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The Legislature Today 2024 Final Hours Live Blog

Saturday, March 9 marks the 60th and final day of the 2024 West Virginia Legislative regular session. Once the gavel falls at midnight, lawmakers will no longer be able to consider bills introduced during the past 60 days. The only exception is the budget bill. Check back to our live blog throughout the night for the latest updates from the West Virginia Legislature.

Updated on Monday, March 11 at 10:15 a.m.

The only exception is the budget bill.

The state constitution mandates that if the budget isn’t passed within three days of the end of session, the governor will issue a proclamation saying the legislature can come back together on Sunday to work out the final details. Gov. Jim Justice issued that proclamation on Thursday.

One monkey wrench this year affecting the progression of the budget bill, however, is a $465 million claw back in COVID-19 relief money — a demand by the U.S. Department of Education.

Justice has said his administration is in negotiations to address the situation, but without knowing what will happen, it is difficult to pass a state budget. Many lawmakers have expressed interest in returning in May to finalize the budget — allowing time to deal with the potential claw back.

Under the state constitution, the budget must be passed by June 30.

This year, there were 2,575 bills introduced. Only 253 have so far completed legislation.

Aside from the budget, there are several key bills still up for discussion in both chambers. West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s award-winning news team is following the action throughout the evening.

Check back to our live blog for the latest updates from the West Virginia Legislature.

You can also watch our live coverage of the The Legislature Today Final Hours free from 8 p.m. to midnight on our WVPB TV live stream.

To read the latest updates from the West Virginia Legislature’s final moments Saturday, click here.

Update at 11:22 p.m. by Emily Rice

Both chambers have passed a bill to require age verification for the purchase of any tobacco or vape product. House Bill 5084 now heads to Gov. Jim Justice for his signature.

Update at 10:30 p.m. by Briana Heaney

Senate Bill 841 has passed the House, and changes made by the House were approved by the Senate. The bill would broadly reduce unemployment benefits. However it would increase benefits in the first eight weeks, but it tapers off 5 percent each week, down to 45 percent. It also reduces the duration of unemployment benefits by two weeks.

Sen. Mike Caputo, D-Marion, said he doesn’t understand the need for this bill due to the health of the unemployment fund and the low unemployment rates in the state.

“We got people lobbying for this bill working for groups I never even heard of before,” Caputo said. “Who aren’t even from this state, pushing the buttons to get this done.”

The bill now heads to the governor for his consideration.

Update at 10:25 p.m. by Briana Heaney

The Senate has approved four of the more controversial House bills of this legislative session.

House Bill 4793 is known as the moonshine bill. The bill allows anyone over the age of 21 to manufacture their own alcohol without a license. The bill allows a person to manufacture up to 25 gallons, or 50 maximum per household. No alcohol made for personal use without a license may be sold. The bill passed with a thin margin, 18-14. The bill now heads back to the House.

House Bill 4880 will eliminate one third of the tax on social security recipients who make over $50,000 per year, or married persons whose joint income is over $100,000 per year. The bill phases in a 100 percent tax elimination over three years. The Senate version had triggers that would base the reduction in the social security tax based on the state’s yearly revenue; that bill has since died. The House bill was, however, passed unanimously. Changes were passed in the House and it now heads to the governor.

House Bill 4883 increases the annual salaries for certain state employees including public school teachers and state police officers. The bill passed unanimously, changes were approved by the House, and it now heads to the governor for his consideration.

House Bill 5262, known as the teachers bill of rights, ensures that counselors are provided the same protections as teachers and that teachers receive compensation for when a teacher student ratio is exceeded. The bill now heads back to the House.

Update at 10:15 p.m. by Emily Rice

The House has concurred with the Senate’s amended version of House Bill 5105 by a vote of 70 yeas, 29 nays, and one delegate absent. The bill now heads to Gov. Jim Justice for his consideration.

Update at 10:05 p.m. by Emily Rice

The House has made further changes to a bill to require age verification for the purchase of any tobacco or vape product in West Virginia. The bill is now awaiting further consideration in the Senate.

According to House Bill 5084, the verification must take place via “a valid driver’s license, state identification card, or any valid and unexpired federally issued identification card such as a passport or military identification car.”

The intent is to prevent sales of these products to people under age 18. Illicit sales are misdemeanors and the bill increases the fines for illicit sales.

**Editor’s Note: This update previously stated HB 5084 had been communicated to the governor. As of 10:40 p.m., the bill is awaiting consideration in the Senate.

Update at 10 p.m. by Randy Yohe

A bill that would have prohibited driving slow in the left lane of a highway, except under certain circumstances, has died.

House Bill 5237 traveled back and forth between the House and Senate, finally ending up with a joint conference committee to hammer out a possible compromise.

That committee amended the penalty from a secondary to a primary traffic offense. First time violation would have been a $25 fine. The report was rejected by a 46-52 vote, effectively killing the bill.

Update at 8:40 p.m. by Emily Rice

House Bill 5105 changes vaccine requirements for virtual public, private and parochial students in West Virginia. The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 20 to 12 with two senators absent and now requests the House to concur.

Previous versions of the bill included religious exemptions for all students in West Virginia, but the version that made it to the Senate floor only included religious exemptions for private and parochial schools.

Sen. Mike Maroney, R-Marshall, and chair of the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee, presented the bill on the floor saying he “does not recommend it pass, but my committee does.”

He called the bill an embarrassment on the Senate floor before a vote.

“I took an oath to do no harm, there is no way I can vote for this bill,” he said.

Update at 8:15 p.m. by Randy Yohe

Senate Bill 280 has passed the House, 89-9. The bill would allow teachers in public schools to discuss scientific theories. During committee and floor debate over the bill, the issue came down to science versus theology. Are intelligent design and creationism scientific theories or religious beliefs? Should they be taught in science classes along with the big bang theory?

Pertinent language in the bill reads, “No public school board, school superintendent, or school principal shall prohibit a public school classroom teacher from discussing or answering questions from students about scientific theories of how the universe and/or life came to exist.”

Some delegates have expressed concerns about legal ramifications in how a teacher may answer a student question, “How did life begin?”

The bill now heads to the governor.

Update at 7:43 p.m. by Randy Yohe

Senate Bill 841, setting unemployment taxes and benefits, passed the House. The vote was not along party lines but by a count of 66-31.

Update at 7:25 p.m. by Randy Yohe

Late this afternoon, the controversial unemployment bill, Senate Bill 841, was moved off the inactive calendar in the House of Delegates and quickly went to third reading, with several amendments.

Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, asked that the lengthy bill be read in its entirety. Debate over the bill is now ongoing, with delegates working to understand a complicated formula on delivering benefits while keeping a $400 million unemployment fund solvent. The bill still has requirements that an individual shall remain eligible for unemployment benefits only if he or she actively seeks work by conducting at least four work search activities weekly.

One amendment keeps unemployment benefits at 26 weeks with payouts being a percentage of earnings that decrease as the weeks diminish. A person getting a part-time job while seeking full-time work will continue to get full unemployment benefits.

Update at 6:30 p.m. by Randy Yohe

House Bill 4975 has completed legislation. The bill creates a foster care information system. There were few, if any, other foster care issues proposed this session after declaring the issue a crisis the past few years.

After several sessions of attempts, House Bill 4911 finally passed, allowing the sale of raw milk in West Virginia. The bill that passed included Senate amendments requiring warning labels on the product, removing the focal point of contention — liability immunity for raw milk sellers.

State Senators Talk Latest In 2024 Session And Nellie McKay Has Our Song Of The Week, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, our state Senate reporter Briana Heaney sat down with Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, and Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, on The Legislature Today to discuss where things stand in the legislative process and how that compares to what they planned to do at the beginning of the session.

On this West Virginia Morning, our state Senate reporter Briana Heaney sat down with Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, and Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, on The Legislature Today to discuss where things stand in the legislative process and how that compares to what they planned to do at the beginning of the session.

Also, in this show, our Mountain Stage Song of the Week comes to us from singer/songwriter Nellie McKay, whose music incorporates many different styles infused with her zany and profound interpretations of life. We listen to her performance of “Drinking Song.”

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.

Our Appalachia Health News project is made possible with support from Marshall Health.

West Virginia Morning is produced with help from Bill Lynch, Briana Heaney, Chris Schulz, Curtis Tate, Emily Rice, Eric Douglas, Jack Walker, Liz McCormick, and Randy Yohe.

Eric Douglas is our news director and producer.

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

State Senators Weigh In On The Bills That Passed, Failed This Session

On this episode of The Legislature Today, our Senate reporter Briana Heaney talks with Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, and Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, to discuss where things stand and how that compares to what they planned to do at the beginning of the session.

On this episode of The Legislature Today, our Senate reporter Briana Heaney talks with Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, and Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, to discuss where things stand and how that compares to what they planned to do at the beginning of the session.

Also, earlier in the day Thursday, Gov. Jim Justice issued a proclamation to extend the legislative session by one day to allow the legislature to finalize the state budget bill. There has been discussion about a special session in May to finalize questions regarding a potential federal claw back of COVID-19 relief funds.

In the House, there was a long debate over minorities purchasing car dealerships and another contested debate over control of the Legislative Auditor’s office. Other proposals included smoking in the car with a child and taking action over a massive federal deficit.

In the Senate, the chamber passed several House bills, some of which head to the governor and others back to the House to concur on changes. Some notable bills in the Senate Thursday were on topics such as renewable energy, pornography and cyber security. Briana Heaney has more.

Finally, a state Senate committee heard new details Wednesday about how the Pleasants Power Station will be converted from coal to hydrogen. Curtis Tate has the story.

Having trouble viewing the video below? Click here to watch it on YouTube.

The Legislature Today is West Virginia’s only television/radio simulcast devoted to covering the state’s 60-day regular legislative session.

Watch or listen to new episodes Monday through Friday at 6 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

W.Va. Senate Passes Bill Requiring Schools Show A Fetal Development Video

The video is produced by an anti-abortion rights group and has come under fire over questions of scientific accuracy.

This story was originally published on npr.org and was co-written by Briana Heaney, Jason Rosenbaum, Morgan Watkins and Katarina Sostaric.

West Virginia’s Republican-supermajority Senate approved a bill that would require public schools to show a video on fetal development produced by an anti-abortion rights group.

The bill, referred to as the “Baby Olivia” bill, would require public schools to show a three-minute, high-definition video showing the “development of the brain, heart, sex organs, and other vital organs in early fetal development” to eighth graders and tenth graders.

The video is produced by Live Action, an anti-abortion rights advocacy group that produces media content. It begins by showing a sperm and egg meeting, followed by a flash of light and a narrator saying, “this is where life begins, a new human being has come into existence.”

It goes on to show the development of “Baby Olivia”, and what the fetus is capable of doing at each step in the gestational development.

Live Action says the video uses animation to portray the “miracles of early fetal development as an education tool.” But the video has come under criticism by legislators and advocacy groups over questions of medical accuracy and whether it’s appropriate to show to students.

Lila Rose, the founder of Live Action, says the video was made with a team of medical experts from the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetrics and Gynecology.

“This is when we date the beginning of human life. So it’s not, like, an opinion. It’s not a belief. It’s a scientific fact,” Rose told NPR.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecology is strongly opposed to the video and proposed legislation.

“Like much anti-abortion misinformation, the ‘Baby Olivia’ video is designed to manipulate the emotions of viewers rather than to share evidence-based, scientific information about embryonic and fetal development,” a representative told NPR in an email. “Many of the claims made in this video are not aligned with scientific fact, but rather reflect the biased and ideological perspectives of the extremists who created the video.”

The bill received pushback not only from Democrats in the chamber, but Republicans as well.

GOP state majority leader Sen. Tom Takubo said he would not vote for the bill because there is information in the video he said is “grossly inaccurate.”

“If we’re going to codify something that we’re going to teach as fact, it needs to be fact and therefore, we’ve codified a video that is not factual,” said Takubo, who is also a practicing pulmonologist.

Takubo also criticized an amendment added to the bill that would show the video in full, including a depiction of life beginning at conception.

“One of the changes we made in the Rules Committee was to say that whatever video we teach your children, it has to be scientifically accurate. That was removed with the amendment,” Takubo said on the Senate floor.

State Sen. Mike Woelfel, a Democrat, said he worried the video is based on religious beliefs which cannot be taught in school in accordance with the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution.

“I would gladly show that video in a Catholic school that my grandchildren attend,” he said. “But I’ve taken an oath to obey the Constitution and to uphold it.”

GOP state Sen. Charles Trump agreed that although he personally agrees that life begins at conception, he thinks “it is an imposition of what is fundamentally a religious or spiritual belief. I don’t think it is a matter of proven or established science.”

Still, the amendment passed the Senate and that language is part of the bill that now goes to the House for a vote.

Similar bills have been proposed in Iowa, Kentucky, and Missouri

Republicans in the Iowa House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday evening that would require all schools, starting in seventh grade, to show students a video “comparable to the ‘Meet Baby Olivia’ video developed by Live Action.”

Two Republican lawmakers joined all Democrats in voting against it.

“It is not the role of our chamber to prescribe what people believe or require teachers to influence young people with propaganda,” said Democratic state Rep. Molly Buck.

Republican state Rep. Anne Osmundson said the video has been reviewed by medical experts, and schools would not be required to show that exact video.

“This is teaching basic biology to our children, and it helps to answer one of life’s biggest questions: where did I come from?” she said.

Kentucky’s version of the “Baby Olivia” measure also passed its first major hurdle this week in the state’s GOP-run legislature, after a committee cleared it for consideration by the full House of Representatives.

The bill requires public school districts’ health curriculum for grades 6 and up to include a prenatal development video.

Republican state Rep. Nancy Tate, the bill’s lead sponsor, suggested the “Baby Olivia” video is just one example of a presentation that would meet the bill’s requirements. While schools aren’t required to show that exact video, she said it will be “an easy start for school districts to use.”

A similar bill has also been introduced in Missouri that would require charter and public schools to show the ‘Baby Olivia” video developed by Live Action.

If passed, the bill would take effect during the 2024-2025 school year — and would give the state’s attorney general the power to enforce the provisions of the law.

Unlike the West Virginia bill, the Missouri bill has a ways to go. Its sponsor, state Rep. Mazzie Christensen, has clashed often with fellow GOP House Speaker Dean Plocher — who is responsible for shepherding bills to specific committees.

Senate Changes, Passes Bill To Reduce Unemployment Benefits

The engrossed bill that passed the Senate shaves two weeks of the current 26 weeks of unemployment benefits available to workers who have lost their job due through no fault of their own. It increases the initial benefit to up to $712 per week, or 70 percent of the original wage, for the first four weeks of unemployment. That’s up from $624 per week, and 65 percent of the wage. However after those first four weeks, the benefit decreases by 5 percent of the original wage, or max benefit.

Updated: 02/29/2024 5:13pm

The Senate passed a bill that would reduce overall unemployment benefits but increase initial benefits.

Senate Bills 840 and 841 would have steeply cut unemployment benefits. Those bills were combined and amended- and for the most part gutted with a new amendment.

The amended bill that passed the Senate shaves two weeks off of the current 26 weeks of unemployment benefits available to workers who have lost their job due through no fault of their own. The bill would also allow people to work part time while receiving unemployment. They would receive reduced benefits while working.

Under this amended bill the benefits are front loaded, and taper off as time goes on. It increases the initial benefit to up to $712 per week, or 70 percent of the original wage, for the first four weeks of unemployment. That’s up from $624 per week, and 65 percent of the wage. However after those first four weeks, the benefit decreases by 5 percent of the original wage, or max benefit.

For example, on week five, the benefit would be 65 percent, and on the ninth week it would be 60 percent. On week 20 through week 24, the last weeks of the available benefit, unemployed people would receive 45 percent of their original benefit.

The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy said that the average time an unemployed person collects benefits in the state is 13 weeks.

Sen. Eric Nelson, R-Kanawha, said that this bill would benefit the average unemployed person, because they would collect that initial larger benefit.

The bill also requires that employers contribute more to the unemployment insurance fund.

“The average wage of those on the unemployed base is roughly $35,000,” Nelson said. “And so currently, over that 14 week period, they would receive $5,166. Under the proposed method, they would receive $5,991 to an increase of $800.”

However, Josh Sword, West Virginia AFL-CIO president, said the bill would cost some West Virginians who use the full duration of the benefit thousands of dollars in unemployment benefits.

“As it stands now, compared to the bill that was adopted in the Senate last night,” Sword said. “We know that individuals are going to receive about $4,000 less in benefits than they would today. So that’s concerning.”

The original bills would have reduced the maximum benefit to $550 per week and reduced the duration based on the current unemployment rate. It would reduce the benefits duration down to 12 weeks based on the current unemployment rate of 4.3 percent.

The 28 page amendment, which significantly changed the bill, was introduced on the floor 30 minutes before the bill was voted on.

Sen. Mike Caputo, D-Marion, said he understands the need for the bill but wanted more time to work out the details and bring stakeholders like business and labor unions to the table to talk about the bill.

“Don’t think it should be done in the 11th hour. I think it’s bad, bad government to do this,” Caputo said.

He said this sends a horrible message to the working people of West Virginia and the nearly 2,000 people who are slated to lose their jobs from layoffs from the closures of Allegany Woods and Cleveland Cliffs.

Sword agreed, and said he would have liked the AFL-CIO to have been involved in the drafting of legislation that would affect workers in the state.

“The best way to get good policy is to bring all impacted parties to the table,” Sword said. “And come up with a good common sense solution that makes sense for everybody. That absolutely did not happen. And that’s part of the reason that we don’t know what’s in it because we weren’t at the table trying to put something together.”

Nelson says the bill, that was put together privately over the course of three days, does include a few errors.

“One of the unfortunate things that does happen when we’re here at this speed at the end. This is not a final product, this goes over to the house. There’ll be additional discussions, and I’m gonna have more discussions with Senator Caputo and labor and others because we want the best product going forward. And that’s what we have,” Nelson said.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated to include Sen. Eric Nelson, and AFL-CIO President Josh Sword.

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.