Senate Bill No. 354
(By Senator Blatnik)
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[Introduced February 9, 1996; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance
.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section eleven, article one, chapter
twenty-five of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to officers and
employees of correctional facilities; requiring
qualifications for appointment as warden or superintendent;
and requiring qualifications for appointment as assistant or
employee.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section eleven, article one, chapter twenty-five of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. ORGANIZATION AND INSTITUTIONS.
§25-1-11. Officers and employees of corrections institutions.
The commissioner of corrections shall appoint a
superintendent or warden for each institution under the control
of the department of corrections: Provided, That any person so
appointed shall, before assuming his or her duties, have worked
for a minimum of five years in administering or managing a
correctional facility.
The superintendent or warden of each institution shall have
the power to appoint all assistants and employees required for
the management of the institution in his charge: but Provided,
That the number of such assistants and employees, and their
compensation, shall first be approved by the state commissioner
of corrections: Provided, however, That each assistant and
employee shall demonstrate his or her qualifications for
appointment through prior work experience in the field of
corrections or through education commensurate with the type and
level of responsibility to which he or she is to be appointed.
It shall be the duty of the commissioner of corrections to
investigate any complaint made against the superintendent of any
institution, and also against any other officer or employee
thereof, if the same has not been investigated.
The commissioner shall fix the salaries or compensation of the officers and employees of the institutions named in section
three of this article. The salaries or compensation of all
officers and employees of the several institutions under the
control of the commissioner of corrections shall be paid monthly,
to include the last day of each month. The superintendents and
other officers and employees of each of such institutions shall
be paid salaries commensurate with their duties and
responsibilities, but no meals or other emoluments of any kind
shall be furnished, given or paid to such superintendents,
officers or employees as all or part of their salary; however,
such superintendents, officers and employees may be provided
meals, household facilities and supplies as may be necessary for
them to perform their duties, if such superintendents, officers
and employees agree to pay the reasonable cost thereof as
established by the commissioner of corrections.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require that persons
appointed as superintendents or wardens of state correctional
facilities have five years experience in administering or
managing a correctional facility and that the assistants and
employees appointed by such superintendents or wardens be
qualified for their positions by prior work experience or
education commensurate with the type and level of responsibility to which they are appointed.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.