Tag: House of Delegates

W.Va. House Speaker Calls for a Review of Flood Protection Plan

West Virginia House Speaker Tim Armstead is urging state lawmakers to revisit a more than decade-old flood protection plan to find ways to avoid a repeat of the disaster that killed at least 23 people last month.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports Armstead released a statement Tuesday that he wants a “comprehensive review” of the plan to be a focus of study in interim legislative committee meetings.

Armstead’s statement follows a Sunday Gazette-Mail article that detailed how a multi-agency task force’s recommendations for a flood protection plan had not been acted upon ever since the plan was released in 2004.

The plan called for better management of flood-plain construction, improved flood warnings, tougher building codes and better public education efforts.

House Democrats Criticize Speaker's Budget Conferee Appointments

Over the next two days, ten members of the legislature will participate in a conference committee looking to write a balanced budget for 2017 – the fiscal year that begins in July. But Democrats in the House of Delegates are criticizing the makeup of that committee.

House Speaker Tim Armstead appointed five delegates to represent the House on the budget conference committee – Finance Chair Eric Nelson, Vice Chair Eric Householder, Delegates Bill Anderson and Carol Miller, and one Democrat, Delegate David Perry.

Minority Leader Tim Miley criticized Armstead for the decision to appoint only one Democrat when proportionally he says the committee should have included two Democrats to represent the number of members from the party elected to the full House of Delegates.

Miley says he’s disappointed and disheartened by the decision.

“Number one; the Speaker didn’t have the courtesy of even putting the Minority Chair of Finance on the conferee committee, and number two; he didn’t put the number of Democrats that represent the proportionality of Democrats in the House of Delegates,” Miley said.

Miley says the Democrat who Speaker Armstead did appoint doesn’t have the experience that Finance Minority Chair Brent Boggs could bring to the conversation. But the Speaker has the power to appoint whomever he chooses to the conference committee.

Saturday evening, Armstead said he chose not to appoint Boggs because he voted against the budget bill approved earlier in the week in the House.

Miley was not just critical of who House leadership chose to appoint to the committee, but also of the work conferees will do over the next two days, calling it a “complete waste of time.”

“Governor Tomblin presented a budget with various pieces of legislation that would’ve provided both a balanced budget and revenue enhancement mechanisms and not using one time money,” Miley explained, “This group chose to ignore those revenue enhancements, chose to use one-time money, and it took them 60 days to try to make that happen, and they still couldn’t make it happen.”

During the last 60 days, House Finance killed or tabled a number of bills that were aimed at helping to balance the budget – one involved increasing the tobacco tax, another dealt with a tax increase to help with maintenance of roads, and one looked at an increase in the sales tax.

House Refuses Senate Amendments to Voter ID Bill

Editor’s Note: For the latest updates on the final day of the legislative session, be sure to keep checking our live blog.

In the final day of the 2016 Legislative Session, the House of Delegates has refused to adopt the Senate’s amendments to House Bill 4013, the voter ID bill.

House Bill 4013 as approved in the House included a list of valid forms of identification beyond just photo IDs, but Senators worked to expand the list even further.

The Senate amended version of the bill allows a voter to use:

  • A valid drivers license from West Virginia or any state
  • A valid military ID
  • A valid employer issued ID from any federal, state, county, or municipal subdivision
  • A Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, SNAP, or TANF card or a birth certificate
  • A voter registration card
  • A hunting or fishing license or a concealed carry permit
  • A utility bill, paycheck, health insurance card, or credit or debit card

The bill also allows an adult who has known the voter for more than 6 months to sign an affidavit certifying a voter’s identity. That person can be a poll worker.
As of 11:15 a.m. Saturday, there has been no announcement for a conference committee for the bill. If put into a conference committee, the bill will be debated between three members of the House and three members of Senate to decide upon a compromised version of the bill.

Article Five Convention of States Passes the House and Senate

Editor’s Note: For the latest updates on the final day of the legislative session, be sure to keep checking our live blog.

Update: Saturday, March 12, 2016 at 5:36 p.m.

The West Virginia Senate adopted House Concurrent Resolution 36, after it was adopted by the House of Delegates late Friday night.

Del. Josh Nelson of Boone County attempted to amend the resolution Friday to put it into an interim study, but his amendment failed after hours of debate.

The resolution calls for an Article 5 Convention of States to amend the U.S. Constitution for a singular purpose: to require Congress to balance the federal budget except in times of national emergency.

Original Post:

The House of Delegates considered a resolution Friday that would allow West Virginia to send a number of West Virginia delegates to Washington, D.C. to try and amend the constitution on budget related charges.

House Concurrent Resolution 36, would add West Virginia to a list of states applying for an Article 5 Convention of States to amend the U.S. Constitution.

The convention would focus on amending the federal Constitution to require Congress to balance the nation’s budget each year, except in times of a national emergency.

Republican Josh Nelson of Boone County attempted to amend the resolution Friday, making it an interim study.

Republican Tom Fast of Fayette County spoke against the change.

“If we don’t’ fix this debt, if we don’t fix this uncontrolled spending, uncontrolled spending that’s put forth by Democrats and Republicans in Congress,” Fast said, “If that is not fixed, this country is ruined anyhow. So ladies and gentleman, it is time for action. It has been studied. It has been studied. This is not just a new concept that came along yesterday.”

Democratic Delegate Larry Rowe of Kanawha County spoke in favor of the study.

“There’s no need for a rush,” Rowe explained, “Someone said that this provision has been in the constitution for 229 years, and it’s been dormant, and there’s a good reason that it’s dormant. It’s because people need to study whether we should, as someone said turn the key on Pandora’s Box. This is very dangerous stuff. This is really dangerous stuff when we start tinkering with the constitutional basis of our country.”

Before delegates could move for a vote, however Majority Leader Daryl Cowles of Morgan County moved to have the resolution be placed at the foot of the agenda.

As of 5:00 p.m. Friday evening, Delegates had not yet voted on House Concurrent Resolution 36. However, to monitor the vote you can view it on the West Virginia Legislature’s website.

House Passes 'Brunch Bill' with County Referendum

Lawmakers have passed a bill to allow the Sunday sales of alcohol in restaurants, private clubs, wineries and distilleries at 10 a.m.

Senate Bill 298, also known as the “brunch bill,” passed 84 to 15  in the House Friday.

 
It moved quickly through the chamber, despite Speaker Tim Armstead stating it wasn’t a priority this session.

 
House Judiciary amended the bill in committee to include a provision requiring county voters approve of the time change through a referendum. However, the bill would not require county commissioners to hold elections to allow the sales, only permit such measures on a ballot. 

 
The county referendum was not part of the bill as approved in the Senate so it will have to return to the Senate for further consideration. House Judiciary Vice Chairman, Delegate Patrick Lane of Kanawha County stated to the members in the House on Thursday that without the referendum, the “brunch bill” would not survive in the House.

The bill’s lead sponsor, Senator Chris Walters, has said he would prefer the bill allowed counties to opt out of the Sunday morning sales, but there is no official word from Senate leadership that the change will be considered.

 
The final day to consider bills from the 2016 regular legislative session is on Saturday, March 12.

 
There will be an extended period into next week for a special budget session.

Legislature Gets Ever Closer to Approving the Brunch Bill

A bill to bump up alcohol sales on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 10 a.m. is moving in the House even after Speaker Tim Armstead said it wasn’t a priority this session. Businesses across the state have cried out for the bill’s approval, calling it an economic development measure.

Earlier this week, House Judiciary amended Senate Bill 298 in committee; a bill that has been affectionately referred to as the “brunch bill” to include a provision requiring county voters approve of the time change through a referendum. 

As approved by the Judiciary Committee, the bill would not require county commissioners to hold elections to allow the sales, only permit such measures on a ballot. 

The full House voted on the amendment to the bill Thursday, but with some debate.

Democrat Isaac Sponaugle of Pendleton County spoke in opposition to the change.

“Now we are trying to run it back down and have all 55 counties put a referendum vote on whether to decide or not we’re going to have sale of alcohol at restaurants from 10 to 1 a.m.,” Sponaugle said, “We’re just moving it back three hours. I believe this body is fully capable of making a decision for the entire state of whether or not we’re going to move the drinking time back three hours without putting on the ballot in all 55 counties.”

Vice Chairman of Judiciary, Delegate Patrick Lane of Kanawha County spoke in favor of the amendment and said what passed in the Senate would likely not pass in the House.

“I certainly understand the point made from my friend from the 55th; however, I would suggest that regardless of what the form was in when it passed the Senate, I would suggest to you that if you are interested in having a brunch bill that this is the form that ought to be adopted, because I would suggest that while it may have been unanimous or close to it in the Senate, it would be very far from unanimous or close to  it in the House, so if you prefer to have this bill at all, I would suggest adoption of the Judiciary amendment,” Lane explained.

The amendment passed 58 to 38.

Senate Bill 298 will be up for a vote in the House Friday.

The county referendum was not a part of the bill as approved in the Senate so if approved in the House, it will have to return to the Senate for further consideration. The bill’s lead sponsor, Senator Chris Walters, has said he would prefer the bill allowed counties to opt out of the Sunday morning sales, but there is no official word from Senate leadership that the change will be considered.

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