WEST virginia legislature

2022 regular session

Introduced

House Joint Resolution 104

By Delegates Foster, Steele, J. Jeffries, G. Ward, Clark, Wamsley, Haynes, Booth, Kimble, Mazzocchi, and Keaton

(By Request of the West Virginia Treasurer’s Office)

[January 21, 2022; referred to

the Committee on the Judiciary]

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, amending section four, article VII thereof, relating to preventing any individual from serving in the office of Secretary of State, Auditor, State Treasurer, Commissioner of Agriculture, or Attorney General for more than three consecutive terms; numbering and designating such proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the purpose of such proposed amendment.

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two thirds of the members elected to each House agreeing thereto:

That the question of ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the state at the next general election to be held in the year 2022, which proposed amendment is that section four, article VII thereof, be amended to read as follows:

ARTICLE VII.  Executive Department.

§4. Eligibility.

None of executive officers mentioned in this article shall hold any other office during the term of his or her service.

A person who has been elected or who has served as Governor during all or any part of two consecutive terms shall be ineligible for the office of Governor during any part of the term immediately following the second of the two consecutive terms.  The person holding the office of governor when this section is ratified shall not be prevented from holding the office of governor during the term immediately following the term he is then serving.

After January 1, 2025, a person may not serve more than three consecutive terms in one of the following offices: Secretary of State; State Auditor; State Treasurer; Attorney General; or Commissioner of Agriculture. Terms that begin prior to January 1, 2025, are not counted for the purposes of this limitation. A partial term served, that begins after January 1, 2025, shall be counted for the purposes of this limitation.

Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article eleven, chapter three of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, such amendment is hereby numbered “Amendment No. 1” and designated as the “Constitutional Officer Term Limit Amendment” and the purpose of the proposed amendment is summarized as follows: “To prevent any person from serving in the office of Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Commissioner of Agriculture, or Attorney General for more than three consecutive terms for terms beginning after January 1, 2025.” 

NOTE: The purpose of this resolution is to amend the constitution to prevent any person from serving in the office of Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Commissioner of Agriculture, or Attorney General for more than three consecutive terms beginning after January 1, 2025.

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