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Monday, March 14, 2005



The House of Delegates met at 1:00 p.m., and was called to order by the Speaker.
Prayer was offered and the House was led in recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Clerk proceeded to read the Journal of Friday, March 11, 2005, being the first order of business, when the further reading thereof was dispensed with and the same approved.
Committee Reports

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the following report, which was received:
Your Committee on Rules has had under consideration:
H. C. R. 19, Requesting the Joint Committee on Government and Finance study the possible expansion of in-home family education programs (Early Parent Education),
And reports the same back with the recommendation that it be adopted.
Chairman Amores, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the following report, which was received:
Your Committee on the Judiciary has had under consideration:
S. B. 153, Relating generally to ethical standards of public officers and employees,
And reports the same back, with a title amendment, by unanimous vote of the Committee, with the recommendation that it do pass, as amended.
Having been reported from committee with no dissenting vote, and in accordance with the provisions of House Rule 70a, the foregoing bill (S. B. 153) will be placed on the Consent Calendar.
The Clerk announced that, pursuant to House Rule 70a, the following requests had been filed with him for the removal of S. B. 153 from the Consent Calendar to the House Calendar, by Delegate Amores.

Messages from the Senate

A message from the Senate, by
The Clerk of the Senate, announced that the Senate had passed, without amendment, a bill of the House of Delegates as follows:
H. B. 2495, Repeal the requirement that jails be inspected by appointees of the Circuit Courts.
A message from the Senate, by
The Clerk of the Senate, announced that the Senate had passed, with amendment, a bill of the House of Delegates as follows:
Com. Sub. for H. B. 2592, Relating to the design-build procurement act.
On motion of Delegate Staton, the bill was taken up for immediate consideration.
The following Senate amendments were reported by the Clerk:
On page eight, section three, line nine, after the word "rules", by inserting a comma and the words "pursuant to section six of this article, and".
On page nine, section three, lines twenty-one and twenty-two, by striking out the words "As of the termination date of the board established pursuant to section four of this article" and the comma, and inserting in lieu thereof the words "When the Design-Build Board, established pursuant to section four of this article, is terminated pursuant to the acts of the Legislature" followed by a comma.
On page ten, section four, line eleven, after the word "members", by striking out the period and the words "A member" and inserting in lieu thereof a comma and the word "but".
On page ten, section four, lines twenty-five through twenty-seven, by striking out the following: "Members shall be appointed for three-year terms, which are staggered in accordance with the initial appointments under prior enactment of this section."
On page ten, section four, line twenty-eight, after the word "years" and the comma, by inserting the words "staggered in accordance with the initial appointments under prior enactment of this section"and a comma.
On page fourteen, section five, line forty-three, by striking out the word "Legislature" and inserting in lieu thereof the words "Joint Committee on Government and Finance".
On page eighteen, section eight, lines six and seven, by striking out the words "The performance criteria developer may not be an employee of the agency."
On page eighteen, section eight, after line eleven, by inserting a new subsection, designated subsection (b), to read as follows:
"(b)
The agency may use its own employees to determine whether the agency should seek to construct a project using the design-build method of construction. The agency may use an employee as its performance criteria developer on projects for which construction costs are estimated to be one million dollars or less."
On page nineteen, section eight, line twelve, by striking out "(b)" and inserting in lieu thereof "(c)".
On page nineteen, section eight, line twenty-two, by striking out "(c)" and inserting in lieu thereof "(d)".
On page twenty, section eight, by striking out all of subsections (d) and (e).
On page twenty-two, section ten, line twelve, after the words "article, the" by inserting the word "legislative".
On page twenty-two, section ten, line thirteen, after the words "pursuant to" by inserting the words "section six of".
On page twenty-eight, section twelve, line thirty-one, after the word "rules" by inserting the words "promulgated pursuant to section six of this article".
On page twenty-eight, section fifteen, line one, after the word "exist" by striking out the comma and the words "pursuant to the provisions of article ten, chapter four of this code" and the comma.
On page twenty-nine, section fifteen, line five, by striking out the words "that article" and inserting in lieu thereof the words "article ten, chapter four of this code".
And,
By amending the title of the bill to read as follows:
Com. Sub. for H. B. 2592-"A Bill to amend and reenact §5-22A-2, §5-22A-3, §5-22A-4, §5-22A-5, §5-22A-6, §5-22A-7, §5-22A-8, §5-22A-10, §5-22A-11, §5-22A-12 and §5-22A-15 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §5-22A-9a, all relating to the Design-Build Procurement Act; definitions; authorizing reimbursement of expenses for Design-Build Board members; clarifying the duties of the Board; modifying requirements for approval of design-build projects; clarifying that authority to enter into design-build contracts terminates when Board terminates; requiring monthly progress reports on design-build projects; requiring annual reports; revising rule-making authority and requirements; specifying requirements for performance criteria developers; establishing requirements for issuing invitations for qualifications and proposals; providing for selection of qualified design- builders; revising proposal requirements; revising submission requirements; and changing the continuation date for the Board."
On motion of Delegate Staton, the House of Delegates concurred in the Senate amendments with an amendment, as follows:
On page twenty-eight, section fifteen, lines one and two, after the word "exist", by reinserting the words "pursuant to the provisions of article ten, chapter four of this code" and a comma.
And,
On page twenty-nine, section fifteen, line five, by reinserting the word "that" and after the word "code" by inserting the words "or other act of the Legislature."
The bill, as amended by the Senate and as further amended by the House, was then put upon its passage.
On the passage of the bill, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 117), and there were--yeas 93, nays 3, absent and not voting 4, with the nays and absent and not voting being as follows:
Nays: Carmichael, Hunt and Thompson, Rick.
Absent And Not Voting: Anderson, Ferrell, Hartman and Leach.
So, a majority of the members elected to the House of Delegates having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bill (Com. Sub. for H. B. 2592) passed.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
A message from the Senate, by
The Clerk of the Senate, announced the passage by the Senate and requested the concurrence of the House of Delegates in the passage of
S. B. 222 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §5B-2B-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to the membership of the West Virginia Workforce Investment Council"; to the Committee on Industry and Labor, Economic Development and Small Business then Government Organization.
Resolutions Introduced

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Stemple, Amores, Anderson, Argento, Armstead, Ashley, Azinger, Barker, Beach, Beane, Blair, Boggs, Border, Brown, Browning, Butcher, Campbell, Cann, Canterbury, Caputo, Carmichael, Craig, Crosier, DeLong, Doyle, Duke, Eldridge, Ellem, Ennis, Evans, Fragale, Frederick, Frich, Hall, Hamilton, Hartman, Hatfield, Houston, Howard, Hrutkay, Hunt, Iaquinta, Kominar, Lane, Leach, Leggett, Long, Longstreth, Louisos, Mahan, Manchin, Marshall, Martin, Michael, Miley, Moore, Morgan, Overington, Palumbo, Paxton, Perdue, Perry, Pethtel, Pino, Poling, Porter, Proudfoot, Roberts, Romine, Rowan, Schadler, Schoen, Sobonya, Spencer, Stalnaker, Staton, Stephens, Stevens, Sumner, Susman, Swartzmiller, Tabb, Talbott, Tansill, Rick Thompson, Ron Thompson, Trump, Tucker, Varner, Wakim, Walters, Webster, Wells, Gil White, H. K. White, Williams, Wysong and Yost offered the following resolution, which was read by its title and referred to the Committee on Rules:
H. C. R. 46 - "Recognizing and acknowledging Vietnam Veterans Recognition Week, to be held in homage of the honorable and dedicated veterans who served during the Vietnam War."
Whereas, There are approximately 3.4 million veterans of the Vietnam War in this country; and
Whereas, 8,744,000 military personnel from this country served in active duty in the Vietnam War; and
Whereas, 58,299 American military personnel lost their lives from Vietnam related duty; and
Whereas, The men and women who served during the Vietnam War, though suffering great personal sacrifice, and in some instances, being reviled by some of their own fellow citizens, did so with intense and unquestioned honor and dedication to this Country; and
Whereas, May 1st through May 7th is slated as "Vietnam Veterans Recognition Week," a time to pay particular homage to these veterans who served selflessly and courageously, but who, at the time of their service, did not receive the recognition they so greatly deserved; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia;
That recognition and acknowledgment is hereby expressed by the members to our Vietnam Veterans who will receive national recognition during the upcoming Vietnam Veterans Recognition Week of May 1st through May 7th for their great valor and dedication as well as the honor they have bestowed upon this country; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk is hereby requested to forward a copy of this Resolution to The West Virginia Veteran, the official publication of West Virginia Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Delegates Craig, Amores, Browning, Campbell, Cann, Caputo, Crosier, Ellem, Howard, Iaquinta, Kominar, Longstreth, Manchin, Michael, Miley, Morgan, Pethtel, Poling, Sobonya, Stalnaker, Stephens, Talbott, Ron Thompson, Trump and Varner offered the following resolution, which was read by its title and referred to the Committee on Rules:
H. R. 25 - "Encouraging the 109th Congress to enact multiemission legislation that will provide reduction targets for nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury at reasonable and appropriate levels and over periods of time that will provide certainty, stability and maximum flexibility to electric power generators in meeting their air quality targets while maintaining electric power reliability, availibility and affordability."
Whereas, The State of West Virginia, its citizens and its industries have a shared interest in improving air quality; and
Whereas, The quality of life in the State depends on a reliable supply of electric power; and
Whereas, The State's electric power generators must comply with multiple and sometimes overlapping air quality requirements, the interpretation of which is often decided in courts of law; and
Whereas, The time necessary for emission reduction-related litigation often reduces the time available for the installation of emission-reduction technologies and increases the costs of compliance which eventually are passed on to consumers of electric power; and
Whereas, Congress has an opportunity in the form of S. 131, the Clear Skies Act of 2005, to adopt a federal, integrated strategy that establishes aggressive but reasonable time frames and reduction targets for the nation's three highest priority electric power plant emissions: nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury; and
Whereas, Such a multiemission strategy will minimize interstate regulatory compliance conflicts, lessen the need for costly, time-consuming litigation, allow for the design and deployment of more cost-effective technologies, and continue the nation's progress for reducing potentially harmful emissions in as cost-effective manner as possible without negatively impacting the reliability of the nation's power supplies; therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Delegates:
That the House of Delegates hereby encourages the 109th Congress to enact multiemission legislation that will provide reduction targets for nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury at reasonable and appropriate levels and over periods of time that will provide certainty, stability and maximum flexibility to electric power generators in meeting their air quality targets while maintaining electric power reliability, availability and affordability; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates is herby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to Senator Robert C. Byrd, Senator Jay Rockefeller, Congressman Alan Mollohan, Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito, Congressman Nick Joe Rahall and Governor Joe Manchin.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Stalnaker, Amores, Anderson, Argento, Armstead, Ashley, Azinger, Barker, Beach, Beane, Blair, Boggs, Border, Brown, Browning, Butcher, Campbell, Cann, Canterbury, Caputo, Carmichael, Craig, Crosier, DeLong, Doyle, Duke, Eldridge, Ellem, Ennis, Evans, Fragale, Frederick, Frich, Hall, Hamilton, Hartman, Hatfield, Houston, Howard, Hrutkay, Hunt, Iaquinta, Kominar, Lane, Leach, Leggett, Long, Longstreth, Louisos, Mahan, Manchin, Marshall, Martin, Michael, Miley, Moore, Morgan, Overington, Palumbo, Paxton, Perdue, Perry, Pethtel, Pino, Poling, Porter, Proudfoot, Roberts, Romine, Rowan, Schadler, Schoen, Sobonya, Spencer, Staton, Stemple, Stephens, Stevens, Sumner, Susman, Swartzmiller, Tabb, Talbott, Tansill, Rick Thompson, Ron Thompson, Trump, Tucker, Varner, Wakim, Walters, Webster, Wells, Gil White, H. K. White, Williams, Wysong and Yost offered the following resolution, which was read by its title and referred to the Committee on Rules:
H. R. 26 - "Designating Thursday, March 17, 2005, as West Virginia History Day at the House of Delegates and recognizing the work of all those history heroes and the many willing workers in hundreds of organizations throughout the State who volunteer hundreds of thousands of hours to help educate the public about the Mountain State's unique heritage and who help to preserve the past for future generations."
Whereas, The efforts of the West Virginia Archives and History Commission, the Friends of the West Virginia Culture and History, the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, the West Virginia Historical Society, the West Virginia Historical Association, the West Virginia Association of Museums, the West Virginia Humanities Council and the West Virginia Mining Your History Foundation benefit from the unselfish efforts of the many volunteers and unselfish people who support the effort to preserve the State's history; and
Whereas, The State of West Virginia has a rich and varied history providing a wellspring of pride in the accomplishments of its people and a springboard for future generations of mountaineers; and
Whereas, All West Virginian's are deeply indebted to those selfless individuals who support West Virginia's rich and varied State and local history with their research, interpretations, publications or preservation efforts; therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Delegates:
That Thursday, March 17, 2005, is hereby declared as West Virginia History Day at the House of Delegates; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the House of Delegates hereby recognizes all of the people and organizations throughout the State who work to promote our culture, educate our children and preserve the character of our past to the benefit of all West Virginians.
Bills Introduced

On motions for leave, bills were introduced, read by their titles, and severally referred as follows:
By Delegate Trump:
H. B. 3008 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §38-14-4 and §38-14-5 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to the self-service storage lien act; providing for an increase in late fees; shortening the time to be considered in default; adding sale by private auction as well as public auction; and shortening the time that personal property may be sold at a public or private auction"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegates Beane and Ennis:
H. B. 3009 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §29-21-16 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to requiring circuit judges to require repayment of the costs of representation provided by the public defender system under certain circumstances"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Pino:
H. B. 3010 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §25-1-11a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing that the Commissioner of Corrections may authorize wardens or administrators to establish imprest funds for the purpose of transporting inmates to needed destinations"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegate Rowan:
H. B. 3011 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §61-2-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to defining "the deceased" for purposes of prescribing that a deceased victim includes an unborn child under first and second degree murder"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Michael, Kominar, H. White and Palumbo:
H. B. 3012 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §11-3-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to exempting property acquired by lease purchase agreement by the state, a county, district, city, village, town or other political subdivision, state college or university, from property tax"; to the Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.
By Delegates Amores and Trump:
H. B. 3013 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §8-5-7 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to residency and other requirements for certain municipal officers; and removing requirement that the mayor, recorder and councilmen must have been assessed with and paid real or personal property taxes in order to hold office"; to the Committee on Political Subdivisions then the Judiciary.
By Delegates H. White, Hrutkay, G. White, Ron Thompson, Webster, Cann and Hamilton:

H. B. 3014 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §33-15-2g of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend the code by adding thereto a new section, designated §33-16-1b, all relating to required coverage for specific conditions or treatments in individual and group accident and sickness policies of insurance; and providing limitations on applicability of these requirements"; to the Committee on Banking and Insurance then the Judiciary.
By Delegates Boggs, Long, Trump, Hatfield, Staton, Butcher, Browning and Ashley:
H. B. 3015 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §17A-3-14 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to creating a new organ donor license plate"; to the Committee on Roads and Transportation then Finance.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates G. White, Beach, Beane, Ennis, Varner, H. White, Browning, Staton, Mahan and Stalnaker:

H. B. 3016 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §30-40-5 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to excepting the making of appointments by secretaries of licensed real estate brokers and salespersons with buyers and sellers or potential buyers and sellers of real estate from the scope of practice of real estate brokerage subject to licensing"; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Delegates Ron Thompson, Swartzmiller, Boggs, Mahan and Crosier:
H. B. 3017 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §11-15-9g of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to the consumers sales and service tax generally; and creating an exemption for purchases of back-to-school clothing and school supplies by consumers during three-day period in August, two thousand five"; to the Committee on Finance.
By Delegates Williams, Stemple, Beach, Poling, Stevens, Perry and Campbell:
H. B. 3018 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §15-1B-24 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §18-2-6 of said code, all relating to designation of Mountaineer Challenge Academy as special alternative education program; providing for state board rule and minimum provisions; application limited to academy consent; making additional findings and stating intent; making applicable references; and updating terms"; to the Committee on Education then Finance.
By Delegates Beach, Perry, Argento, Stemple, Crosier, Michael, Staton, Mahan, Ron Thompson and Browning:

H. B. 3019 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §18-2D-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to recognizing the Appalachian Education Initiative promoting the role of art education in the public schools"; to the Committee on Education then Finance.
By Delegates Stalnaker, Poling, Hamilton, G. White, Proudfoot and Hartman:
H. B. 3020 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §18B-4-5b, relating to private campus police officers at private institutions of higher education in this state; and providing for the appointment, qualifications, authority and removal of private campus police officers"; to the Committee on Education then the Judiciary.
By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Beane, Ennis, Walters, G. White and Butcher:
H. B. 3021 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §30-37-7, §30-37-8, §30-37-9, §30-37-10 and §30-37-11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to amending licensure procedures for massage therapists; providing procedures for renewal and reinstatement of licenses; providing penalties; providing that disciplinary sanctions may be imposed in order to enforce the provisions regulating massage therapists; including certain prohibited acts while engaged as a massage therapist; providing a hearing process when licenses are suspended, revoked or not renewed; and raising the criminal fine from five hundred dollars to five thousand dollars"; to the Committee on Government Organization.
By Delegates Blair, Trump, Duke, Roberts, Wysong, Overington, Tabb, Doyle, Amores, Craig and Armstead:

H. B. 3022 - "A Bill to amend and reenact §20-7-25 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to establishing a volunteer litter reporting program"; to the Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources then the Judiciary.
By Delegates Michael, Argento, Beach, DeLong, Ennis, Perry, Pethtel, Stemple, Swartzmiller, Varner and Yost:

H. B. 3023 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §7-7-6e, relating to assessments and collections of assessment on all breeding age sheep and all breeding age goats; allocation of assessment proceeds; duties of county assessors and Commissioner of Agriculture; creation of special revenue funds; and purposes for which proceeds to be expended"; to the Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources then Finance.
By Delegate H. White:
H. B. 3024 - "A Bill to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated as §24F-1-7, relating to prohibiting political subdivisions from selling memorials, monuments or markers except those for which a regulatory agency has established a price therefor"; to the Committee on Political Subdivisions then the Judiciary.
Consent Calendar

Third Reading

The following bills on third reading, coming up in regular order, were each read a third time:
H. B. 2813, Relating to requirements for certificate of public convenience and necessity,
H. B. 2869, Relating to permit the conversion of a domestic corporation to a domestic limited liability company,

And,
H. B. 2958, Continuing the Public Employees Insurance Agency Finance Board.

Delegate Armstead requested to be excused from voting on the passage of H. B. 2813 under the provisions of House Rule 49.
The Speaker refused to excuse the Gentleman from voting, stating that he was a member of a class of persons possibly to be affected by the passage of the bill and that he demonstrated no direct or pecuniary interest therein.
This ruling will stand as the judgement of the Chair and of the House, pursuant to the inherent right to make, interpret and enforce our rules of procedure as established by our sovereign, non-reviewable Constitutional authority, and shall be binding in all other potential venues. On the passage of the bills, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 118), and there were--yeas 98, nays none, absent and not voting 2, with the absent and not voting being as follows:
Absent And Not Voting: Ferrell and Leach.
So, a majority of the members present and voting having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bills (H. B. 2813, H. B. 2869 and H. B. 2958) passed.
Delegate Staton moved that H. B. 2813 take effect from its passage.
On this question, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 122), and there were--yeas 98, nays none, absent and not voting 2, with the absent and not voting being as follows:
Absent And Not Voting: Ferrell and Leach.
So, two thirds of the members elected to the House of Delegates having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bill (H. B. 2813) takes effect from its passage.
Delegate Staton moved that H. B. 2958 take effect July 1, 2005.
On this question, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 123), and there were--yeas 98, nays none, absent and not voting 2, with the absent and not voting being as follows:
Absent And Not Voting: Ferrell and Leach.
So, two thirds of the members elected to the House of Delegates having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bill (H. B. 2958) takes effect July 1, 2005.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates on the Consent Calendar bills and request concurrence therein.
Special Calendar

Unfinished Business

H. C. R. 5, Naming the bridge on Cleveland Avenue in Buckhannon, West Virginia, the "William S. O' Brien Memorial Bridge"; coming up in regular order, as unfinished business, was reported by the Clerk and adopted.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
H. C. R. 14, Requesting the Division of Highways to name the bridge spanning the Gauley River on Route 39 near Summersville, Nicholas County, the "Brock's Bridge"; coming up in regular order, as unfinished business, was reported by the Clerk and adopted.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
H. C. R. 21, Requesting the Department of Education to create a position in the Department to coordinate, oversee and advocate for public school libraries; coming up in regular order, as unfinished business, was reported by the Clerk and adopted.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
H. C. R. 36, Requesting the Division of Highways to name the bridge at McCauley in Hardy County, West Virginia, the "John and Freda Rudy Memorial Bridge"; coming up in regular order, as unfinished business, was reported by the Clerk and adopted.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
H. C. R. 40, Naming the new bridge spanning the Elk River in Clendenin, West Virginia, the "Hardman Brothers Bridge"; coming up in regular order, as unfinished business, was reported by the Clerk and adopted.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
Third Reading

Com. Sub. for H. B. 2227
, Prescribing minimum standards for municipal judges and requiring criminal background checks of persons applying for municipal judgeships; on third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third time.
The question being on the passage of the bill, the yeas and nays were taken (Roll No. 124), and there were--yeas 98, nays none, absent and not voting 2, with the absent and not voting being as follows:
Absent And Not Voting: Ferrell and Leach.
So, a majority of the members present and voting having voted in the affirmative, the Speaker declared the bill (Com. Sub. for H. B. 2227) passed.
Ordered, That the Clerk of the House communicate to the Senate the action of the House of Delegates and request concurrence therein.
First Reading

The following bills on first reading, coming up in regular order, were each read a first time and ordered to second reading:
S. B. 146, Establishing Unborn Victims of Violence Act,

And,
H. B. 2814, Relating to financially-related activities of State-charted Banking Institutions.
Leaves of Absence

At the request of Delegate Staton, and by unanimous consent, leaves of absence for the day were granted Delegates Ferrell and Leach.
Delegate Spencer announced that she had been absent when the vote was taken on Roll Nos. 110 through 116, and that had she been present she would have voted "Yea" thereon.
At 1:50 p.m., on motion of Delegate Staton, the House of Delegates adjourned until 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, March 15, 2005.