HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 25
(By Delegate Carmichael)
(Introduced April 2, 2001; referred to the
Committee on Constitutional Revision then the Judiciary.)
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West
Virginia, amending sections twenty-two and thirty-three,
article six thereof, relating to the length of legislative
session and reducing compensation of members of the
legislators; numbering and designating such proposed
amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the
purpose of such proposed amendment.
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two thirds of
the members elected to each house agreeing thereto:
That the question of ratification or rejection of an
amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia be
submitted to the voters of the State at the next general election
to be held in the year two thousand two, which proposed amendment
is that sections twenty-two and thirty-three, article six thereof
be amended to read as follows:
ARTICLE VI. THE LEGISLATURE.
§22. Length of legislative session.
The regular session of the Legislature held in the year one
thousand nine hundred seventy-three two thousand three and every
fourth year thereafter shall, in addition to the meeting days
preceding the adjournment provided for in section eighteen of
this article, not exceed sixty forty-five calendar days computed
from and including the second Wednesday of February, and the
regular session held in all other years shall not exceed sixty
forty-five calendar days computed from and including the second
Wednesday of January. Any regular session may be extended by a
concurrent resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote of the members
elected to each house determined by yeas and nays and entered on
the journals.
§33. Compensation and expenses of members.
Members of the Legislature shall receive such as compensation
in connection with the performance of their respective duties as
members of the Legislature and such allowances for travel and
other expenses in connection therewith as shall be: (1)
Established in a resolution submitted to the Legislature by the Citizens Legislative Compensation Commission hereinafter created;
and (2) thereafter enacted into general law by the Legislature at
a regular session thereof, subject to such requirements and
conditions as shall be prescribed in such general law. The
Legislature may in any such general law reduce but shall not
increase any item of compensation or expense allowance
established in such resolution. All voting on the floor of both
houses on the question of passage of any such general law shall
be by yeas and nays to be entered on the journals.
The Citizens Legislative Compensation Commission is hereby
created. It shall be composed of seven members who have been
residents of this state for at least ten years prior to the date
of appointment, to be appointed by the governor within twenty
days after ratification of this amendment, no more than four of
whom shall be members of the same political party. The members
shall be broadly representative of the public at large. Members
of the Legislature and officers and employees of the state or of
any county, municipality or other governmental unit of the state
shall not be eligible for appointment to or to serve as members of the commission. Each member of the commission shall serve for
a term of seven years, except of the members first appointed, one
member shall be appointed for a term of one year, and one each
for terms ending two, three, four, five, six and seven years
after the date of appointment. As the term of each member first
appointed expires, a successor shall be appointed for a
seven-year term. Any member may be reappointed for any number of
terms, and any vacancy shall be filled by the governor for the
unexpired term. Any member of the commission may be removed by
the governor prior to the expiration of such member's term for
official misconduct, incompetency or neglect of duty. The
governor shall designate one member of the commission as
chairman. The members of the commission shall serve without
compensation, but shall be entitled to be reimbursed for all
reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred in the
performance of their duties as such members.
The commission shall meet as often as may be necessary and
shall within fifteen days after the beginning of the regular
session of the Legislature in the year one thousand nine hundred seventy-one two thousand three and within fifteen days after the
beginning of the regular session in each fourth year thereafter
submit by resolution to the Legislature its determination of
compensation and expense allowances, which resolution must be
concurred in by at least four members of the commission. The
compensation may not exceed eleven thousand two hundred-fifty
dollars for each legislator.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution, such
compensation and expense allowances as may be provided for by any
such general law shall be paid on and after the effective date of
such general law. Until the first such general law becomes
effective, the provisions of this section in effect immediately
prior to the ratification of this amendment shall continue to
govern.
NOTE: The purpose of this resolution is to reduce the length
of the legislative session to 45 days each year and to reduce the
compensation of legislators by 25% to $11,250.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.