2023 REGULAR SESSION

Introduced

House Bill 3470

By Delegate Howell

[Introduced February 14, 2023; Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary then Finance]

A BILL to amend and reenact §4-2A-4 of the Code of West Virginia,1931, as amended, relating to adding a category of additional days available to legislators for attending to constituent services and to clarify that additional days may be granted for legislators attending to legislative business or attending to constituent services during any period following an adjournment of more than three days from a regular, extended or extraordinary session in the discretion of the presiding officer.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

ARTICLE 2A. COMPENSATION FOR AND EXPENSES OF MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE.

§4-2A-4. Additional compensation for President of Senate, Speaker of House of Delegates, majority leaders, minority leaders, certain committee chairs and selected members, and discretionary days for all members of both houses.

(a) In addition to the basic and additional compensation provided in sections two and three of this article, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Delegates shall each receive additional compensation of:

(1) $150 per day for each day actually served during any regular, extension of regular or extraordinary session as presiding officer, including Saturdays and Sundays; and

(2) $150 per day for attending to legislative business when the Legislature is not in regular, extension of regular or extraordinary session and interim committees are not meeting.

(b) In addition to the basic and additional compensation provided in §4-2A-2 and §4-2A-3 of this code, the majority leaders and minority leaders of the Senate and of the House of Delegates shall each receive additional compensation of $50 per day for each day actually served during any regular, extension of regular or during extraordinary session, including Saturdays and Sundays, as the selected legislative leaders of their respective political parties.

(c) The presiding officer and majority and minority leader compensation shall be paid, from time to time, during any such session or interim period, as the case may be, as may be prescribed by rules established by the Legislative Auditor.

(d) In addition to the basic and additional compensation provided in sections two and three of this article, the chairpersons of the committees on finance and committees on the judiciary of the respective houses and up to six additional persons from each house, to be named by the presiding officer, shall each receive an additional compensation of $150 per day up to a maximum of thirty days for attending to legislative business when the Legislature is not in regular, extended or extraordinary session and interim committees are not meeting: Provided, That during any period following an adjournment of more than three days from a regular, extended, or extraordinary session the additional days for attending to legislative business described in this subsection shall also be available in the discretion of the presiding officer.

(e) All members of the respective houses shall each receive up to 10 additional days, at the discretion of the presiding officer, for attending to constituent services when the Legislature is not in regular, extended or extraordinary session and interim committees are not meeting: Provided, That during any period following an adjournment of more than three days from a regular, extended or extraordinary session the additional days for attending to constituent services described in this subsection shall be available in the discretion of the presiding officer.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to add a category of additional days available to legislators for attending to constituent services and clarify that additional days may be granted for legislators attending to legislative business or attending to constituent services during any period following an adjournment of more than three days from a regular, extended or extraordinary session in the discretion of the presiding officer.

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