Two extraordinary events will indelibly shape the nature and scope of legislative activity expected when the West Virginia Legislature convenes its 60-day ordinary session on February 10, 2021. First, a global pandemic has ushered in a new, more socially detached way of legislation. Second, with the Republican super majorities firmly anchored in both the House of Representatives and Senate, and a Republican governor easily re-elected by voters, many items on their long-standing wish-list may be within their reach.
We’re previewing how both events will affect the 2021 regular meeting after it kicks off for business operations on February 10th at 12:00 p.m.
COVID-19 is fundamentally changing the legislative process
The 2020 ordinary session ended at midnight on March 7, 2020, and barely two weeks later, Governor Justice issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency, which required the shutdown of all non-essential businesses and a general stay-at-home order Resident of the mountain state. As part of executive order, the state capitol was considered closed to visitors, although it remained open for official business to a limited extent.
There have been no legislative plenary sessions since the end of the 2020 session and, with few exceptions, the leadership has canceled the regular process of the Interim Committee meeting. As a result, lawmakers have simply not had an opportunity to delve into how to hold open meetings of its committees and meetings while weighing the need to maintain public safety and well-being in the face of ongoing concerns about COVID-19.
In recent public statements, Senate President Craig Blair and House Speaker Roger Hanshaw announced that they would increasingly rely on virtual technology (e.g. live streaming of committee meetings and floor meetings) to keep the public informed of ongoing legislation Procedure. Legislators also said the employees’ offices are investigating whether members could attend committee meetings and potentially vote on the legislation while they stay in their offices. Spokesman Hanshaw announced that the house galleries have been converted into member seating areas so proper distancing and mask use can be more easily tracked there than on the otherwise crowded house floor. While the public cannot be physically present, arrangements can be made to allow stakeholders and other invited guests to attend in person or through virtual video conferencing if necessary. Other changes that can be expected are overall fewer bills coming up for scrutiny, a streamlined process of bills referenced only in committees, and possibly even a more condensed timeline so that preferred legislation is more likely to advance early in the legislature is considered traditional towards the end. This would also aid the legislature in planning in the event of an interruption associated with exposure to coronavirus.
However, while maintaining a certain degree of transparency, the regulations described above will mean that the traditional method of “lobbying” will look somewhat different in 2021 legislation.
Republican super majorities
The second extraordinary event from 2020 onwards was the increasing “red wave”, which increased the Republican majorities in both chambers to “super majorities” or more than two thirds. In the House of Representatives, Republicans now have a 77-23 advantage, while the GOP retains a 23-11 advantage in the Senate. With leads so dominant in both chambers, one can reasonably expect the majority party to pursue certain goals that its caucus has long pursued. In addition, there may also be one or more constitutional amendments, such as the abolition of the personal property tax on equipment, machinery and inventory, which are taken into account by the entire legislature, as they only need two-thirds of the votes in both chambers to go to the vote for consideration the voter.
Governor Jim Justice will set out his legislative priorities in the annual State of the State Address, kicking off the ordinary session on February 10th. The state budget for the financial year 2021 until the end of January continues to exceed the budgeted estimates.
Legislators have already published a list of key issues and outlined general legislative concepts for the first two weeks of the session. Here are some of the bills we can expect:
Broadband expansion. One thing that seems to be an early consensus is that legislators will pay close attention to the availability of high-speed internet access. Expect numerous funding and broadband initiatives from governors, representatives, and Senate leaders. With the recent appointment of Mitch Carmichael as Executive Director of the West Virginia Development Office, the agency that supports the Broadband Office and Broadband Enhancement Council, this will be a focus as policy makers continue to grapple with the goal of being reliable to be affordable high speed internet for more Western Virgins, both in the city and in the country.
Income tax changes and other tax reforms. Tax cuts have long been an integral part of the GOP agenda. At the urging of the judiciary governor, the legislative focus this year appears to have shifted to a gradual abolition of income tax. With this tax accounting for more than 43 percent of the state’s general revenue fund, or just over $ 2 billion, the debate can be expected to focus largely on how to fill a gap in the state budget, either through tax increases, budget cuts, or a combination of both. Cuts to certain government programs appear to be on the table, along with increases in other taxes, like consumer sales and consumption taxes, to make the difference.
Limitation of COVID-19 Liability for Employers. In anticipation of an onslaught of litigation over the liability of employers or business owners for COVID-19 exposure, both chambers will most likely consider a bill that would limit that liability in the absence of reckless or deliberate exposure to employees or invited companies. Additional restrictions or restrictions will likely relate to the need to demonstrate actual exposure, diagnose the disease, and have a tight timeframe for initiating such civil actions. Other states have already enacted such laws, and West Virginia might be expected to follow suit.
Less regulations for setting up charter schools. The 2019 Omnibus Education Reform Act allowed up to three charter schools to be recognized, provided the local education authority approved the creation of such an institution. However, no charter schools have been recognized since the law went into effect, as a recent application by the Monongalia County Education Committee was rejected. Therefore, one can expect the legislation to remove the limit on the number of charter schools and the complicated approval process by local education authorities. Other enhancements to K-12 education could include creating savings accounts for personal education.
Investigation of the gubernatorial emergency powers. Since declaring a state of emergency in mid-March 2020, Governor Justice has issued 70 executive ordinances, ranging from ordering a nationwide stay-at-home order, gradual reopening of certain businesses, to closing bars in a specific county after disregarding certain security protocols. In addition, the Justice Department has set spending priorities for the $ 1.25 billion CARES Act allocated to West Virginia. All of these actions were taken without legal scrutiny or regular input. While few lawmakers have specifically identified serious flaws in the way Governor Justice has responded to the coronavirus pandemic and no one wants to compromise the executive’s ability to respond to emergency situations, some have nonetheless expressed the need to the overall process by examining which legislature can play a more active role. At least there may be some interest in limiting the period up to which such exceptional states can remain in effect without legal ratification or approval.
Review of professional licensing agencies and other regulatory requirements. To allow the greatest possible flexibility in managing the state’s response to the COVID crisis, Governor Justice has many of the regulations that restrict access to health care, such as license renewal, license recognition out of state, and even scope practice, temporarily suspended rules that define professional boundaries between certain professions. The need for many such regulations for the various state-approved professions has always been examined. With nearly a year of experience without some of the applicable regulations, greater efforts are likely to be put in to minimize the regulatory burden and make it easier for certain professions to enter the market.