ENROLLED
H. B. 2519
(By Delegates Douglas, Collins, Tucker, Prunty, Claypole,
Stalnaker and Capito)
[Passed April 12, 1997; in effect July 1, 1997.]
AN ACT to amend and reenact section one-a, article two, chapter
nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, relating to continuation of the
department of health and human resources and providing for
continuation of the division of human services and its
statutory functions within that department.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one-a, article two, chapter nine of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
be amended an reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN RESOURCES, AND OFFICE
OF COMMISSIONER OF HUMAN SERVICES; POWERS, DUTIES AND
RESPONSIBILITIES GENERALLY.
§9-2-1a. Department of welfare renamed department of human
services; continuation of the department of health and human
resources and the division of human services.
The state department of welfare, created pursuant to the
provisions of chapter nine of this code, is hereby continued as an official department of the state of West Virginia, but
effective the twenty-ninth dya ;ay ay of May twenty-nine,, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-three, its name shall be the department division of human services.
All references in the code to the department of welfare shall
mean the department division of human services, and all references to the
commissioner of the department of welfare shall mean the
commissioner of the department division of human services and for all other
legal purposes the department of welfare shall continue as the
department division of human services.
The department of health and human resources and the
division of human services within that department shall be
charged with the administration of this chapter. After having
conducted a performance audit through its joint committee on
government operations, pursuant to section nine, article ten,
chapter four of this code, the Legislature hereby finds and
declares that the department of human services should be
continued and reestablished. Accordingly, notwithstanding the
provisions of section four, article ten, chapter four of this
code, The department
of health and human resources shall continue to exist and the
division of human services shall continue to exist within the
department of health and human resources until the first day of
July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-one ninety-eight, to permit a review
of their functions to be undertaken by the joint committee on
government operations as part of the full performance evaluation
of the department of health and human resources scheduled to
continue during the interim of the Legislature in the year one
thousand nine hundred ninety-seven.