H. B. 2982
(By Delegates Dempsey, Brown, Fragale,
Compton and Hubbard)
[Introduced March 23, 2001; referred to the
Committee on Education then the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section six, article five, chapter
three of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended; and amend and reenact section one-b,
article five, chapter eighteen of said code, all relating to
changing the term of office for county board of education
members to two years.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section six, article five, chapter three of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended and reenacted; and that section one-b, article five,
chapter eighteen of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read
as follows:
CHAPTER 3. ELECTIONS.
ARTICLE 5. PRIMARY ELECTIONS AND NOMINATING PROCEDURES.
§3-5-6. Election of county board of education members at primary
elections.
(a) An election for the purpose of electing members of the
county board of education shall be held on the same date as the
primary elections, as provided by law, but upon a nonpartisan
ballot printed for the purpose.
(b) No more than two members may be elected or serve from the
same magisterial district. The eligibility of candidates to be
declared elected for full terms of four two years and for unexpired
terms of two one or more years based on this limitation shall be
determined at the time of certification of the election.
(1) Such Eligibility shall be is based on the magisterial
district residence of incumbent members of the board whose terms
will continue beyond the first day of July following the primary
election.
(A) No person is eligible to be declared elected who resides
in a district which has two such incumbent members.
(B) No more than one candidate is eligible to be declared
elected who resides in a district which has one such incumbent
member.
(C) A person with the highest number of votes may be declared elected to an unexpired term notwithstanding the fact that the
person's magisterial district has two representatives serving on
the board at the time of the election: Provided, That the number
of representatives from that magisterial district will be less than
two as of the first day of July following the primary.
(2) The person declared elected to an unexpired term shall
assume the duties of a member of the board of education according
to the provisions of section two, article five, chapter eighteen of
this code.
(c) In each nonpartisan election for board of education the
board of canvassers shall:
(1) Declare and certify the election of the required number of
eligible candidates receiving the highest numbers of votes to fill
any full terms;
(2) Declare and certify the election of the required number of
eligible candidates receiving the next highest numbers of votes,
after all full terms are filled, to fill any unexpired terms.
(d) It is the intent of this statute that any person declared
to be elected under the preceding provisions of this section shall
take office as a duly elected member or members, even though the
person may not have received a majority or plurality of all votes cast at such the election.
(e) In case of a tie vote for a seat on a county board of
education in any primary election, the provisions of section
twelve, article six of this chapter shall control in breaking the
tie.
CHAPTER 18. EDUCATION.
ARTICLE 5. COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-5-1b. Election; terms of office.
As the terms of county school board members who presently hold
office expire, members shall be elected for four-year two-year
terms at the time of each regular primary election commencing with
the year one thousand nine hundred ninety two thousand two. The
terms of such the members shall begin on the first day of July next
following the primary election at which they were elected.
The term of office of any member of any county board of
education shall immediately cease, and a vacancy shall exist, upon
occurrence of ineligibility as prescribed in section one-a of this
article.
This section shall in no manner be construed so as to does not
affect the unexpired terms of county school board members who hold
office or were elected under prior existing law.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
change the term of
office for county board of education members to two years.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.