Legislative Auditor's Office Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Legislative Interims, Digital Parenting Demands And Composting, This West Virginia Week

On this West Virginia Week, legislators started off the week back in Charleston for the first time since the end of the regular session for interim meetings. Meanwhile, we heard about the state’s rising natural gas production, the new challenges of digital devices for parents, and ahead of Earth Day, we took a look at a major composting operation.

On this West Virginia Week, legislators started off the week back in Charleston for the first time since the end of the regular session for interim meetings. We learned more about the state’s finances, government auditing and a new approach to maintaining the state’s roads.

Meanwhile, we heard about the state’s rising natural gas production, the new challenges of digital devices for parents, and ahead of Earth Day, we took a look at a major composting operation.

We’ll dive into these topics, plus a national award for a local breakfast favorite and upgrades to regional rail-trails.

Chris Schulz is our host this week. Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert.

West Virginia Week is a web-only podcast that explores the week’s biggest news in the Mountain State. It’s produced with help from Bill Lynch, Briana Heaney, Chris Schulz, Curtis Tate, Emily Rice, Eric Douglas, Jack Walker, Liz McCormick and Randy Yohe.

Learn more about West Virginia Week.

Performance Reviews Of State Agencies, Regulatory Boards Getting New Direction

Several legislators spent their Sunday afternoon trying to understand what responsibility and power they have to direct performance reviews of state agencies by the Legislative Auditor’s office.

Legislators spent Sunday afternoon trying to understand what responsibility and authority they have to direct performance reviews of state agencies by the Legislative Auditor’s office. This was part of an interim meeting for the legislative Joint Standing Committee on Government Organization.

Reviews done by the Legislative Auditor on cabinet level departments and regulatory boards were previously on a cyclical and on annual schedule. When Senate Bill 687 becomes law on June 5, these reviews will instead be made at the discretion of the Speaker of the House, the Senate President and by recommendations from the Joint Standing Committee on Government Organization.

The committee’s Chief Counsel, Carl Fletcher, explained the new law. He listed 13 cabinet level departments with 104 agencies that oversee numerous boards and commissions along with 33 regulatory boards involved in the performance review process.

“This committee may recommend that specific agency reviews be made if information about an agency is desired,” Fletcher said, “This committee may also recommend that specific issues be included within the scope of an agency review.”

Fletcher said even though any scheduling is yet to be determined, there is a tentative schedule of departmental presentations set into place.

“The feeling was that we ought to have something in the absence of any input, so that the Legislative Auditor’s Office is not sitting through June or through the rest of the year waiting to determine what presentations might be made,” he said.

Fletcher said by code, there are some general required inquiries for any performance review.

“The general scope of those reviews is to look at what the agency does, and whether its duties and functions overlap with that of another entity, whether it be another agency or another body within a state government,” he said. “Whether there is even a continued need for the agency to exist, looking at the finances, and generally what it does overall in state government.”.

Del. Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, asked Fletcher if there was a guarantee in code that review reports would be made public.

”I’m not sure that it actually specifies that it would be done that way,” he said. “There have been some departmental presentations that have been done but have not been reported to the committee.”

Fletcher said standard procedure dictates reviews be presented to the Joint Government Organization Committee and a public website.

Looking at past reviews, Del. Jim Butler, R-Mason, asked Fletcher about following up on performance review recommendations that some boards, including Forestry and Medical Imaging Radiation Therapy, should be terminated. Fletcher responded that there was a follow up.

“Those recommendations were made, and a bill was drafted,” Fletcher said. “Ultimately, the legislature rejected it and did not terminate the board.”

Fletcher said for members of the Joint Standing Committee on Government Organization to make recommendations, they must go directly to the representatives of the Joint Committee on Government Finance.

“Right now, without a Legislative Auditor in place, it is being administratively run by the House and the Senate jointly, primarily through the Chiefs of Staff of both bodies,” he said.

Del. Adam Burkhammer, R-Lewis, asked Fletcher how, and in what form, the committee makes recommendations for a specific performance review, especially if there are issues involved. Fletcher said there’s’ no specific way defined in the new law.

“A motion could be made, or it could be prepared as documents,” Fletcher said, “Every member can go individually to the committee, or as a group and write a letter, do whatever.”

Burkhammer asked what the turnaround time was for a requested review. Fletcher said he had no specific answer for that.

“I’m sure it varies as to the size of the audit,” Fletcher said. “Generally, the ones I’ve seen, the post audit ones take several months, they can take longer. I’ve seen them take as long as a year, but I don’t know what the PERD (Performance and Research Division) ones are typically, at least a couple of months.”

Young asked John Sylvia, the PERD director, for specific information on recent reviews that were finalized and not presented. Sylvia said there were five of them:

the parking section under the real estate division
a fee structure review of the Board of Respiratory Care
a fee structure review on the Board of Dieticians
the Department of Education.
the Board of Examiners of Speech, Language and Pathology.

Sylvia focused on the delayed presentation of the review of the Department of Education.

“We did a measure of the learning loss that occurred during the pandemic,” Sylvia said. “It was a very extensive review, we looked at literally over 4.7 million rolls of data dealing with a variety of educational indicators to try to measure the extent to which there was learning loss within the educational system. That particular report was scheduled in November in Wheeling. I was told that it was taken off the agenda because the Superintendent of the Department of Education wanted to be present, but she had a conflict, so it was moved to December. But it was taken off in December. I don’t know why. And then it was not scheduled in January for the January interim.”

Senate Rejects Then Passes Controversial Legislative Auditors Bill

The bill barely slipped through the GOP supermajority House, with dozens of Republicans joining the Democrats to vote against the bill.

It would have been the first bill to be rejected by the Senate this session after it was voted down 16-15.

But after it was initially rejected the Senate took a recess.

The Legislative Auditor’s Office is set up to perform audits and analysis of state agencies. The office reports to the legislature, and findings and reports are made public.

Senate Bill 687 changes who the office answers to. Critics worry that it takes independence and transparency from the watchdog organization.

Supporters said it safeguards the process from a rogue bureaucrat and streamlines the office. Other supporters say it’s just a necessary change after the retirement of Aaron Allred, who served the office for 30 years.

The bill barely slipped through the GOP supermajority House, with dozens of Republicans joining the Democrats to vote against the bill.

It would have been the first bill to be rejected by the Senate this session after it was voted down 16-15.

But after it was initially rejected the Senate took a recess.

When they came back, Sen. Michael Azinger, R-Wood, who had originally voted against the bill, asked to reconsider his vote. A revote was issued.

Seven senators changed their vote, leading to its passage with 21 yes votes and 7 no votes.

Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, left before the second vote. She did want to comment on leaving early, and said she could not speak to what was said behind closed doors. She did say that there were things about the bill that just didn’t sit right with her.

“I actually don’t think the bill is needed,” Rucker said. “I was not shown any reason for why we needed this legislation. I also really don’t like the fact that it is decreasing transparency.”

Azinger said that he and others didn’t really understand the bill until it was explained to them in caucus in the recess, where GOP leadership dispelled some alleged misinformation.

Sen. Mike Caputo, D-Marion, said confusing bills with misleading titles coupled with code that diminish transparency are part of a broader trend.

“That’s something that they’ve been doing for the last few years,” Caputo said. “The majority party has creatively named bills that sound really good. So the public just hears that.”

He said it’s not always clear what the bills do.

“Sounds so harmless. And then you look into it, you’re going, ‘Wow, I didn’t realize that that would do that,” Caputo said.

Other bills passed today include topics on verifying age for the sale of vape products, patriotic organizations like the boy scouts having access to public schools, and the sale of raw milk.

Bills On Control Of Legislative Auditor, Minorities Purchasing Car Dealerships, Head To Governor

On third reading in the House of Delegates Thursday, there was a long debate over minorities purchasing car dealerships and a separate debate on control of the Legislative Auditor’s office. Other bills and resolutions included smoking in the car with a child, and taking action over a massive federal deficit.

Senate Bill 173

Senate Bill 173 modifies guidelines for motor vehicle dealers, distributors, wholesalers, and manufacturers. The lengthy bill covers numerous automotive sales industry guidelines. The bill failed last session.

Debate on the bill focused on a car manufacturer’s right of first refusal. This is a clause in a contract that gives a prioritized, interested party the right to make the first offer on purchasing a West Virginia car dealership before the manufacturer can negotiate with other prospective buyers.

Del. Mike Pushkin, D-Kanawha, proposed an amendment enhancing opportunities for qualified persons who are part of a group who have historically been underrepresented in buying car dealerships. He referred to an industry lobbyist testifying in committee.

“The intent of this bill was to preserve a good old boy system,” Pushkin said. “The intent of this bill was to keep the manufacturer from selling to minority owners. And then the question was like, do you mean less than 50 percent? No, minority as in racial minority, or women. So I don’t think that’s what the intent of this bill should be. So let’s prove what the real intent is.

The amendment was rejected.

Del. Daniel Linville, R-Cabell, said the proposal sets a level playing field in the competitive and lucrative auto dealer industry.

“To set a level playing field for all of the interactions between some of the very largest organizations that are publicly traded entities, the manufacturers of these automobiles, and their local dealers,” Linville said. “Frankly, I think that we stand for free markets, I think that, as has been said, you should be able to sell your business, to whom you wish, without the ability for that to come in and be assigned and placed somewhere else.”

Senate Bill 173 passed 87-13.

Senate Bill 687

Investigating possible wrongdoing or mismanagement within state agencies and departments is the job of the Legislative Auditor’s office. Senate Bill 687 would clarify the Legislative Auditor’s scope of authority. The bill would have the auditor responsible to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance; and that the auditor may exercise powers at the direction of the Senate President or Speaker of the House of Delegates.

A sustained litany from those opposed to the bill, including Del. Larry Rowe, D-Kanawha, noted a lack of investigative independence and transparency with the revised scope of authority.

“We want somebody that we can trust to tell us the truth,” Rowe said, “And we want that truth to be made public and fair.” This bill is a takeover of the legislative auditor’s office. It’s eliminating the independent, professional decision making and investigations that they perform. There is no complaint about the service that they have performed.”

But Del. Adam Burkhammer, R-Lewis, said investigating and auditing will be enhanced by this bill.

“There’s been some conversation about whether this should be an independent auditor,” Burkhammer said. “I would completely disagree with that notion. Because the very idea of the Legislative Auditor is to work for this body. He’s appointed by the committee to serve at its will and pleasure. That committee is the Joint Committee on Government and Finance, appointed by that committee, to work for its will and pleasure to serve this body, so that we can make sound policy decisions in the direction that we want the state to go.”

Senate Bill 687, the Legislative Auditor bill, passed with a 56 to 41 vote and goes to the governor’s desk.

Other House Action

In committee and on the Senate floor, debate over Senate Bill 378, prohibiting smoking in a vehicle when minors 16 or under is present, centered on health versus freedom. In the House, there was no debate as the bill passed by a 66-33 margin, and went to the governor’s desk.

A charge for lawmakers in West Virginia and in Washington D.C. to take action on a multi-trillion dollar federal deficit is at the root of House Concurrent Resolution 57. It demands that Congress call a Convention of States to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution to create federal fiscal responsibility

Del. Bill Ridenour, R-Jefferson, is a sponsor of the resolution. He said this is not a duplicate of a 2022 resolution, but a call for congressional action to not have the state and nation fall into a fiscal abyss.

“Every 90 days, we’re adding a trillion dollars in debt to the US debt,” Ridenhour said. We’re on the edge of a fiscal abyss. And we’ve got to do something, we as a nation have to do something. But we in this body have to do something as well. We have a responsibility, under federalism, to act with the federal government with the states to try and take action that will have some impact on where we’re going as a nation.”

Countering concerns on the issue were of a possibly open-ended convention that might get away from the fiscal point, the resolution was adopted with a 79-18 vote.

Senate Bill 170 deals with workers compensation health care coverage. It establishes a rebuttable presumption of injury for certain covered firefighters that develop bladder cancer, mesothelioma and testicular cancer. The bill passed 99-0 and goes to the governor’s desk.

Changing The Legislative Auditor’s Office And The Fall Of AppHarvest, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, the demise of eastern Kentucky’s AppHarvest and bills changing the Legislative Auditor’s Office.

On this West Virginia Morning, eastern Kentucky’s AppHarvest was called the future of farming and a way to bring new jobs to coal country. But as Inside Appalachia’s Mason Adams explores, the company fell nearly as fast as it rose and filed for bankruptcy last year.

Also in this show, in our most recent episode of The Legislature Today, bills in both the House and the Senate would change the way the legislative auditor operates. Randy Yohe spoke with Del. Mike Pushkin and House Speaker Roger Hanshaw about the office, which has long been a watchdog of the executive branch of government, making sure that money is spent properly.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from Shepherd University.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

Senate Passes Bill To Change Legislative Audit Rules Regarding Transparency And Oversight

The Senate and the House of Delegates both have bills that make changes to the Legislative Auditor’s office.

The office looks into state organizations and organizations that receive state funding and then it takes its findings to the West Virginia Legislature. The findings also are scheduled to be accessible to the public. That information can assist the legislature in policy making and to hold the state government accountable to the taxpayers. The office has historically been a somewhat independent body of the legislature.

The House bill strikes out language that would mandate the findings of the legislative auditor to be made public record. The Senate bill was amended last week so that findings will be made publicly available and that agency reviews will be made each year.

However, both bills expand the power of House and Senate leadership, replacing existing language with “at Senate President’s or House Speaker’s direction.”

Senate Bill 687 and House Bill 5592 change who the legislative auditor reports to. It moves from the legislature broadly to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance. It also defines the investigative powers of the office. The Senate bill passed the Senate and now heads to the House. The bill had eight nay votes panning across party lines.

Many opposed to the bill, like Sen. Bill Hamilton, R-Upshur, cited issues of transparency and conflicts of interest.

“I mean, because the Speaker and the President of the Senate, they change at different times,” Hamilton said. “And you know, you may have somebody that’s partial to one industry or partial to one group, and says, ‘Well, I don’t want this to go forward.’ I’m not saying that our current Speaker or President would do that. You know, but you don’t know who’s coming behind.”

Lead sponsor of the bill, Sen. Jack Woodrum, R-Summers, said the bill only changes things to be in line with current law. He said transparency would not be affected.

The majority of the other bills passed in the Senate were House bills.

Four of seven House bills were passed without any changes. Those bills now head to the governor to be considered and possibly be passed into the law.

House Bill 5006 will eliminate antiquated recycling goals and set new criteria for evaluating the state’s success in achieving recycling goals.

House Bill 5261 expands a tax exemption for portable fire arms. The bill included receiver frames – a part of a gun – as part of that tax exemption.

House Bill 5267 and House Bill 5273 change retirement calculations and posthumous benefits for law enforcement officers and Emergency Medical Workers.