Senate Bill No. 245
(By Senator Walker)
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[Introduced January 29, 1998; referred to the Committee
on Government Organization.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact sections one, three and four, article
one, chapter twenty-nine of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to
the division of culture and history; and changing the name
of the arts and humanities section to the arts section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections one, three and four, article one, chapter
twenty-nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read
as follows:
ARTICLE 1. DIVISION OF CULTURE AND HISTORY.
§29-1-1. Division of culture and history continued; sections and
commissions; purposes; definitions; effective date.
(a) The division of culture and history and the office of commissioner of culture and history heretofore created are hereby
continued. The governor shall nominate, and by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate, appoint the commissioner, who
shall be the chief executive officer of the division and shall
be paid an annual salary of forty-five thousand dollars per year,
notwithstanding the provisions of section two-a, article seven,
chapter six of this code. The commissioner so appointed shall
have: (1) A bachelor's degree in one of the fine arts, social
sciences, library science or a related field; or (2) four years'
experience in the administration of museum management, public
administration, arts, history or a related field.
(b) The division shall consist of five sections as follows:
(1) The arts and humanities section;
(2) The archives and history section;
(3) The museums section;
(4) The historic preservation section; and
(5) The administrative section.
(c) The division shall also consist of two citizens
commissions as follows:
(1) A commission on the arts; and
(2) A commission on archives and history.
(d) The commissioner shall exercise control and supervision
of the division and shall be responsible for the projects,
programs and actions of each of its sections. The purpose and duty of the division is to advance, foster and promote the
creative and performing arts and crafts, including both indoor
and outdoor exhibits and performances; to advance, foster,
promote, identify, register, acquire, mark and care for
historical, prehistorical, archaeological and significant
architectural sites, structures and objects in the state; to
encourage the promotion, preservation and development of
significant sites, structures and objects through the use of
economic development activities such as loans, subsidies, grants
and other incentives; to coordinate all cultural, historical and
artistic activities in state government and at state-owned
facilities; to acquire, preserve and classify books, documents,
records and memorabilia of historical interest or importance;
and, in general, to do all things necessary or convenient to
preserve and advance the culture of the state.
(e) The division shall have jurisdiction and control and may
set and collect fees for the use of all space in the building
presently known as the West Virginia science and culture center,
including the deck and courtyards forming an integral part
thereof; the building presently known as West Virginia
Independence Hall in Wheeling, including all the grounds and
appurtenances thereof; "Camp Washington Carver" in Fayette
County, as provided for in section fourteen of this article; and
any other sites as may be transferred to or acquired by the division. Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, including the provisions of article one of chapter
five-b of this code, beginning on and after the first day of
July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, the division shall
have responsibility for, and control of, all visitor touring and
visitor tour guide activities within the state capitol building
at Charleston.
(f) For the purposes of this article, "commissioner" means
the commissioner of culture and history, and "division" means the
division of culture and history.
§29-1-3. Commission on the arts.
The commission on the arts heretofore created is hereby
continued and shall be composed of fifteen appointed members.
The governor shall nominate, and by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, appoint the members of the commission for
staggered terms of three years. A person appointed to fill a
vacancy shall be appointed only for the remainder of that term.
No more than eight members may be of the same political
party. Members of the commission shall be appointed so as to
fairly represent both sexes, the ethnic and cultural diversity
of the state and the geographic regions of the state.
The commission shall elect one of its members as chair. It
shall meet at such time times as shall be specified by the chair.
Notice of each meeting shall be given to each member by the chair in compliance with the open meetings laws of the state. A
majority of the members shall constitute a quorum for the
transaction of business. The director of the arts and humanities
section shall be an ex officio nonvoting member of the commission
and shall serve as secretary. The director or a majority of the
members may also call a meeting upon such notice as provided in
this section.
Each member or ex officio member of the commission shall
serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for all
reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred in the
performance of the duties of the office; except that in the event
the expenses are paid, or are to be paid, by a third party, the
member or ex officio member, as the case may be, shall not be
reimbursed by the state.
Upon recommendation of the commissioner, the governor may
also appoint such officers of the state as may be appropriate to
serve on the commission as ex officio nonvoting members.
The commission shall have the following powers:
(1) To advise the commissioner and the director of the arts
and humanities section concerning the accomplishment of the
purposes of that section and to establish a state plan with
respect thereto;
(2) To approve and distribute grants-in-aid and awards from
federal and state funds relating to the purposes of the arts and humani
ties section;
(3) To request, accept or expend federal funds to accomplish
the purposes of the arts and humanities section when federal law
or regulations would prohibit the same by the commissioner or
section director, but would permit the same to be done by the
commission on the arts;
(4) To otherwise encourage and promote the purposes of the
arts and humanities section;
(5) To approve rules and regulations concerning the
professional policies and functions of the section as promulgated
by the director of the arts and humanities section; and
(6) To advise and consent to the appointment of the director
by the commissioner.
§29-1-4. Arts section; director.
The purposes and duties of the arts and humanities section
are to stimulate, encourage, assist, promote, foster and develop
the performing and creative arts and crafts in the state; and in
furtherance thereof to make awards, prizes and grants to
individual performers, artists or craftsmen and to public or
private corporations or associations in the field of either the
performing or creative arts and crafts that would tend to
encourage and foster the advancement of such arts and crafts; to
support cultural, artistic or craft exhibits or performances at
the division's facilities or on tour; and to perform such other duties as may be assigned to said section by the commissioner.
With the advice and consent of the commission on the arts,
the commissioner shall appoint a director of the arts and
humanities section, who shall have: (1) A bachelor's degree in
the fine arts or related field or equivalent training and
experience; or (2) three years' experience in administration of
the fine arts or a related field. Notwithstanding these
qualifications, the person serving as the executive director of
the arts and humanities council on the date of the enactment of
this article shall be eligible for appointment as the director
of the arts and humanities section.
With the approval of the commissioner, the director shall
establish professional positions within the section. The
director shall employ the personnel within these professional
positions for the section.
The director may promulgate rules and regulations in
accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code concerning the professional policies and functions of the
arts and humanities section, subject to the approval of the
commission on the arts.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to change the name of the
"Arts and Humanities" Section of the Division of Culture and
History to the "Arts" Section of the Division of Culture and
History to more accurately reflect the responsibilities of that section. Also, obsolete language has been removed.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.