WEST virginia legislature

2024 regular session

Committee Substitute

for

Senate Bill 844

By Senator Woodrum

[Originating in the Committee on Government Organization; reported February 21, 2024]

A BILL to amend and reenact §10-5-1, §10-5-2, and §10-5-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to Educational Broadcasting Authority; changing name of Educational Broadcasting Authority to Educational Broadcasting Commission; reducing number of commission members; authorizing Secretary of Department of Arts, Culture, and History to appoint commission director; and making technical corrections.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

ARTICLE 5. EDUCATIONAL BROADCASTING AUTHORITY COMMISSIOn.

§10-5-1. Legislative findings; definitions.

(a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that:

(1) It is the duty of this state to provide the best educational training possible for all its citizens;

(2) The encouragement and use of noncommercial educational radio, television, and related media operating and originating from educational broadcasting, closed circuit, or related facilities located at a site or sites within this state serving all the citizens of this state on a regional basis or as part of a coordinated statewide plan is a proper, necessary and beneficial means of providing and extending enriched educational instruction to all the citizens of this state at the preschool, elementary, secondary, and higher education and adult levels;

(3) Private nonprofit corporations have been established in this state for the sole purpose of raising funds for the financial support of the state's Public Broadcasting Network, which funds have been a vital source of private funding for the authority commission and enure to the benefit of all the citizens of the state; and

(4) Because of the unique educational benefit conferred upon and available to all the citizens of the state by the efforts of the authority commission and the private nonprofit corporations established for the sole purpose of providing support for public broadcasting in this state, authorizing the authority commission to allow its employees to work with, and its property and facilities to be used by, the private nonprofit corporations is a proper, necessary, and beneficial means of providing financial support for the state's Public Broadcasting Network.

(b) The following terms have the following meanings:

(1) "Authority" "Commission" means the Educational Broadcasting Authority Commission established by the provisions of this article. References to “Educational Broadcasting Authority” or “the authority” throughout this article shall mean the Educational Broadcasting Commission unless the context in which used plainly requires a different meaning.

(2) "Distance learning" means educational courses, seminars, programs, and teleconferences transmitted electronically and designed to instruct students who are remote from the instructor or other participants; such courses, seminars, programs, and teleconferences may constitute all or a significant portion of a class offered for college or public school credit, or they may be provided for faculty development, continuing professional education, for training employees of governmental agencies, nonprofit organizations, business, or industry;

(3) "EdNet" means those individuals identified as an enterprise of the university of West Virginia college of graduate studies and West Virginia state college on behalf of the state college and university systems who are delegated the responsibility for developing, operating, and maintaining facilities for the production and transmission of distance learning; and

(4) "SatNet" means those individuals identified as an enterprise of the state college and university systems who are delegated the responsibility for developing and providing distance learning.

§10-5-2. West Virginia Educational Broadcasting Authority Commission; members; organization; officers; employees; meetings; expenses.

(a) The West Virginia Educational Broadcasting Authority Commission is continued as a public benefit corporation. The Authority commission shall consist of eleven nine voting members, who shall be residents of the state, including:

(1) The Governor or designee;

(2) The State Superintendent of Schools;

(3) One member of the West Virginia Board of Education to be selected by it annually;

(4) One member of the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission to be selected by it annually; and

(5) Seven Five members appointed by the Governor by and with the advice and consent of the Senate for overlapping terms of seven five years, one term expiring each year.

(b) Not less than one appointive member shall come from each congressional district. Any vacancy among the appointed members shall be filled by the Governor by appointment for the unexpired term.

(c) Employees of noncommercial broadcasting stations in West Virginia are not eligible for appointment to the Authority commission.

(d) The authority commission shall annually select a member to serve as the chair. The authority commission shall annually select one of its public members as vice chair and shall appoint a secretary who need not be a member of the Authority commission and who shall keep records of its proceedings.

(e) The authority Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Arts, Culture, and History shall appoint the executive director commission section director and fix his or her salary. The executive commission section director is responsible for managing and administering the daily functions of the authority commission and for performing all other functions necessary to the effective operation of the authority commission. The authority commission is authorized to may establish offices for the proper performance of its duties.

(f) The authority commission shall hold at least one annual meeting. The time and place of the meetings shall be established upon its own resolution or at the call of the chairperson of the authority commission. The members shall serve without compensation but may be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred in the performance of their duties in a manner consistent with the guidelines of the Travel Management Office of the Department of Administration.

§10-5-3. Powers of authority commission.

The authority shall have the power The commission may:

(1) To act Act as advisor and consultant to television and radio stations concerning noncommercial educational programs supported by federal, state, county, city, or private funds;

(2) To cooperate Cooperate with and assist all local and state educational institutions in planning and development of the use of educational radio, television, and related media;

(3) To promote Promote and coordinate the use of these media for noncommercial educational purposes;

(4) To construct, Construct, maintain, and operate educational broadcasting, closed circuit, or related facilities located at a suitable site or sites within this state including, without limitation thereby, production centers, broadcasting stations, and an audio-video microwave system for a statewide broadcasting network connecting such communities or stations as may be designated by the authority commission;

(5) To acquire Acquire in the name of the state for the use and benefit of the authority commission by purchase, lease, or agreement, any property, both real and personal, and any interest in such property necessary to carry out the provisions of this article;

(6) To apply Apply for and receive any license from the appropriate federal agency necessary to operate any educational broadcasting, closed circuit, or related facility;

(7) To supervise Supervise and approve the origination and transmission of all noncommercial educational radio, television, and related media programs in this state which would be carried through the facilities of a state network;

(8) To employ Employ such personnel as may be necessary to operate and maintain any facility created under the provisions of this article, and to work with private nonprofit corporations to raise funds for the financial support of the state's public broadcasting network;

(9) To lease Lease from communications common carriers and use such transmission channels as may be necessary or, if it determines it could more economically construct and maintain such transmission channels, it may design, construct, maintain, and operate the same, including an audio-video microwave network;

(10) To sue Sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded;

(11) To contract Contract and be contracted with, including the power to enter into contracts with any person, firm, or corporation, including any like authority commission of neighboring states; and shall have the authority, within state regulations, to enter into program royalty and distribution contracts and receive moneys for these purposes: Provided, That any proceeds from such contracts shall be used by the authority commission for noncommercial purposes only;

(12) To have Have and use a corporate seal;

(13) To promulgate Promulgate reasonable rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this article in accordance with the provisions of §29A-3-1 et seq. of this code; and

(14) To perform Perform such other services in on behalf of noncommercial educational radio, television, and related media as it may consider to be in the best interest of the state, including the use of the authority's commission's employees, property, and facilities for the purpose of raising funds for the support of public broadcasting.