WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE

2024 REGULAR SESSION

Introduced

House Bill 5309

By Delegate Dillon

[Introduced January 29, 2024; Referred to the Committee on Government Organization then the Judiciary]

A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §4-1-24, relating to creating the Legislative Transparency Act governing legislative procedure.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

ARTICLE 1. OFFICERS, MEMBERS AND EMPLOYEES; APPROPRIATIONS; INVESTIGATIONS; DISPLAY OF FLAGS; RECORDS; USE OF CAPITOL BUILDING; PREFILING OF BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS; STANDING COMMITTEES; INTERIM MEETINGS; NEXT MEETING OF THE SENATE.

§4-1-24. Legislative transparency Reform Act.

(a) All legislative committee votes shall be on a roll call basis, and shall be recorded and published the same as the floor votes in the House and Senate.

(b)  No suspension of rules to read bills or constitutional requirements to read bills three times is permitted. Each reading shall be on a separate day in both the House and the Senate. All amendments to House and Senate bills shall be read in full on both second and third bill readings.

(c)  Members of legislative bodies are not permitted to assemble in numbers constituting a quorum for purposes of discussion of specific legislation, neither on nor outside of Capitol grounds. If a quorum is incidentally present at a social or other gathering, members are not permitted to assemble as a group to discuss specific legislation.

(d) At no time may any member of the West Virginia House of Delegates or the Senate be coerced by any member of party leadership or legislative staff to provide an indication of a vote prior to the final floor vote in either chamber.

(e) Failure to comply with this section is nonfeasance of office.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create the Legislative Transparency Act governing legislative procedure.

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