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Wednesday, January 17, 2007

EIGHTH DAY


The House of Delegates met at 11:00 a.m., and was called to order by the Speaker.
Prayer was offered and the House was led in recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Clerk proceeded to read the Journal of Tuesday, January 16, 2007, being the first order of business, when the further reading thereof was dispensed with and the same approved.
Messages from the Executive

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, presented the 2006 annual report of the Governor's Committee on Crime, Delinquency and Correction, in accordance with section three, article eleven-c, chapter sixty-two of the code; which was filed in the Clerk's Office.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, presented the annual report for the fiscal year 2005 and 2006 of the Radiologic Technology Board of Examiners in accordance with section twelve, article one, chapter -thirteen of the code; which was filed in the Clerk's Office.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, presented the annual report for the 2005-2006 fiscal year of the Center for Nursing in accordance with the provision of the code; which was filed in the Clerk's Office.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, presented the Department of Health and Human Resources annual report on Licensing of Nursing Homes in West Virginia, through the Health Facility License and Certification Office in accordance with section three(q), article five-c, chapter sixteen of the code; which was filed in the Clerk's Office.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, presented the 2006 annual report of the State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers, in accordance section twelve-b, article one, chapter thirty of the code; which was filed in the Clerk's Office.
Resolutions Introduced

Delegates Overington, Blair, Doyle, Duke, Cowles, Miller, Tabb and Rowan offered the following resolution, which was read by its title and referred to the Committee on Rules:
H. R. 10 - "Requesting the State of West Virginia and the United States Federal Government to fully recognize that the counties of Berkeley and Jefferson in the State of West Virginia are part of the beautiful and historic Shenandoah Valley."
Whereas, The State of West Virginia was part of the State of Virginia until June 20th, 1863 and the counties of Berkeley and Jefferson were not officially added into the new State until 1872 upon the ruling of the United States Supreme Court. This ruling split the Shenandoah Valley into two sections, with the two counties just mentioned being now part of West Virginia and part of a political arm called the 'Eastern Panhandle'; and
Whereas, The geographical landscape of the Shenandoah Valley is as follows: Beginning at the Potomac River that forms the northern boundary along Berkeley and Jefferson Counties and continuing southwestward to the southern boundary near the city of Roanoke, Virginia. The valley is flanked to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains (in eastern Jefferson County, West Virginia) and to the west by the Allegheny Mountains (in western Berkeley County, West Virginia). The Shenandoah River flows northward and empties into the Potomac River at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. To break down the valley into two parts: The Upper Shenandoah Valley is located southward because of a high elevation and the Lower Shenandoah Valley is located northward because of a low elevation; and
Whereas, The historical landscape of Berkeley and Jefferson Counties is a storybook land full of famous patriots and people, wars and great events that made it into the history books. Both counties are rich in legend and lore. This is where the Great Wagon Road (later called the Valley Turnpike) provided travel for Indians, the earliest pioneers and Revolutionary and Civil War soldiers. The entire valley was known as the 'Breadbasket of the Confederacy' because of its richness in fertile soils that sustains life for farms and orchards. The following is a brief look at the history of the counties of Berkeley and Jefferson: From George Washington and Thomas Jefferson to Morgan Morgan, from Revolutionary War Generals William Darke, Horatio Gates, Charles Lee, Daniel Morgan and General Adam Stephen to the famous Bee Line March and the oldest continuous 1735 United States Military Unit still in existence; and
Whereas, From the birthplace of United States President Andrew Jackson and the marriage of United States President James and Dolly Madison to Davy Crockett who worked on a local farm to James Rumsey, inventor of the steamboat. From John Brown and Robert E. Lee, 'Stonewall' Jackson and J. E. B. Stuart, Turner Ashby and the Gray Ghost and Confederate Spy, Belle Boyd to the Battle of Falling Waters-the first engagement in the Shenandoah Valley and first cavalry action of the Civil War -- From the 1862 Battle of Harpers Ferry, to the Jackson Valley Campaign, to Philip Sheridan's successful Union Valley Campaign -- From David Hunter and David Hunter Strother (Pen name 'Porte Crayon') -- To Martin Robinson Delaney, the highest ranking black officer in the Civil War -- From the B. & O. Roundhouses (landmarks in 20th century industrial architecture that replaced buildings destroyed in a famous Civil War raid by Jackson) to the first Rural Free Delivery in America (begun by United States Postmaster General William L. Wilson, a son of Jefferson County) and Washington Family Homes to the birth of Harry Flood Byrd, Senator and Governor of Virginia and from baseball player, Hack Wilson and WWI Secretary of the War, Newton D. Baker to the Legend of Wizard Clip and to famous western artist William Robinson Leigh, a Berkeley County native. From the city of Martinsburg, 'Northern Gateway to the Shenandoah Valley' and at one time known as 'Queen City' to the famous Apple Pie Ridge and the first Apple Carnival Event held in 1909' -- From Apple Blossom to Apple Harvest......This is the 'Cradle of America'; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That in 1996, the United States Congress established the 'Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District and Commission' and Berkeley and Jefferson Counties, West Virginia were not included to be a part of the program or to obtain any funds; and, be it
Further Resolved, That Berkeley and Jefferson Counties, West Virginia should be eligible to become part of the 'Shenandoah Battlefields National Historic District and Commission' and be eligible for any other federal programs that are available for the Shenandoah Valley; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates is hereby directed to forward a copy of this Resolution to the President of the United States and to West Virginia's Delegation in Congress and the Governor of West Virginia and to the Mayors and City Councils of Bolivar, Charles Town, Harpers Ferry, Hedgesville, Martinsburg, Ranson and Sheperdstown and to the County Commissioners of Berkeley and Jefferson Counties, West Virginia.
Bills Introduced

On motions for leave, bills were introduced, read by their titles, and severally referred as follows:
By Delegate DeLong:
H. B. 2266 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §30-10-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to the licensing of veterinarians; the issuance of temporary permits to certain otherwise qualified applicants; and allowing for the issuance of a temporary permit to otherwise qualified graduates of foreign veterinary schools who are waiting to take clinical proficiency examination, as long as their activities are under the direct supervision and control of a licensed veterinarian"; to the Committee on Government Organization.
By Delegate Kominar:
H. B. 2267 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §11-15-9i, relating to providing that the exemption from consumers sales and service tax for drugs, durable medical goods, mobility enhancing equipment, prosthetic devices and insulin does not apply to purchases by health care providers for use in providing professional or personal services"; to the Committee on Health and Human Resources then Finance.
By Delegate Lane:
H. B. 2268 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §5-3-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to assignment of cases to private attorneys by bid; requiring that the Joint Committee on Government and Finance approve any proposed settlement involving the Office of the Attorney General; and, providing that any proceeds received in any civil action involving the Office of the Attorney General be deposited in the general revenue fund to be appropriated by the Legislature"; to the Committee on Government Organization then the Judiciary.
By Delegate Blair:
H. B. 2269 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §30-29-11, relating to prohibiting law-enforcement officers from asking crime victims if they have insurance coverage to cover losses occasioned by the criminal activity being investigated; and, excluding the provisions of the section in the event reasonable suspicion exists that a crime has been staged or falsely reported"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Blair:
H. B. 2270 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §18C-7-3 and §18C-7-6 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to permitting a West Virginia student to receive fifty percent of the cost of tuition at an out-of-state college or university under a PROMISE scholarship where the course desired by the student is not offered by any institution in the state"; to the Committee on Education then Finance.
By Delegates Spencer, Moore, Iaquinta and Hatfield:
H. B. 2271 - "A Bill to amend and reenact º22-18-21 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to the required disclosure, in deeds and leases of real property, of the previous existence of a crystal methamphetamine laboratory"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Blair:
H. B. 2272 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §18A-4-8g of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to allowing bus operators for county school systems to carry-over years of experience operating buses for purposes of determining seniority"; to the Committee on Education then Finance.
By Delegate Blair:
H. B. 2273 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §16-2F-10, relating to prohibiting a business or organization from performing abortions in a public facility; and providing for a penalty"; to the Committee on Health and Human Resources then the Judiciary.
By Delegate Kominar:
H. B. 2274 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §48-13-502 and §48-13-603 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §48-13-504, all relating to calculating child support under the extended shared parenting plan"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Stalnaker:
H. B. 2275 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §61-5-17 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to obstructing a law-enforcement officer, generally; and providing that making a false statement to a law-enforcement officer in the conduct of an investigation is a misdemeanor offense"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Stalnaker:
H. B. 2276 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §47-20-32, relating to allowing nonprofit organizations to hold up to two charitable Texas hold'em tournaments per year"; to the Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.
By Delegate Stalnaker:
H. B. 2277 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §11A-3-19 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to requiring purchasers of real estate subject to tax liens to pay for notices to redeem"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegates Doyle and Overington:
H. B. 2278 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §5-5-6, relating to salary increases for state employees based upon residential housing costs in a county"; to the Committee on Finance.
By Delegate Williams:
H. B. 2279 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §20-2-46j of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to establishing a special sidelock black powder rifle deer hunting season and requiring a special stamp therefor"; to the Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources then Finance.
By Delegate Williams:
H. B. 2280 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §25-1-11d of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing that correctional officers may retire with full benefits after twenty years of actual and honorable service"; to the Committee on Pensions and Retirement then Finance.
By Delegate Miley:
H. B. 2281 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §33-6B-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to prohibiting the number of inquiries reflected in a credit report, credit score report or CLUE report from adversely affecting an application for insurance; and, prohibiting reliance on information which is false or potentially false"; to the Committee on Banking and Insurance then the Judiciary.
By Delegate Miley:
H. B. 2282 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §33-20-4 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §33-20B-3 of said code, all relating to requiring that rate filings, both with respect to property and casualty insurance generally, and medical malpractice insurance in particular, contain data for informational purposes, regarding payments made for bad faith, unfair claims settlement practices, excess verdicts and other extra contractual liability, but the same not be contained or considered, in loss data submitted in support of a rate filing"; to the Committee on Banking and Insurance then the Judiciary.
By Delegate Williams:
H. B. 2283 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §61-3-39g of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to notifying persons from out-of-state who issue worthless checks in this state and who, after being duly served with a summons upon a misdemeanor complaint, fail to pay the check and applicable fine or fail to appear in court, that a notice of their failure will be sent to the Division of Motor Vehicles to be dealt with according to existing law"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Stalnaker:
H. B. 2284 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §8-14-17a, relating to transferability for certified law-enforcement officers from one department to another throughout the state; civil service status; and benefits"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegate Armstead
[By Request of the Executive]:
H. B. 2285 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §11-21-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to updating meaning of federal adjusted gross and certain other terms used in West Virginia Personal Income Tax Act; and specifying effective dates"; to the Committee on Finance.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegate Armstead
[By Request of the Executive]:
H. B. 2286 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §5-5-6, relating to a monetary incentive for eligible employees"; to the Committee on Finance.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegate Armstead
[By Request of the Executive]:
H. B. 2287 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §62-11C-4 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; relating to the West Virginia Community Corrections Fund; and establishing fee collected from persons on home incarceration"; to the Committee on Finance.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegate Armstead
[By Request of the Executive]:
H. B. 2288 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §18-9D-15 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new article, designated §18-9F-1, §18-9F-2, §18-9F-3, §18-9F-4, §18-9F-5, §18-9F-6 and §18-9F-7, all relating to school access safety; declaring legislative intent; authorizing the School Building Authority to facilitate and provide funding for enhancing the safe ingress and egress of pupils, school employees, parents, visitors, and emergency personnel to and from West Virginia public schools; defining certain terms; providing for submission of school access safety plans; providing for certain guidelines and procedures by authority for plans, plan modifications and evaluating projects; providing for allocation and distribution of moneys to projects; creating a special account in the State Treasury; and providing school access safety requirements for new school buildings"; to the Committee on Education then Finance.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegate Armstead
[By Request of the Executive]:
H. B. 2289 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §30-5-1b, §30-5-12, §30-5-12b and §30-5-16b of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §30-5-12c; to amend and reenact §30-7-15c of said code; and to amend and reenact §60A-3-308 of said code, all relating to the authorization of E-prescribing generally"; to the Committee on Health and Human Resources then the Judiciary.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Thompson, and Delegate Armstead
[By Request of the Executive]:
H. B. 2290 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §22A-1-15 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §22A-2-4a; to amend and reenact §22A-2-5 of said code; to amend and reenact §22A-7-5 of said code; to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §22A-7-7; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new article, designated §22A-11-1, §22A-11-2, §22A-11-3 and §22A-11-4, all relating to coal mine health and safety; authorizing Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training to issue closure orders for a history of violations demonstrating a disregard for health and safety; prohibiting the use of a belt conveyor entry as an intake air course and providing exceptions thereto; providing requirements for the design, construction, and monitoring of sealed areas; prohibiting use of alternative seals and providing for requirements for remediation of existing alternative seals; prohibiting the use of bottom mining and providing exceptions thereto; providing continuing education requirements for a mine foreman-fire boss; and continuing the Mine Safety Technology Task Force"; to the Committee on Industry and Labor, Economic Development and Small Business then the Judiciary.
House Calendar

Third Reading

Com. Sub. for H. B. 2051, Including lasers as a method of proving the speed of vehicles; on third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third time.
The question being on the passage of the bill, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 3), and there were--yeas 99, nays none, absent and not voting 1, with the absent and not voting being as follows:
Absent And Not Voting: Ron Thompson.
So, a majority of the members present and voting having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bill (Com. Sub. for H. B. 2051) passed.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
H. B. 2052, Providing that the term "impersonation" of a public official or employee includes the act of operating a motor vehicle which falsely displays an official emblem or other marking; on third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third time.
The question being on the passage of the bill, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 4), and there were--yeas 99, nays none, absent and not voting 1, with the absent and not voting being as follows:
Absent And Not Voting: Ron Thompson.
So, a majority of the members present and voting having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bill (H. B. 2052) passed.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
First Reading

H. B. 2105, Extending the expiration date of provisions permitting retired teachers to accept employment as substitutes in areas of critical need and shortage for an unlimited number of days without affecting retirement benefits; on first reading, coming up in regular order, was read a first time and ordered to second reading.
Leaves of Absence

At the request of Delegate DeLong, and by unanimous consent, leave of absence for the day was granted Delegate Ron Thompson.
At 11:30 a.m., the House of Delegates adjourned until 11:00 a.m., Thursday, January 18, 2007.