CHARLESTON, WV (LOOTPRESS) – The House returned to session around 4:30 p.m. to finish taking up the calendar. Additional bills passed including:
House Bill 3373 extends the Division of Economic Development to January 1, 2030.
House Bill 3389 excludes the Department of Tourism as a “governmental agency” to allow the Department to be exempt from the requirement to offer the division of vocational rehabilitation the opportunity to operate the Department’s food service facilities.
House Bill 3424 removes language relating to short-term loans being provided to released inmates for the cost of reentry. It was stated that this loan was never funded nor used.
House Bill 3429 allows the Department of Environmental Protection to evaluate letters of interest from engineering firms to generate “Prequalified Lists of Consultants.”
House Bill 3505 requires all health plans in West Virginia to provide coverage for cancer treatments of scalp cooling systems.
The House had 26 bills on Second Reading today, with a few being amended.
Senate Bill 275 removes the requirement of a high school diploma for school cooks and custodians. The amendment adds that those without a high school diploma must be 21 or older to be a cook or custodian. This is to prevent students from dropping out to become cooks or custodians at the school.
Senate Bill 282 allows retired teachers to be long-term teachers in areas of critical need without a limit on the number of days. The amendment requires the county board to post the position until it is filled by a regularly employed teacher. The posting is to occur at the start of each semester. This requirement is not necessary when the substitute is teaching for a leave of absence or if the position is filled by a regularly employed teacher who cannot start immediately.
The amendment to Senate Bill 650 clarifies that interventionists cannot be used as aides in kindergarten or first-grade classrooms.
House Bill 2014 had several amendments offered, but only two were adopted. The first amendment adopted clarified that the bill related to thermal baseload generating. The second amendmentclarified that the bill should not impact microgrid districts certified before January 1, 2024, or any special contract entered into or approved by the Public Service Commission before January 1, 2025.
House Bill 2777 relates to removing certain information for home-schooled children. Two amendments were offered and rejected. The first would have removed all exemptions and stated no parent had to enroll students in school or report on a child’s educational status. The secondamendment would have removed the submission requirement on assessments for homeschooled students in grades 3, 5, 8, and 11. Both amendments were rejected and the bill advanced.
The House is adjourned until 11 a.m.,, April 1, 2025.
