WEST virginia legislature

2017 regular session

Committee Substitute

for

House Bill 2540

By Delegates Ellington, Summers, Rohrbach, Cooper, Hollen, Sobonya, Rowan, Atkinson and Longstreth

[Originating in the Committee on Government Organization; March 3, 2017]

A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §30-1-21, relating to authorizing a person to practice professions and occupations for a charitable function; provides qualifications for volunteers; provides volunteers may be compensated; limits volunteer authorization to twenty-one days; requires information be provided to the applicable board; requires record keeping of volunteer authorizations; and provides boards may not charge a fee for charitable practice.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated §30-1-21, to read as follows:

§30-1-21. Exemption from licensure for professional practice for a charitable function.

(a) A person holding an unrestricted license, certificate, registration or permit granted by another state or jurisdiction to practice a profession or occupation licensed under this chapter may serve as a volunteer with or without compensation for a charitable function for a period not to exceed twenty-one days, subject to the approval process described in this section: Provided, That a person who has received any completed disciplinary actions in which discipline was ordered in any of the three most recent years, or is the subject of any pending disciplinary actions is not eligible for this charitable exemption from licensure.

(b) The person shall notify the board of the nature of the volunteer charitable practice, the specific dates the person will participate in the charitable practice, and shall provide to the board a list of all professional and occupational licenses, registrations, permits or certificates held in each state or jurisdiction for the previous three years.

(c) Upon a review of the information required by this section, the board shall provide a temporary authorization to a qualified volunteer to participate in the volunteer activity for the duration not to exceed twenty-one days. Each board shall keep a record of each authorization issued pursuant to his section.  

(d) The board may not charge a fee to authorize this charitable practice.

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