Senate Bill No. 280
(By Senators Wiedebusch, Dittmar, Ball, Bailey, Anderson,
Buckalew, White, Snyder, Love, Schoonover and Bowman)
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[Introduced March 10, 1997; referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources.]
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A BILL to amend article seven, chapter twenty of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section one-e,
relating to prohibition against conservation officers
performing duties for private persons; penalty; and special
circumstances for providing law enforcement or security
services by contract.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article seven, chapter twenty of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section one- e, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 7. LAW ENFORCEMENT, MOTORBOATING, LITTER.
Part 1. Law enforcement, procedures and penalties.
§20-7-1e. Conservation officers performing duties for
private persons; penalty; providing extraordinary law enforcement
or security services by contract.
(a) Any conservation officer who hires himself or herself to
any person, firm or corporation to guard private property, or who
demands or receives from any person, firm or corporation any
money or other thing of value as a consideration for the
performance of, or the failure to perform, his or her duties
under the regulations of the chief conservation officer and the
provisions of this section, is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be confined in the penitentiary for not
less than one nor more than five years.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to
the contrary, the chief conservation officer may contract with
the public, military or private entities to provide extraordinary
law enforcement or security services by the division of natural
resources when it is determined by the chief conservation officer
to be in the public interest. The chief conservation officer may
assign personnel, equipment or facilities, and the division shall
be reimbursed for the wages, overtime wages, benefits and costs
of providing the contract services as negotiated between the
parties. The compensation paid to conservation officers by
virtue of contracts provided in this section shall be paid from
a special account and are excluded from any formulation used to calculate an employee's benefits. All requests for obtaining
extraordinary law enforcement or security services shall be made
to the chief conservation officer in writing and shall explain
the funding source and the authority for making the request. No
officer of the division is required to accept any assignment made
pursuant to this subsection. Every officer assigned to duty
hereunder shall be paid according to the hours and overtime hours
actually worked notwithstanding that officer's status as exempt
personnel under the "Federal Labor Standards Act" or applicable
state statutes. Every contract entered into under this
subsection shall contain the provision that in the event of
public disaster or emergency where the reassignment to official
duty of the officer is required, neither the division nor any of
its officers or other personnel are liable for any damages
incurred as the result of the reassignment. Further, any entity
contracting with the division of natural resources under this
section shall also agree as part of that contract to hold
harmless and indemnify the state, division of natural resources
and its personnel from any liability arising out of employment
under that contract.
The director is authorized to propose legislative rules,
subject to approval by the Legislature, in accordance with
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code relating to the implementation
of contracts entered into pursuant to this subsection:
Provided, That the rules expressly prohibit private employment of officers
in circumstances involving labor disputes.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is prohibit conservation
officers hiring out to private persons or other government
entities; penalty for noncompliance. The bill also allows the
chief conservation officer to enter into contracts for
extraordinary law enforcement or security services under special
circumstances.
This section is new; therefore strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.)
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NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
On page _____one, by striking out the title and substituting
therefor a new title, to read as follows:
Eng. Senate Bill No. 280--A Bill to amend article seven,
chapter twenty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated section one-e, relating to prohibiting conservation
officers from performing duties for consideration from
individuals; criminal penalties; allowing the chief conservation
officer to contract with entities to provide extraordinary law
enforcement services; payment from special account to officers;
contract provisions; indemnification of state; and promulgation
of rules.
Adopted
Rejected
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