COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

Senate Bill No. 454

(By Senators Snyder, Bailey, Ball, Prezioso, Sprouse, Bowman, Kessler, Anderson, Schoonover, Love, Dittmar, Helmick, Deem, Sharpe, Ross, Fanning, Chafin, Minear, Dugan, Walker, McKenzie and Boley)

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[Originating in the Committee on Government Organization;

reported March 4, 1998.]

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A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article two, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; to further amend said article by adding thereto a new section, designated three-a;

to amend and reenact section three, article two-a of said
chapter; and to further amend said article by adding thereto a new section, designated three-a, all relating to the promulgation of rules by combined boards of health, and local and county boards of health; requiring approval by the appropriate body of elected officials; grandfathering certain local rules; and exception for emergency rules.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article two, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; that said article be further amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section three-a; that section three, article two-a of said chapter be amended and reenacted; and that said article be further amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section three-a, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. LOCAL HEALTH OFFICERS.
§16-2-3. Counties, or counties and municipalities, may combine in employment of officers and installation and maintenance of equipment; combined local boards of health.

Any two or more counties, or any county or counties and any one or more municipalities within or partially within the said county or counties, may combine to cooperate with the state department of health, by vote of the county commission in the case of a county and by vote of the council or other governing body in the case of a municipality, and may participate in the employment of trained health officers and other agents and employees, or in the installation and maintenance of a common laboratory and other equipment. Whenever any such units shall decide so to cooperate and shall appropriate a sum or sums of money for such joint or cooperative action, the state department of health is authorized and empowered to pay over and contribute to such cooperating units, and the cooperating units are authorized and empowered to receive and expend for public purposes, such sum or sums of money as may be available from funds included in appropriations made for the state department of health for such purposes: Provided, That the general plan of cooperation, as well as the principal health officers, executive agent or laboratory director employed by the cooperating units, shall first have been approved by the director of the department of health. The amount of any such payment or contribution by the state department of health to such cooperating units shall be determined in accordance with regulations established by the state board of health. Such regulations shall provide a method for determining the amount of any payment or contribution, and this method shall be uniformly applied in determining the amount of any payment or contribution to any such local governmental unit or units.
Each county or municipality participating in any such cooperative action shall select and appoint by vote of the county commission in the case of a county, and by vote of the council or other governing body in the case of a municipality, not less than one nor more than three persons to be members of a combined board of health. No such person shall be selected by, nor represent on, any such combined board, more than one such county or municipality. The number of persons to be selected by each participating county or municipality as members of such board, subject to the limitation contained in the two preceding sentences, shall be agreed upon by the several counties or municipalities participating.
All members of such combined board of health shall be appointed for terms of five years each, except that the persons first appointed pursuant to the provisions of this section, if more than one such person is appointed at the same time by any one county commission or municipal governing body, shall be individually designated to serve for terms of one, two and three years, respectively, and if only one such person is appointed at such time by each participating county or municipality, the several participating counties or municipalities shall initially appoint such persons to serve for individually designated terms, which shall be agreed upon by the several appointing authorities, of one, two, three, four and five years, respectively. Upon the expiration of the term of such initial appointments, the term of each new appointee shall be five years. Any vacancy on such board shall be filled by appointment, by the original appointing authority, for the unexpired term. All members shall serve until their duly qualified successors have been appointed. The number of members of such board belonging to one political party shall not exceed by more than one the number of members of such board belonging to any other political party.
All members of any such board shall be citizens and residents of the county or municipality they are appointed to represent. All members shall be eligible for reappointment.
No member of such board may be removed from office during the term for which he is appointed, except for official misconduct, incompetence, neglect of duty or gross immorality.
No member of such board shall receive any compensation for his services, but each may be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary travel and other expenses actually incurred by him in the performance of his duties as a member of such board.
Any such combined board of health shall consist of the several members so selected. Such board shall organize by electing a chairman from among its members.
It The combined board of health shall have the power to adopt, and from time to time amend, such promulgate rules and regulations in accordance with section three-a of this article, as it may deem necessary concerning the time and place of its meetings, the procedure and method of conducting its meetings or business, and any other matters affecting, or necessary to, the orderly and efficient discharge of its duties or exercise of its powers.
All powers and duties belonging to or vested in county boards of health or municipal boards of health under any provision of the code are hereby vested in, conferred upon, and declared to be, the powers and duties of any combined board of health created pursuant to the provisions of this section. All powers and duties belonging to or vested in county or municipal health officers, so far as they are applicable and not in conflict with the provisions of this section, are hereby vested in, conferred upon, and declared to be, the powers and duties of any health officer appointed and employed by any combined board of health.
Any health officer or other employee appointed or employed by any combined board of health shall be employed and serve, and may be discharged, at the will and pleasure of such board. The territorial jurisdiction of any such combined board of health shall be coextensive with the boundaries of all of the counties and municipalities which have been combined to cooperate as herein provided.
Upon the formation of a combined local board of health as herein provided, and during the period that it continues to exist, there shall be no separate county board of health or municipal board of health in any county or municipality represented on the combined board of health.
§16-2-3a. Promulgation of rules.
 The combined board of health shall propose rules for promulgation pursuant to its powers and duties set out in section three of this article. These proposed rules shall be filed with the clerk of the county commission of each participating county or the clerk of each participating municipality.
These proposed rules shall not become effective until they are approved by the county commission of each participating county or the governing body of each participating municipality: Provided, That rules dealing with clean indoor air regulations, in effect on the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight, shall remain in effect. When all participating counties or municipalities do not approve the rules, the rules shall only be enforceable in the county or municipality that approved the rules.
When an emergency exists and promulgation of a rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety or welfare; is necessary to comply with a time limitation; or is necessary to prevent substantial harm to the public interest, the combined board of health is authorized to promulgate emergency rules without the approval of the participating county commissions or the governing body of the participating municipalities. These emergency rules shall be in effect for a maximum of six months without the approval of the participating county commissions or the governing body of the participating municipalities.
ARTICLE 2A. ALTERNATIVE METHOD OF ORGANIZING LOCAL HEALTH AGENCIES.
§16-2A-3. Powers and duties of county and municipal boards of health.
County or municipal boards of health created and established pursuant to the provisions of this article shall direct, supervise and control all matters relating to the general health and sanitation of their respective counties or municipalities. The local boards of health also have the power and authority to adopt and promulgate and from time to time amend rules in accordance with section three-a of this article, consistent with the public health laws of this state and the rules of the West Virginia state department of health and human resources, as may be necessary and proper for the protection of the general health of the county or municipality and the prevention of the introduction, propagation and spread of disease. All rules shall be filed, in the case of a county board, with the clerk of the county commission, and in the case of a municipal board, with the clerk, recorder or similar officer of the municipality. The rules shall be kept by the clerk or recording officer in a separate book and shall be public records.
It is the duty of local boards of health to protect the general health and supervise and control the sanitation of their respective counties and municipalities; to enforce the laws of this state pertaining to public health, and the rules of the department of health and human resources, insofar as they are applicable to counties or municipalities, and to perform duties in relation to public health as may be prescribed by order of the county commission or by ordinance of the municipality consistent with the public health laws of this state and the regulations duly adopted by the department of health and human resources. All local boards of health receiving state or federal funds for health purposes shall submit a general plan of operation for health purposes to the commissioner of the bureau of public health for approval. The commissioner may act through any county or municipal board of health created, established and operated pursuant to the provisions of this article.
Local departments of health created and established pursuant to the provisions of either this article or article two of this chapter shall be notified of each immunization for hepatitis-b and other blood-borne pathogens received by firefighters within the service area of the local department of health. Local departments of health shall maintain, for a period of not less than thirty years, a record of the date of the immunization and the name of each firefighter within the service area of the local health department immunized against hepatitis-b and other blood-borne pathogens.
 §16-2A-3a. Promulgation of rules.
 The county or municipal boards of health shall propose rules for promulgation pursuant to their powers and duties set out in section three of this article. These proposed rules shall be filed with the clerk of the county commission of the county or the clerk of the municipality.
These proposed rules shall not become effective until they are approved by the county commission of the county or the governing body of the municipality: Provided, That rules dealing with clean indoor air regulations, in effect on the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight, shall remain in effect.
When an emergency exists and promulgation of a rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety or welfare; is necessary to comply with a time limitation; or is necessary to prevent substantial harm to the public interest, the local board of health is authorized to promulgate emergency rules without the approval of the county commission or the governing body of the municipality. These emergency rules shall be in effect for a maximum of six months without the approval of the county commission or the governing body of the municipality.