds of litter would increase from $50 to $100. The Supreme Court would be required to increase the mandatory community service sentence from eight to 16 hours. If the offender deposits over 100 pounds of litter, the Supreme Court would be mandated to sentence the person to 24 to 40 hours of community service.
House Bill 2415 would identify salvia divinorum as a hallucinogen and add it to the list of controlled substances. This bill is in response to a recent upswing in the use of the hallucinogenic leaf. Any person who possess a material, compound, mixture or preparation intended for human consumption which contains salvia divinorum would be guilty of a misdemeanor and jailed up to six months and/or fined $1,000.
House Bill 2464 would authorize a county commission to designate locations for early voting other than the county courthouse or annex. Currently, only the courthouse is used for early voting.
House Bill 2621 would prohibit the use of cell phones and text messaging devices while operating a motor vehicle, except when using a hands free device or in the case of an emergency. This would be a secondary offense, and persons in violation would be charged with a misdemeanor and fined up to $25.
House Bill 2832 would require the State Board of Education to adopt proficiency standards in reading, language arts and mathematics for students in the third and eighth grades. Each student in those grades would be evaluated on those standards. Students who meet the standards would be eligible for promotion and those who do not would be required to enroll in an after-school or summer critical skills instructional support program. Counties would be required to establish the programs based on a model and curriculum established by the State Board. Students who do not successfully complete the program may not be promoted.
House Bill 2868 would create and maintain the West Virginia Autistic Children’s Trust Fund. It would also create a tax credit (equal to an amount paid into a trust) for contributing to the future support of an autistic minor.
House Bill 2885 would streamline the credentialing process for health care providers by establishing a uniform credentialing application, and creating a single Credentialing Verification Organization (CVO).
House Bill 2894 would provide individual and commercial users of the West Virginia Turnpike with a tax credit. Individuals would receive a $300 maximum credit and residents of Summers County along with several others, could receive a presumptive $25 credit. If the tolls paid exceed the maximum credit, individuals would be allowed to deduct the excess as an ordinary business expense.
House Bill 2957 would develop a program to collect the name, longitudinal and latitudinal data of all cemeteries within West Virginia through the county cooperative extension services. Once implemented, extension workers, along with members of local 4-H organizations, would collect the data with GPS devices and provide it to the Director of the Historic Preservation Section of the Division of Culture and History.
House Bill 2986 would authorize municipalities to impose an excise tax of $50 for every transfer of real estate in which the property is valued at more than $25,000. The funds must be put into a special account and only used for demolishing abandoned buildings.
House Bill 2967 would encourage teachers who have achieved a National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certificate to renew their NBPTS certifications, which are valid for 10 years. The bill clarifies that the $3,500 bonus would be paid to teachers with a renewed certificate in each year it is valid. It also authorizes a reimbursement of the renewal certification fee (currently $1,150) for teachers who complete renewal.
House Bill 3051 would provide immediate family members and funeral directors with veterans’ death certificates at no cost.
House Bill 3134 would require the Secretary of State to establish a voting by mail pilot program. The Secretary of State would select five municipalities to participate and all registered and other qualified voters would be eligible.
House Bill 3192 would require all reports to the Governor from state officers, boards, commissions, departments and institutions to be made available electronically.
House Bill 3197 authorizes municipalities that have adopted anti-litter ordinances to appoint special litter prevention officers. These officers would have authority to issue citations, summonses and sign complaints.
