The West Virginia Legislature has completed another busy interim
session, touching on topics ranging from insurance and pensions to
water quality and ATVs. With a little more than two months to go before
the 2004 legislative session begins, interim committees are zeroing in
on potential legislative provisions.
The following are some highlights of the October interim meetings.
* The select committee studying water use continues to work toward a
compromise between business and environmental interests on how to best
conserve our state’s water supply. During a meeting last week, a
spokeswoman for the U.S. Geological Survey said the amount of water
drawn from West Virginia’s water sources has risen over the past 20
years, mostly due to increasing irrigation of land.
Committee members continue to discuss how to best gauge the water usage
in the state, and how best to develop a statewide water use plan.
In a meeting of the Legislative Rule-Making and Review Committee, which
I co-chair, water was also a major topic of interest. Industry
representatives have complained about rules proposed by the state
Environmental Quality Board. The board updated pollution limits for
about 100 chemicals, as well as more than tripled the number of trout
streams which would receive greater pollution protection.
Federal law requires states to meet the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency’s minimum water quality standards. If West Virginia does not
come into compliance, the federal government could attempt to take over
the state DEP’s water pollution permitting and enforcement powers.
* I also participated in an interesting meeting regarding the potential
expansion of the State Police’s DNA databank. A Judiciary subcommittee
is considering legislation to allow State Police to collect DNA from
every felon in their custody, but some lawmakers questioned whether
such private information could be passed to other interests.
A similar bill died during the 2003 session. Currently, violent and
certain other types of felons may be tested, but not all felons. State
Police now take samples from about 85 percent of West Virginia’s
felons. About 43 states compile complete felon DNA databases.
The subcommittee also is discussing legislation which would allow for
the expungement of first-time, nonviolent misdemeanor offenses from a
resident’s record. The legislation is being fine-tuned, and one
provision being considered is creating a type of immunity for
employers. The West Virginia Chamber of Commerce wants to ensure that
if a person’s misdemeanor offense is cleared from his or her record,
that person’s employer will no longer be liable for having prior
knowledge of that offense in the event another crime is committed.
* Disturbing financial news continues to pour in, and this month a hot
topic of discussion was the condition of various city firefighter and
police pension funds. The Legislature has long been concerned about the
long-term debt these towns and cities are compiling – a debt we learned
this month stands at about $511 million.
More than a decade ago, the Legislature required cities to increase
their contributions into pension plans by 7 percent in exchange for a
partial match from the state. Although the interim pension committee is
considering similar action once again, a spokeswoman for the West
Virginia Municipal League said cities are already having trouble making
current payments and could not withstand an increase.
* An interim committee examining whether the Governor’s Cabinet on
Children and Families should be merged in the state Department of
Health and Human Resources heard survey results from 11 forums held
throughout the state. A majority of people who spoke at the forums
supported retaining the cabinet, but also complained that the cabinet
has not been meeting regularly, has very little oversight, and is
subject to political pressure.
Supporters noted that the cabinet fosters collaboration between various
agencies and community groups. They said the faults cited could
be corrected and that the agency should remain autonomous.
I welcome and appreciate your input on these issues, or any other
legislative matter. Please call me at (304)340-3106 or write to
Delegate Virginia Mahan, 215-E, Capitol Complex, Charleston, WV 25305.