WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
SENATE JOURNAL
SEVENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION, 2007
FOURTEENTH DAY
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Charleston, W. Va., Tuesday, January 23, 2007
The Senate met at 11 a.m.
(Senator Tomblin, Mr. President, in the Chair.)
Prayer was offered by the Reverend James R. Dumire, Associate
Pastor, Asbury United Methodist Church, Charleston, West Virginia,
and Associate Pastor, Darlington United Methodist Church, South
Charleston, West Virginia.
Pending the reading of the Journal of Monday, January 22,
2007,
On motion of Senator Yoder, the Journal was approved and the
further reading thereof dispensed with.
The Senate proceeded to the second order of business and the
introduction of guests.
The Clerk presented a communication from the Department of
Environmental Protection, submitting its annual Special Reclamation
Fund Advisory Council report, in accordance with chapter twenty-
two, article one, section seventeen of the code of West Virginia.
Which report was received and filed with the Clerk.
The Clerk presented a communication from the Division of
Juvenile Services, submitting its annual report as required by
chapter forty-nine, article five, section thirteen-e of the code of
West Virginia.
Which communication and report were received and filed with
the Clerk.
Senator Tomblin (Mr. President) presented a communication from
the West Virginia Lottery, submitting its annual report, in
accordance with chapter twenty-nine, article twenty-two, section
twenty of the code of West Virginia.
Which communication and report were received and filed with
the Clerk.
The Senate proceeded to the third order of business.
A message from The Clerk of the House of Delegates announced
the passage by that body, to take effect from passage, and
requested the concurrence of the Senate in the passage of
Eng. House Bill No. 2105--A Bill to amend and reenact §18A-2-3
of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to
extending expiration date of provisions permitting retired teachers
to accept employment as substitutes in areas of critical need and
shortage for an unlimited number of days without affecting
retirement benefits.
At the request of Senator Chafin, and by unanimous consent,
reference of the bill to a committee was dispensed with, and it was
taken up for immediate consideration, read a first time and ordered
to second reading.
On motion of Senator Chafin, the constitutional rule requiring
a bill to be read on three separate days was suspended by a vote of
four fifths of the members present, taken by yeas and nays.
On suspending the constitutional rule, the yeas were: Bailey,
Barnes, Boley, Bowman, Caruth, Chafin, Deem, Edgell, Facemyer,
Fanning, Foster, Green, Guills, Hall, Helmick, Hunter, Jenkins,
Kessler, Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Oliverio, Plymale,
Prezioso, Sprouse, Stollings, Sypolt, Unger, Wells, White, Yoder
and Tomblin (Mr. President)--33.
The nays were: None.
Absent: Sharpe--1.
The bill was read a second time and ordered to third reading.
Having been engrossed, the bill (Eng. H. B. No. 2105) was then
read a third time.
Following discussion,
At the request of Senator Deem, unanimous consent being
granted, the bill was laid over one day, retaining its place on the
calendar.
The Senate proceeded to the sixth order of business.
On motions for leave, severally made, the following bills were
introduced, read by their titles, and referred to the appropriate
committees:
By Senators Bailey, Prezioso, Minard, Yoder, Barnes and
Sypolt:
Senate Bill No. 173--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated §2-1-3, relating to making English the official language
of West Virginia.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senator Bailey:
Senate Bill No. 174--A Bill to amend and reenact §24-1-1 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing
a legislative finding that it may be in the best interests of
public utility consumers to allow public utilities to enter
contracts which allow the payment of capital costs of expansions or
new construction of public utility facilities in exchange for
reservations of capacity in these new facilities.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the
Committee on Finance.
By Senators Prezioso, Minard, Kessler and Foster:
Senate Bill No. 175--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, l931, as amended, by adding thereto a new article, designated §60A-11-1, §60A-11-2, §60A-11-3, §60A-11-4, §60A-11-5
and §60A-11-6, all relating to regulation and procedures for the
remediation of clandestine drug laboratories; defining terms;
establishing a program of certification and licensing of persons
engaged in the business of remediation; providing for legislative
rules; authorizing the Department of Health and Human Resources to
establish fees for certification, licensing and notification
requirements; setting forth the responsibility of law-enforcement
agencies to notify the Department of Health and Human Resources and
residential property owners of the existence of a clandestine drug
laboratory; setting forth the responsibility of residential
property owners for remediation of clandestine drug laboratories;
and providing immunity from liability for property owners who
successfully remediate a clandestine drug laboratory.
Referred to the Committee on Government Organization; and then
to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Hunter, Barnes and Kessler:
Senate Bill No. 176--A Bill to amend and reenact §16-30C-6 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to allowing
advanced nurse practitioners to sign do-not-resuscitate orders.
Referred to the Committee on Health and Human Resources.
By Senator Unger:
Senate Bill No. 177--A Bill to amend and reenact §5B-1-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend and reenact
§5B-2A-1, §5B-2A-3 and §5B-2A-4 of said code; to amend and reenact
§5D-1-4 of said code; to amend and reenact §5F-2-1 of said code; to
amend said code by adding thereto a new chapter, designated §5H-1-1
and §5H-1-2; and to amend and reenact §22-3A-7 of said code, all
relating to the creation of the Division of Energy within the
Department of Commerce; charging the Division of Energy to develop
energy policies; placing the Office of Coalfield Community
Development within the Division of Energy; creating the position of
Executive Director of the Division of Energy; charging Executive
Director of the Division of Energy to administer functions of the
West Virginia Public Energy Authority; providing executive director
acts under the authority of the Secretary of Commerce; providing
the executive director has authority over the Office of Coalfield
Community Development and the Energy Efficiency Program of the West
Virginia Development Office; providing the Public Energy Authority,
the Office of Coalfield Community Development, executive director
and other public agencies develop an energy policy and development
plan and seek public input thereof; providing executive director is
a nonvoting member of the Public Energy Authority; requiring
submission of an energy policy and development plan to the Governor
and Joint Committee on Government and Finance; setting forth
matters to be addressed in the energy policy and development plan; providing that the executive director shall prepare an energy use
database; providing that the executive director shall promote
initiatives to enhance the nation's energy security; providing that
the executive director shall encourage the development of energy
infrastructure and strategic resources that will ensure the
continuity of governmental operations in situations of emergency,
inoperativeness or disaster; and providing funding for the Division
of Energy.
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure; and then to the Committee on Finance.
By Senators Tomblin (Mr. President) and Caruth (By Request of
the Executive):
Senate Bill No. 178--A Bill to amend and reenact §7-18-2 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to hotel
occupancy tax; and increasing the rate of hotel occupancy tax
imposed by counties to not more than six percent.
Referred to the Committee on Government Organization; and then
to the Committee on Finance.
By Senators Unger, Jenkins and Kessler:
Senate Bill No. 179--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new article,
designated §16-43-1, §16-43-2, §16-43-3 and §16-43-4, all relating
to establishing death review teams for elder abuse deaths and domestic abuse deaths.
Referred to the Committee on Health and Human Resources; and
then to the Committee on the Judiciary.
By Senators Foster, Unger, Kessler and Sypolt:
Senate Bill No. 180--A Bill to amend the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section,
designated §5-10D-6a, relating to voluntary election by eligible
public safety officers for distributions from retirement plans for
payment of qualified health insurance premiums.
Referred to the Committee on Pensions; and then to the
Committee on Finance.
By Senators Minard, Yoder and Kessler:
Senate Bill No. 181--A Bill to amend and reenact §31A-3-1 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing
that the per diem compensation for members of the Board of Banking
and Financial Institutions shall be the same as the amount set by
law for legislators attending to interim duties.
Referred to the Committee on Government Organization; and then
to the Committee on Finance.
By Senators Minard, Yoder, Barnes and Kessler:
Senate Bill No. 182--A Bill to amend and reenact §31A-2-6 of
the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to providing
that the Division of Banking shall employ the same frequency of examination schedules of depository financial institutions as the
primary federal regulators of those institutions.
Referred to the Committee on Banking and Insurance; and then
to the Committee on Finance.
By Senators Minard, Barnes and Kessler:
Senate Bill No. 183--A Bill to amend and reenact §31A-8A-2 and
§31A-8A-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all
relating to providing that the Board of Banking and Financial
Institutions has the authority to approve acquisitions of out-of-
state banks and bank holding companies by West Virginia state banks
or bank holding companies.
Referred to the Committee on Banking and Insurance; and then
to the Committee on Finance.
Senators Foster and McCabe offered the following resolution:
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 20--Requesting the Division
of Highways name the section of U. S. Route 60 in Kanawha County
from Campbells Creek Road to Warrior Way the "Adam Johnson Crumpler
Memorial Highway".
Whereas, Adam Johnson Crumpler was born August 31, 1985, and
graduated from Riverside High School in 2003; and
Whereas, Sadly, Lance Corporal Adam Johnson Crumpler was
killed in action on June 18, 2005, while serving his state and
country in Iraq; and
Whereas, Naming the section of U. S. Route 60 in Kanawha
County from Campbells Creek Road to Warrior Way would forever honor
the memory of Lance Corporal Adam Johnson Crumpler who made the
ultimate sacrifice for his country and state; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Legislature hereby requests the Division of Highways
to name the section of U. S. Route 60 in Kanawha County from
Campbells Creek Road to Warrior Way the "Adam Johnson Crumpler
Memorial Highway"; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Division Highways is requested to
have made and be placed signs identifying the section of U. S.
Route 60 in Kanawha County as the "Adam Johnson Crumpler Memorial
Highway"; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the Senate is hereby
directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the Secretary of
the Department of Transportation and the family of the late Adam
Johnson Crumpler.
Which, under the rules, lies over one day.
The Senate proceeded to the seventh order of business.
Senate Concurrent Resolutions No. 19, Urging Congress pass
Employee Free Choice Act.
On unfinished business, coming up in regular order, was
reported by the Clerk and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
The Senate proceeded to the eighth order of business.
Eng. Senate Bill No. 138, Repealing code section relating to
requirement nonresidents secure costs.
On third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third
time and put upon its passage.
On the passage of the bill, the yeas were: Bailey, Barnes,
Boley, Bowman, Caruth, Chafin, Deem, Edgell, Facemyer, Fanning,
Foster, Green, Guills, Hall, Helmick, Hunter, Jenkins, Kessler,
Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Oliverio, Plymale, Prezioso,
Sprouse, Stollings, Sypolt, Unger, Wells, White, Yoder and Tomblin
(Mr. President)--33.
The nays were: None.
Absent: Sharpe--1.
So, a majority of all the members present and voting having
voted in the affirmative, the President declared the bill (Eng. S.
B. No. 138) passed with its title.
Ordered, That The Clerk communicate to the House of Delegates
the action of the Senate and request concurrence therein.
Eng. Senate Bill No. 139, Denying petition for name change in
certain cases.
On third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third
time and put upon its passage.
On the passage of the bill, the yeas were: Bailey, Barnes,
Boley, Bowman, Caruth, Chafin, Deem, Edgell, Facemyer, Fanning,
Foster, Green, Guills, Hall, Helmick, Hunter, Jenkins, Kessler,
Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Oliverio, Plymale, Prezioso,
Sprouse, Stollings, Sypolt, Unger, Wells, White, Yoder and Tomblin
(Mr. President)--33.
The nays were: None.
Absent: Sharpe--1.
So, a majority of all the members present and voting having
voted in the affirmative, the President declared the bill (Eng. S.
B. No. 139) passed with its title.
Ordered, That The Clerk communicate to the House of Delegates
the action of the Senate and request concurrence therein.
Eng. Senate Bill No. 140, Relating to depositing certain
moneys into magistrate court fund.
On third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third
time and put upon its passage.
On the passage of the bill, the yeas were: Bailey, Barnes,
Boley, Bowman, Caruth, Chafin, Deem, Edgell, Facemyer, Fanning,
Foster, Green, Guills, Hall, Helmick, Hunter, Jenkins, Kessler,
Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Oliverio, Plymale, Prezioso,
Sprouse, Stollings, Sypolt, Unger, Wells, White, Yoder and Tomblin
(Mr. President)--33.
The nays were: None.
Absent: Sharpe--1.
So, a majority of all the members present and voting having
voted in the affirmative, the President declared the bill (Eng. S.
B. No. 140) passed with its title.
Ordered, That The Clerk communicate to the House of Delegates
the action of the Senate and request concurrence therein.
Eng. Senate Bill No. 141, Providing family court jurisdiction
over sibling visitation petitions.
On third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third
time and put upon its passage.
On the passage of the bill, the yeas were: Bailey, Barnes,
Boley, Bowman, Caruth, Chafin, Deem, Edgell, Facemyer, Fanning,
Foster, Green, Guills, Hall, Helmick, Hunter, Jenkins, Kessler,
Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Oliverio, Plymale, Prezioso,
Sprouse, Stollings, Sypolt, Unger, Wells, White, Yoder and Tomblin
(Mr. President)--33.
The nays were: None.
Absent: Sharpe--1.
So, a majority of all the members present and voting having
voted in the affirmative, the President declared the bill (Eng. S.
B. No. 141) passed with its title.
Ordered, That The Clerk communicate to the House of Delegates the action of the Senate and request concurrence therein.
Eng. Senate Bill No. 142, Providing penalty for illegally
possessing, possessing with intent to distribute or distributing an
iodine matrix.
On third reading, coming up in regular order, was read a third
time and put upon its passage.
On the passage of the bill, the yeas were: Bailey, Barnes,
Boley, Bowman, Caruth, Chafin, Deem, Edgell, Facemyer, Fanning,
Foster, Green, Guills, Hall, Helmick, Hunter, Jenkins, Kessler,
Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Oliverio, Plymale, Prezioso,
Sprouse, Stollings, Sypolt, Unger, Wells, White, Yoder and Tomblin
(Mr. President)--33.
The nays were: None.
Absent: Sharpe--1.
So, a majority of all the members present and voting having
voted in the affirmative, the President declared the bill (Eng. S.
B. No. 142) passed with its title.
Ordered, That The Clerk communicate to the House of Delegates
the action of the Senate and request concurrence therein.
On motion of Senator Chafin, a leave of absence for the day
was granted Senator Sharpe.
Pending announcement of meetings of standing committees of the
Senate, including a minority party caucus,
On motion of Senator Chafin, the Senate adjourned until
tomorrow, Wednesday, January 24, 2007, at 11 a.m.
____________