WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
SENATE JOURNAL
EIGHTIETH LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION, 2012
THIRD DAY
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Charleston, W. Va., Friday, January 13, 2012
The Senate met at 11 a.m.
(Senator Kessler, Mr. President, in the Chair.)
Prayer was offered by the Reverend Bill Bartlett, Former
Pastor of Maranatha Baptist Church, Charleston, West Virginia.
Pending the reading of the Journal of Thursday, January 12,
2012,
On motion of Senator Wells, the Journal was approved and the
further reading thereof dispensed with.
The Clerk presented a communication from the Board of
Medicine, submitting its annual report for fiscal year 2011 as
required by chapter thirty, article one, section twelve of the code
of West Virginia.
Which communication and report were received and filed with
the Clerk.
The Clerk presented a communication from the Joint Committee
on Pensions and Retirement, submitting its annual report, in
accordance with Rule No. 29 of the Joint Rules of the Senate and House of Delegates.
Which communication and report were received and filed with
the Clerk.
The Clerk presented a communication from the Legislative
Oversight Committee on the Regional Jail and Correctional Facility
Authority, submitting its annual report as required by chapter
thirty-one, article twenty, section twenty-six of the code of West
Virginia.
Which communication and report were received and filed with
the Clerk.
The Senate proceeded to the sixth order of business.
On motions for leave, severally made, the following bills were
introduced, read by their titles, and referred to the appropriate
committees:
By Senator Barnes:
Senate Bill No. 169--A Bill to amend and reenact §8-10-2 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to decreasing
the number of jurors on a municipal jury in criminal matters from
twelve to six.
Referred to the Committee on Government Organization; and then
to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Plymale, Unger, Jenkins, Stollings and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 170--A Bill to amend and reenact §18B-17-2 and
§18B-17-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to higher education; legislative rules; authorizing a rule
for the Higher Education Policy Commission regarding tuition and
fees; and authorizing rules for the Council for Community and
Technical College Education regarding the Workforce Development
Initiative Program and tuition and fees.
Referred to the Committee on Education.
By Senators Miller, Foster, Helmick, Plymale, Hall, Unger,
Jenkins, Stollings and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 171--A Bill to amend and reenact §16-5P-6 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to clarifying
the duties of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Senior Services as
executive and administrative head of the Bureau of Senior Services;
and requiring the Bureau of Senior Services to develop and maintain
an in-home direct care worker registry.
Referred to the Committee on Health and Human Resources; and
then to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Yost, D. Facemire, Foster and Klempa:
Senate Bill No. 172--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated §29-6-29, relating to the creation of an equal pay
coordinator within the Division of Personnel to ensure pay equity
among state employees; making legislative findings; providing
qualifications for the position; providing powers and duties of
coordinator; providing for the development of a strategic plan to ensure pay equity in state government; authorizing other agencies
to share necessary information with the coordinator; and providing
rule-making authority.
Referred to the Committee on Government Organization.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Unger and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 173--A Bill to amend and reenact §23-4-1f of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to allowing
workers' compensation for certain mental illnesses related to being
a crime victim.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Foster, Yost, Klempa and
Wills:
Senate Bill No. 174--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new article,
designated §3-1D-1, relating to the agreement among states to elect
the president by national popular vote.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Jenkins, Foster,
Williams, Stollings and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 175--A Bill to amend and reenact §30-3-10a of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and
reenact §30-14-12b of said code, all relating to granting
practicing medical physicians and osteopathic physicians special
volunteer medical licenses so they may donate their expertise for the medical care and treatment of indigent and needy patients in a
clinic setting organized, in whole or in part, for the delivery of
health care services without charge; and establishing
qualification, documentation, fee and immunity requirements.
Referred to the Committee on Health and Human Resources; and
then to the Committee on Government Organization.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President) and Unger:
Senate Bill No. 176--A Bill to amend and reenact §29-22-18a of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to making
funding for high school athletics one of the priorities in the
expenditure of any surplus excess lottery revenue funds; providing
for the apportionment and dispersing of funds; and prohibiting the
funds from supplanting existing funding for high school athletics.
Referred to the Committee on Education; and then to the
Committee on Finance.
By Senators Foster, Browning, Fanning, Jenkins, Minard,
Tucker, Wills, Barnes, K. Facemyer, Yost, Williams and Plymale:
Senate Bill No. 177--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated §25-1-23, relating to the construction of a new one
thousand two hundred-bed correctional facility by the Division of
Corrections.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators K. Facemyer, Jenkins, D. Facemire and Sypolt:
Senate Bill No. 178--A Bill to amend and reenact §61-2-10b of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to making it
unlawful to harm, or attempt to harm, a police dog; defining a
term; and creating penalties.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the
Committee on Finance.
By Senators Miller, Laird and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 179--A Bill to amend and reenact §21-5-4 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to the time
final wages are required to be paid to discharged employees; and
authorizing payment by mail if requested by the employee.
Referred to the Committee on Labor.
By Senators K. Facemyer, McCabe, Sypolt, Miller and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 180--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated §36-3-8a, relating to permitting a surface owner to have
the right of first refusal to purchase a mineral estate beneath the
surface when the mineral owner offers the mineral estate for sale.
Referred to the Committee on Energy, Industry and Mining; and
then to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Unger, Stollings and
Wills:
Senate Bill No. 181--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §33-17-13, relating to requiring insurance companies to
indicate on fire insurance customer bills the amount of increased
cost that would exist if not for the existence of a local fire
department.
Referred to the Committee on Banking and Insurance.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Foster, Yost, Stollings,
McCabe, Browning, Klempa, Miller and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 182--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated §5A-2-35, relating to creation of the West Virginia
Future Fund; initial funding to consist of twenty-five percent of
increased proceeds from oil and natural gas severance taxes;
expressing legislative intent not to encumber or otherwise use any
principal or interest from the fund for a term of twenty years; and
addressing use of the fund.
Referred to the Committee on Economic Development; and then to
the Committee on Finance.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Unger, Foster and
Stollings:
Senate Bill No. 183--A Bill to amend and reenact §61-2-15a of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to increasing
special penalties for assault and battery on an athletic official
so that maximum confinement is consistent with assault and battery
on the general public.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Kessler (Mr. President), Jenkins, Laird, Stollings
and Wills:
Senate Bill No. 184--A Bill to amend and reenact §19-14-5 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing
moneys from an additional commercial feed distributor fee assessed
to commercial feed distributors to fund a statewide spay and neuter
program; and creating the Spay Neuter Assistance Fund.
Referred to the Committee on Agriculture; and then to the
Committee on Finance.
By Senators Laird, Nohe and Foster:
Senate Bill No. 185--A Bill to amend and reenact §5A-1A-4 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to increasing
the maximum cash award the Employee Suggestion Award Board may
make; requiring the board to report to the Legislature every five
years regarding effect of inflation; and allowing the Governor to
make a secondary award for suggestions if the suggestion is
implemented in one or more additional state agencies.
Referred to the Committee on Government Organization; and then
to the Committee on Finance.
The Senate proceeded to the seventh order of business.
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 3, Requesting Joint Committee
on Government and Finance continue studying issues facing veterans.
On unfinished business, coming up in regular order, was reported by the Clerk and referred to the Committee on Military;
and then to the Committee on Rules.
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4, Supporting recommendations
of WV Partnership for Elder Living's Make a Plan for Alzheimer's
Final Report and Recommendations.
On unfinished business, coming up in regular order, was
reported by the Clerk and referred to the Committee on Health and
Human Resources.
On motion of Senator Unger, the Senate adjourned until Monday,
January 16, 2012, at 1 p.m.
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