In Review
Under the Dome delivers a review of the issues being considered by state government
and the 84th West Virginia Legislature of West Virginia. It provides information
on matters that affect WVU and higher education. This edition provides an update
on a number of high-profile bills and resolutions introduced.
Impact Fund
HB 4001 creates the West Virginia Impact Fund and the Mountaineer Impact Office to
allow the State to support and, in some cases, sponsor projects that are meant
to jump-start innovative high-growth businesses and high-impact economic development
projects. The bill is sponsored by Speaker Roger Hanshaw, Minority Leader Tim Miley
and a bipartisan group of lawmakers.
The bill was debated and passed by the House Finance Committee on January 30 and
will be up for passage in the House on February 4.
SJR 8 and 9
Senate Republicans have introduced two resolutions dealing with personal property tax on business machinery, equipment and inventory and granting them authority in the future to lower the ad valorem tax on motor vehicles and other tangible personal property. They believe these measures will increase manufacturing and investment in the state’s economy.Senate Joint Resolution 8 (Manufacturing Growth Amendment) seeks to phase out the
ad valorem tax over four years, starting on July 1, 2021. The legislation also
proposes to restore revenue funding potentially lost to counties, municipalities
and local schools. This resolution has not yet been considered by the Senate Judiciary
or Finance committees.
Senate Joint Resolution 9 (Authorizing the Legislature to Eliminate or Lower Ad Valorem
Tax on Motor Vehicles and Any Other Tangible Personal Property) would propose a
State constitutional amendment, which would have to be approved by the voters,
to grant authority to the Legislature to have the power to eliminate or change
the personal property tax on motor vehicles and other tangible personal property.
This resolution has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee and must be considered
by the Senate Finance Committee. It would have to be passed by two-thirds of the
members of the Senate and House and approved by the citizens of West Virginia.
Campus Carry
HB 2032 and HB 2519, both relating to campus carry, were introduced on January 8. However, these are carry-over bills from the previous session of the Legislature. These type of bills are not necessarily acted upon and are often submitted only as a courtesy to legislators and constituents.Neither bill has been considered yet by the Legislature. All indications are that
it will not be considered during this session. We will continue to monitor for
additional legislation and advocate for local decision-making authority to remain
with our Board of Governors.
Soft Drinks Tax
SB 538, repealing the excise tax on soft drinks, was introduced in the Senate on January 20. Senator Maynard is the lead sponsor and the bill is referred first to the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee, followed by Senate Finance.The soft drinks tax has supported the building, operation and maintenance of the
medical, dental and nursing schools for decades. This valuable revenue – approximately
$14 million a year – provides for many of the important programs Health Sciences
offers to our state as well as the education and training of the next physicians,
nurses and dentists who will serve our communities. A repeal of this valuable resource
would be devastating. While there has been no action on the bill, we will continue
to advocate for the importance of the tax to the University and our mission as
a land-grant institution.
Needle Exchange Program
SB 286, introduced on January 10 and sponsored by Senator Eric Tarr, prohibits the Bureau of Public Health to approve or establish any syringe exchange program in any location. The bill requires the bureau to close any existing program if this bill is passed. So far, SB 286 has not been acted upon by the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee.Support for 4-H and Rifle Team
Delegates Cooper, Pack, and R. Thompson introduced HB 4065, which permits $5, $10 or other amount donations to veterans programs, Farm Bureau Foundation, Future Farmers of America Foundation or WVU 4-H. The bill has been sent to the House Technology and Infrastructure Committee. If passed, it will be considered next by House Finance.Senators Sypolt, Beach, Clements, Hamilton and Stollings have introduced SB 160,
which creates a voluntary check-off program to donate to the WVU Rifle Team when
renewing hunting and fishing licenses. The bill was considered and passed by the
Senate Natural Resources Committee on January 20. It will next go to Senate Finance.
Bill Introductions
A number of bills have been introduced in the first few days of the 2020 session,
many of them carry-over bills from the 2019 session. Bills being followed by our
government relations team and of most interest to the University include:
House
HB 2008 – Providing for a run-off election of nonpartisan Supreme Court candidates when no candidate receives 40% of the vote
HB 2032 – Permitting the carrying of concealed weapons on the campus of a state higher education institution
HB 4001 – Creating the Mountaineer Impact Fund
HB 4004 – Creating the West Virginia Sentencing Commission to review all sentencing guidelines and make recommended reforms
HB 4005 – West Virginia Intellectual Property and Trade Secrets Act
HB 4014 – Providing new graduates of an in-state or out-of-state higher education institution, or trade school, a $1,000 tax credit
HB 4022 – Clarifying the qualifications of the chancellor of HEPC
HB 4025 – Creating a state central legal advertising website
HB 4027 – Providing that municipal user fees may not be imposed on State employees
HB 4028 – Relating to licensure of hospitals
HB 4042 – Requiring agencies exempt from some or all of State purchasing requirements to adopt procedural rules
HB 4043 – Preventing state, county and municipal agencies from covering any portions of PEIA premiums for spouse
HB 4063 – Relating to compulsory immunizations
HB 4065 – Relating to donations to WV 4-H program or FFA when renewing driver’s licenses
HB 4077 – Increasing the amount of the bond required to be posted by proprietary schools
HB 4085 – Relating to PROMISE Scholarship program requirements
HB 4098 – Second Amendment Sanctuary Law
HB 4108 – Relating to certificates of need for health services
HB 4189 – Relating generally to payment of salary or wages under the Parental Leave Act
HB 4357 – Relating to maintaining governmental websites
HB 4365 – Granting of college credit hours for learning English as a second language
HB 4389 – Relating to transfer of program credits at two-year colleges or CTCs
HB 4390 – Relating to records management of public records
HB 4412 – Education benefits to members of West Virginia National Guard, West Virginia Air Guard, Army Reserve and active duty armed forces personnel
HB 4434 – West Virginia health care workforce sustainability study
HB 4445 – Economic Diversification Act of 2020
HB 4458 – Requiring State agencies to publish and maintain state grant opportunities and awards on their websites
HB 4463 – Relating to prequalification of vendors for State contracts
HB 4621 – West Virginia FinTech Regulatory Sandbox Act
HB 4625 – Relating to the normalization of cannabis laws
HJR 102 – Constitutional amendment to require all State Board of Education rules be approved by the Legislature
Senate
SJR 8 – The Manufacturing Growth Amendment
SJR 9 – Amendment authorizing Legislature to eliminate or lower ad valorem tax on motor vehicles and any other tangible personal property
SB 24 – Relating to residency requirements for voter registration
SB 36 – Establishing the Mountaineer Trail Network Recreation Authority
SB 95 – Authorizing PEIA to establish base benefits insurance plans
SB 96 – Prohibiting municipalities from limiting persons’ rights to possess certain weapons
SB 127 – Authorizing higher education governing boards to eliminate faculty tenure
SB 138 – Incentives to consolidate local governments
SB 153 – Allowing certain motorcycle operators to ride without helmet
SB 154 – Allowing certain out-of-state residents to ride motorcycle without helmet
SB 160 – Creating voluntary WVU Rifle Team check-off program on hunting and fishing licenses
SB 174 – Relating to federal funding for WVU and WVSU
SB 187 – Relating generally to in-state tuition rates for certain persons
SB 220 – Relating to exemptions from mandated immunizations
SB 221 – Relating to disposition of vacated school buildings or other State-owned buildings
SB 275 – Creating an intermediate court of appeals
SB 286 – Prohibiting syringe exchange programs
SB 303 – Enacting Students’ Right to Know Act
SB 482 – Eliminating permit requirement for storing concealed handgun in vehicle on school property for persons over 21
SB 514 – Creating West Virginia FinTech Regulatory Sandbox Act
SB 521 – Creating Tax and Economic Incentives Review Commission
SB 538 – Repealing excise tax on soft drinks
SB 576 – Relating to management of public records
SB 616 – Relating to employment grievance procedure for public employees
Legislative Calendar and Important Dates
Innovation and Entrepreneurship Day at the Capitol February 5, 2020Undergraduate Research Day at the Capitol February 7, 2020
Last Day to Introduce Bills in the House February 11, 2020
Last Day to Introduce Bills in the Senate February 17, 2020
Bills Due Out of Committee in House of Origin February 23, 2020
Last Day to Consider Bill on Third Reading (Crossover Day) February 26, 2020
Last Day of Regular Session March 7, 2020
WVU at the State Capitol
Travis Mollohan and Rocco Fucillo, both from WVU’s State Government Relations team, represent WVU at the State Capitol during the legislative session. They can answer questions about any issues addressed by the legislature. You can contact them at: Travis Mollohan ( tmolloh1@mail.wvu.edu) or Rocco Fucillo ( rsfucillo@mail.wvu.edu).More Information
To learn more about the legislature, including district maps, bill tracking, committee assignments and a summary of legislative activities, please visit wvlegislature.gov.To learn more about WVU’s legislative and government relation initiatives, please visit governmentrelations.wvu.edu.