WEST virginia Legislature

2016 regular session

Introduced

Senate Bill 666

By Senator Trump

[Introduced February 22, 2016;
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.]

A BILL to amend and reenact §16-2-11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §16-2-13a, all relating to local indoor smoking prohibitions; exempting certain veterans’ organizations and video lottery licenses from local indoor smoking prohibition; requiring veterans organization facilities and video lottery licenses allowing smoking to have nonsmoking areas; requiring posted notices smoking is allowed; requiring ventilation of smoking areas in video lottery facilities; and establishing a procedure for certain establishments to apply for exemption from local indoor smoking prohibition.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That §16-2-11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said code be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated §16-2-13a, all to read as follows:

ARTICLE 2. LOCAL BOARDS OF HEALTH.

§16-2-11. Local board of health; powers and duties; exemption of veterans’ organizations and active duty United States Military organizations from indoor smoking regulations.

(a) Each local board of health created, established and operated pursuant to the provisions of this article shall:

(1) Provide the following basic public health services and programs in accordance with state public health performance-based standards:

(i) Community health promotion including assessing and reporting community health needs to improve health status, facilitating community partnerships including identifying the community=s priority health needs, mobilization of a community around identified priorities and monitoring the progress of community health education services;

(ii) Environmental health protection including the promoting and maintaining of clean and safe air, water, food and facilities and the administering of public health laws as specified by the commissioner as to general sanitation, the sanitation of public drinking water, sewage and wastewater, food and milk, and the sanitation of housing, institutions, and recreation; and

(iii) Communicable or reportable disease prevention and control including disease surveillance, case investigation and follow-up, outbreak investigation, response to epidemics, and prevention and control of rabies, sexually transmitted diseases, vaccine preventable diseases, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and other communicable and reportable diseases;

(2) Appoint a local health officer to serve at the will and pleasure of the local board of health with approval of the commissioner;

(3) Submit a general plan of operation to the commissioner for approval, if it receives any state or federal money for health purposes. This program plan shall be submitted annually and comply with provisions of the local board of health standards administrative rule;

(4) Provide equipment and facilities for the local health department that are in compliance with federal and state law;

(5) Permit the commissioner to act by and through it, as needed. The commissioner may enforce all public health laws of this state, the rules and orders of the secretary, any county commission orders or municipal ordinances of the board=s service area relating to public health, and the rules and orders of the local board within the service area of a local board. The commissioner may enforce these laws, rules and orders when, in the opinion of the commissioner, a public health emergency exists or when the local board fails or refuses to enforce public health laws and rules necessary to prevent and control the spread of a communicable or reportable disease dangerous to the public health. The expenses incurred shall be charged against the counties or municipalities concerned;

(6) Deposit all moneys and collected fees into an account designated for local board of health purposes. The moneys for a municipal board of health shall be deposited with the municipal treasury in the service area. The moneys for a county board of health shall be deposited with the county treasury in the service area. The moneys for a combined local board of health shall be deposited in an account as designated in the plan of combination: Provided, That nothing contained in this subsection is intended to conflict with the provisions of article one, chapter sixteen of this code;

(7) Submit vouchers or other instruments approved by the board and signed by the local health officer or designated representative to the county or municipal treasurer for payment of necessary and reasonable expenditures from the county or municipal public health funds: Provided, That a combined local board of health shall draw upon its public health funds account in the manner designated in the plan of combination;

(8) Participate in audits, be in compliance with tax procedures required by the state and annually develop a budget for the next fiscal year;

(9) Perform public health duties assigned by order of a county commission or by municipal ordinance consistent with state public health laws; and

(10) Enforce the public health laws of this state and any other laws of this state applicable to the local board.

(b) Each local board of health created, established and operated pursuant to the provisions of this article may:

(1) Provide primary care services, clinical and categorical programs, and enhanced public health services;

(2) Employ or contract with any technical, administrative, clerical or other persons, to serve as needed and at the will and pleasure of the local board of health. Staff and any contractors providing services to the board shall comply with applicable West Virginia certification and licensure requirements. Eligible staff employed by the board shall be covered by the rules of the Division of Personnel under section six, article ten, chapter twenty-nine of this code. However, any local board of health may, in the alternative and with the consent and approval of the appointing authority, establish and adopt a merit system for its eligible employees. The merit system may be similar to the state merit system and may be established by the local board by its order, subject to the approval of the appointing authority, adopting and making applicable to the local health department all, or any portion of any order, rule, standard, or compensation rate in effect in the state merit system as may be desired and as is properly applicable;

(3) Adopt and promulgate and from time to time propose and amend rules consistent with state public health laws and the rules of the West Virginia State Department of Health and Human Resources, that are necessary and proper for the protection of the general health of the service area and the prevention of the introduction, propagation and spread of disease. All rules shall be filed with the clerk of the county commission or the clerk or the recorder of the municipality or both and shall be kept by the clerk or recording officer in a separate book as public records;

(4) Accept, receive and receipt for money or property from any federal, state or local governmental agency, from any other public source or from any private source, to be used for public health purposes or for the establishment or construction of public health facilities;

 (5) Assess, charge and collect fees for permits and licenses for the provision of public health services: Provided, That permits and licenses required for agricultural activities may not be assessed, charged or collected: Provided, however, That a local board of health may assess, charge and collect all of the expenses of inspection of the physical plant and facilities of any distributor, producer or pasteurizer of milk whose milk distribution, production or pasteurization facilities are located outside this state but who sells or distributes in the state, or transports, causes or permits to be transported into this state, milk or milk products for resale, use or consumption in the state and in the service area of the local board of health. A local board of health may not assess, charge and collect the expenses of inspection if the physical plant and facilities are regularly inspected by another agency of this state or its governmental subdivisions or by an agency of another state or its governmental subdivisions certified as an approved inspection agency by the commissioner. No more than one local board of health may act as the regular inspection agency of the physical plant and facilities; when two or more include an inspection of the physical plant and facilities in a regular schedule, the commissioner shall designate one as the regular inspection agency;

(6) Assess, charge and collect fees for services provided by the local health department: Provided, That fees for services shall be submitted to and approved by the commissioner;

(7) Contract for payment with any municipality, county or board of education for the provision of local health services or for the use of public health facilities. Any contract shall be in writing and permit provision of services or use of facilities for a period not to exceed one fiscal year. The written contract may include provisions for annual renewal by agreement of the parties; and

(8) Retain and make available child safety car seats, collect rental and security deposit fees for the expenses of retaining and making available child safety car seats, and conduct public education activities concerning the use and preventing the misuse of child safety car seats: Provided, That this subsection is not intended to conflict with the provisions of section forty-six, article fifteen, chapter seventeen-c of this code: Provided, however, That any local board of health offering a child safety car seat program or employee or agent of a local board of health is immune from civil or criminal liability in any action relating to the improper use, malfunction or inadequate maintenance of the child safety car seat and in any action relating to the improper placement, maintenance or securing of a child in a child safety car seat.

(c) The local boards of health are charged with protecting the health and safety, as well as promoting the interests of the citizens of West Virginia. All state funds appropriated by the Legislature for the benefit of local boards of health shall be used for provision of basic public health services.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, a veteran’s organization that is exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code is exempt from rules restricting smoking in indoor spaces which are adopted, promulgated or enforced by local boards of health, as long as the area where smoking is permitted is restricted to persons age eighteen years or older:  Provided, That each entrance to the facility shall have posted a sign of no less than eighteen inches by twenty-four inches, which says “DANGER: THESE PREMISES CONTAIN TOBACCO SMOKE.”

§16-2-13a. Requiring certain facilities to provide for smoking and nonsmoking sections.

(a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any operational veteran’s organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code or any facility holding a valid video lottery license granted by the West Virginia Lottery Commission pursuant to article twenty-two-a, chapter twenty-nine of the code may allow smoking in the facility, but shall provide smoking and nonsmoking sections if smoking is allowed: Provided, That if the facility allows smoking then each entrance to the facility shall have posted a sign of no less than eighteen inches by twenty-four inches, which says “DANGER: THESE PREMISES CONTAIN TOBACCO SMOKE.”

(b) A facility holding a valid video lottery license granted by the West Virginia Lottery Commission pursuant to article twenty-two-a, chapter twenty-nine of this code must have:

(1) A permanent ventilation system that ensures a minimum air exchange of six times per hour throughout the indoor space and a minimum air exchange of twelve times per hour in the indoor space that serves food, unless the food space is designated nonsmoking;

(2) A smoking area restricted to persons twenty-one years of age or older; and

(3) At least ten percent of the indoor space of the area designated a nonsmoking area.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exempt certain veterans’ organizations and video lottery licenses from local indoor smoking prohibition.  The bill requires veteran’s organization facilities and video lottery licenses allowing smoking to have nonsmoking areas to post notices smoking is allowed.  The bill requires ventilation of smoking areas in video lottery facilities.  The bill also establishes a procedure for certain establishments to apply for exemption from local indoor smoking prohibition.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.