H. B. 2933

 

         (By Delegate Morgan)

         [Introduced January 28,2011; referred to the

         Committee on Government Organization then Finance.]

 

 

 

 

A BILL to amend and reenact §5F-2-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new article, designated §5B-2H-1, §5B-2H-2 and §5B-2H-3, all relating to the Office of Economic Opportunity; transferring that office to the Department of Commerce; establishing qualification for a director; setting forth the office’s powers and duties; and granting the office authority over the weatherization assistance program.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

    That §5F-2-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said code be amended by adding thereto a new article, designated §5B-2H-1, §5B-2H-2 and §5B-2H-3, all to read as follows:

CHAPTER 5F. REORGANIZATION OF THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

OF STATE GOVERNMENT.

ARTICLE 2. TRANSFER OF AGENCIES AND BOARDS.

§5F-2-1. Transfer and incorporation of agencies and boards; funds.

    (a) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Administration:

    (1) Building Commission provided in article six, chapter five of this code;

    (2) Public Employees Insurance Agency provided in article sixteen, chapter five of this code;

    (3) Governor’s Mansion Advisory Committee provided in article five, chapter five-a of this code;

    (4) Commission on Uniform State Laws provided in article one-a, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (5) West Virginia Public Employees Grievance Board provided in article three, chapter six-c of this code;

    (6) Board of Risk and Insurance Management provided in article twelve, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (7) Boundary Commission provided in article twenty-three, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (8) Public Defender Services provided in article twenty-one, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (9) Division of Personnel provided in article six, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (10) The West Virginia Ethics Commission provided in article two, chapter six-b of this code;

    (11) Consolidated Public Retirement Board provided in article ten-d, chapter five of this code; and

    (12) Real Estate Division provided in article ten, chapter five-a of this code.

    (b) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Commerce:

    (1) Division of Labor provided in article one, chapter twenty-one of this code, which includes:

    (A) Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission provided in article three-a, chapter twenty-one of this code; and

    (B) Board of Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety provided in article nine, chapter twenty-one of this code;

    (2) Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training provided in article one, chapter twenty-two-a of this code. The following boards are transferred to the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training for purposes of administrative support and liaison with the office of the Governor:

    (A) Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety and Coal Mine Safety and Technical Review Committee provided in article six, chapter twenty-two-a of this code;

    (B) Board of Miner Training, Education and Certification provided in article seven, chapter twenty-two-a of this code; and

    (C) Mine Inspectors’ Examining Board provided in article nine, chapter twenty-two-a of this code;

    (3) The West Virginia Development Office, which includes the Division of Tourism and the Tourism Commission provided in article two, chapter five-b of this code;

    (4) Division of Natural Resources and Natural Resources Commission provided in article one, chapter twenty of this code;

    (5) Division of Forestry provided in article one-a, chapter nineteen of this code;

    (6) Geological and Economic Survey provided in article two, chapter twenty-nine of this code; and

    (7) Workforce West Virginia provided in chapter twenty-one-a of this code, which includes:

    (A) Division of Unemployment Compensation;

    (B) Division of Employment Services;

    (C) Division of Workforce Development; and

    (D) Division of Research, Information and Analysis; and

    (8) Division of Energy provided in article two-f, chapter five-b of this code.

    (9) The Office of Economic Opportunity provided in article two-h, chapter five-b of this code;

    (c) The Economic Development Authority provided in article fifteen, chapter thirty-one of this code is continued as an independent agency within the executive branch.

    (d) The Water Development Authority and Board provided in article one, chapter twenty-two-c of this code is continued as an independent agency within the executive branch.

    (e) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory and affiliated entities, are transferred to the Department of Environmental Protection for purposes of administrative support and liaison with the office of the Governor:

    (1) Air Quality Board provided in article two, chapter twenty-two-b of this code;

    (2) Solid Waste Management Board provided in article three, chapter twenty-two-c of this code;

    (3) Environmental Quality Board, or its successor board, provided in article three, chapter twenty-two-b of this code;

    (4) Surface Mine Board provided in article four, chapter twenty-two-b of this code;

    (5) Oil and Gas Inspectors’ Examining Board provided in article seven, chapter twenty-two-c of this code;

    (6) Shallow Gas Well Review Board provided in article eight, chapter twenty-two-c of this code; and

    (7) Oil and Gas Conservation Commission provided in article nine, chapter twenty-two-c of this code.

    (f) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Education and the Arts:

    (1) Library Commission provided in article one, chapter ten of this code;

    (2) Educational Broadcasting Authority provided in article five, chapter ten of this code;

    (3) Division of Culture and History provided in article one, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (4) Division of Rehabilitation Services provided in section two, article ten-a, chapter eighteen of this code.

    (g) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Health and Human Resources:

    (1) Human Rights Commission provided in article eleven, chapter five of this code;

    (2) Division of Human Services provided in article two, chapter nine of this code;

    (3) Bureau for Public Health provided in article one, chapter sixteen of this code;

    (4) Office of Emergency Medical Services and Advisory Council provided in article four-c, chapter sixteen of this code;

    (5) Health Care Authority provided in article twenty-nine-b, chapter sixteen of this code;

    (6) Commission on Mental Retardation provided in article fifteen, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (7) Women’s Commission provided in article twenty, chapter twenty-nine of this code; and

    (8) The Child Support Enforcement Division provided in chapter forty-eight of this code.

    (h) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety:

    (1) Adjutant General's Department provided in article one-a, chapter fifteen of this code;

    (2) Armory Board provided in article six, chapter fifteen of this code;

    (3) Military Awards Board provided in article one-g, chapter fifteen of this code;

    (4) West Virginia State Police provided in article two, chapter fifteen of this code;

    (5) Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and Disaster Recovery Board provided in article five, chapter fifteen of this code and Emergency Response Commission provided in article five-a of said chapter;

    (6) Sheriffs’ Bureau provided in article eight, chapter fifteen of this code;

    (7) Division of Justice and Community Services provided in article nine a, chapter fifteen of this code;

    (8) Division of Corrections provided in chapter twenty-five of this code;

    (9) Fire Commission provided in article three, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (10) Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority provided in article twenty, chapter thirty-one of this code;

    (11) Board of Probation and Parole provided in article twelve, chapter sixty-two of this code; and

    (12) Division of Veterans’ Affairs and Veterans’ Council provided in article one, chapter nine-a of this code.

    (i) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Revenue:

    (1) Tax Division provided in article one, chapter eleven of this code;

    (2) Racing Commission provided in article twenty-three, chapter nineteen of this code;

    (3) Lottery Commission and position of Lottery Director provided in article twenty-two, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (4) Agency of Insurance Commissioner provided in article two, chapter thirty-three of this code;

    (5) Office of Alcohol Beverage Control Commissioner provided in article sixteen, chapter eleven of this code and article two, chapter sixty of this code;

    (6) Board of Banking and Financial Institutions provided in article three, chapter thirty-one-a of this code;

    (7) Lending and Credit Rate Board provided in chapter forty-seven-a of this code;

    (8) Division of Banking provided in article two, chapter thirty-one-a of this code;

    (9) The State Budget Office provided in article two of this chapter;

    (10) The Municipal Bond Commission provided in article three, chapter thirteen of this code;

    (11) The Office of Tax Appeals provided in article ten-a, chapter eleven of this code; and

    (12) The State Athletic Commission provided in article five-a, chapter twenty-nine of this code.

    (j) The following agencies and boards, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated or related entities and funds associated with any agency or board, are incorporated in and administered as a part of the Department of Transportation:

    (1) Division of Highways provided in article two-a, chapter seventeen of this code;

    (2) Parkways, Economic Development and Tourism Authority provided in article sixteen-a, chapter seventeen of this code;

    (3) Division of Motor Vehicles provided in article two, chapter seventeen-a of this code;

    (4) Driver’s Licensing Advisory Board provided in article two, chapter seventeen-b of this code;

    (5) Aeronautics Commission provided in article two-a, chapter twenty-nine of this code;

    (6) State Rail Authority provided in article eighteen, chapter twenty-nine of this code; and

    (7) Port Authority provided in article sixteen-b, chapter seventeen of this code.

    (k) Except for powers, authority and duties that have been delegated to the secretaries of the departments by the provisions of section two of this article, the position of administrator and the powers, authority and duties of each administrator and agency are not affected by the enactment of this chapter.

    (l) Except for powers, authority and duties that have been delegated to the secretaries of the departments by the provisions of section two of this article, the existence, powers, authority and duties of boards and the membership, terms and qualifications of members of the boards are not affected by the enactment of this chapter. All boards that are appellate bodies or are independent decision makers shall not have their appellate or independent decision-making status affected by the enactment of this chapter.

    (m) Any department previously transferred to and incorporated in a department by prior enactment of this section means a division of the appropriate department. Wherever reference is made to any department transferred to and incorporated in a department created in section two, article one of this chapter, the reference means a division of the appropriate department and any reference to a division of a department so transferred and incorporated means a section of the appropriate division of the department.

    (n) When an agency, board or commission is transferred under a bureau or agency other than a department headed by a secretary pursuant to this section, that transfer is solely for purposes of administrative support and liaison with the Office of the Governor, a department secretary or a bureau. Nothing in this section extends the powers of department secretaries under section two of this article to any person other than a department secretary and nothing limits or abridges the statutory powers and duties of statutory commissioners or officers pursuant to this code.

CHAPTER 5B. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1985.

ARTICLE 2H. OFFICE OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY.

§5B-2H-1. Transfer of the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity to the Department of Commerce.

    (a) The Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity created by Executive Order, together with all of its functions, powers and duties, is transferred to and constituted under the Office of Economic Opportunity in the Department of Commerce.

    (b) The office, by and through its director, shall continue to have all of the powers and shall exercise all of the functions and duties vested in, or imposed upon, it by that executive order or by any law, subject to the supervision and control of the secretary.

    (c) The Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity shall be appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to serve at the will and pleasure of the Governor until his or her successors are appointed and qualified. The person in office as Director of the Governor’s of Economic Opportunity shall hold the respective office of Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity in the Department of Commerce at the will and pleasure of the Governor and until his or her successor is appointed by the Governor and qualified.

§5B-2H-2. Powers and duties of the Office of Economic Opportunity.

    The powers and duties of the Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity shall include, but not be limited to:

    (1) Providing technical assistance and coordination to local, regional and state organizations which operate programs under the provisions of the federal Economic Opportunity Act;

    (2) Providing technical assistance to community action agencies in the fields of housing, management, and economic development;

    (3) Initiating incentive programs with community action agencies to provide for nutritional programs for the poor;

    (4) Providing the secretary with information and advice with respect to the policies and programs of the federal Office of Economic Opportunity as they relate to the state;

    (5) Receiving, administer and utilize all federal assistance in the form of grants which are or may become available to the office under the federal Economic Opportunity Act and upon the direction and concurrence of the secretary;

    (6) Administering the Community Services Block Grant Act of 1981 as amended by Section 680(a)(2) of the Community Opportunities, Accountability, and Training and Educational Services Act of 1998, P.L. 105-285;

    (7) Administering funds under the Community Development Block Grant, HOME Investment Partnerships, Emergency Shelter Grants, and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS programs of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development; and

    (8) Exercising such other powers as may be necessary to effectuate the responsibilities of that office.

§5B-2H-3. Weatherization Assistance Program for low income               families.

    (a) The Office of Economic Opportunity shall administer the Weatherization Assistance Program for Low-Income Families established by 42 U.S.C. §6861, et seq., and 42 U.S.C. §7101, et seq., the Heating and Air Repair and Replacement Program and any other energy-related assistance program for the benefit of low-income persons in existing housing.

    (b) The Office of Economic Opportunity shall exercise the following powers and duties:

    (1) Establish standards and criteria to carry out the provisions and purposes of this section;

    (2) Develop policy, criteria, and standards for receiving and processing applications for weatherization assistance;

    (3) Make decisions and pursue appeals from decisions to accept or deny applications for weatherization, replacement of heating and cooling systems, and other energy-related assistance programs or otherwise participate in the state plan as a subgrantee or contractor;

    (4) Propose legislative rules, which may be required by the federal government for grants-in-aid for the Weatherization Assistance Program for low income families, the Heating and Air Repair and Replacement Program, or other energy-related assistance programs for the benefit of low-income residents for existing housing. This section shall be liberally construed in order that this state and its citizens may benefit from such grants-in-aid;

    (5) Propose legislative rules which establish procedures for the submission of periodic reports by any community action agency or other agency or entity authorized to manage a weatherization project, replacement of heating and cooling systems, or other energy-related assistance project;

    (6) Propose legislative rules to create criteria for periodic review of weatherization, replacement of heating and cooling systems, or other energy-related programs in existing housing for low-income households.

    (7) Create a Policy Advisory Council within the Office of Economic Opportunity that shall advise the Office of Economic Opportunity with respect to the development and implementation of a Weatherization Program for low income families, the Heating and Air Repair and Replacement Program, and any other energy-related assistance program for the benefit of low-income persons in existing housing.

    NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to transfer the Office of Economic Opportunity from the Governor’s Office to the Department of Commerce. The bill establishes the qualification for its director. The bill sets forth the office’s powers and duties. The bill also grants the office authority over the weatherization assistance program.

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

     Article 2H is new; therefore, it has been completely underscored.