Day 17: Librarians will be at the Capitol today as they face a bill that could open them up to felony charges
Good morning and welcome back to 60 Days, your daily guide to the West Virginia Legislature’s regular session.
Today is Friday, January 26, 2024 — the 17th day of the session — and things are about to get AWKWARD.
That’s because today is Library Legislation Day at the state Capitol. Hosted by the West Virginia Library Association, librarians will on hand to ostensibly lobby lawmakers for more funding. But this year’s Library Day also comes two days after members of the public aired their differences over HB 4654 during a public hearing in the House Chamber. That’s the bill that could open up librarians to felony charges for displaying obscene material to minors.
The bill is still pending in the House Judiciary Committee. And as luck would have it, it’s NOT on today’s agenda for the panel’s meeting scheduled for 9:30 a.m. in Room 410.
Or maybe I’m not the only one who keeps track of the Activity Calendar.
Today’s Agenda:
A couple of bills we’ve been tracking are expected to be on third reading, the passage stage on the House Floor today:
Delegates could give final approval to SB 269. That’s the bill that would decriminalize drug testing strips. Supporters say it would help save lives by allowing people to test for unknown, and potentially fatal substances, in the illicit drugs they take. The Senate passed the measure on Tuesday. It has since been on a glide path in the House.
Also on third reading today in the House is HB 4759, the E-verify bill. The measure aims to crackdown on the employment of people who are in the country illegally. The measure would force most business owners to check applicants’ work eligibility through the E-Verify system, which is maintained by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
You can find the rest of the House’s floor agenda here. Speaker Roger Hanshaw (R-Clay) will bring things to order at the customary start time of 11 a.m.
The Senate, however, is getting an early start at 9 a.m. It’s Friday, after all. And although I can’t say for sure, I’d bet that Senate President Craig Blair (R-Berkeley) would like to wrap up the legislative week as soon as he can. He’s got a long drive back to his Eastern Panhandle district, assuming he’s planning to make it, of course.
In any case, here is the Senate’s floor agenda. You may notice other notable bills senators are planning to take action on, but there is one that stands out to me:
SB 468 is on second reading, the amendment stage. This is the “Baby Olivia” bill. It would require that eighth and tenth graders in public schools view a video distributed by the anti-abortion group LiveAction. Among the bill’s sponsors is Senate Education Chair Amy Grady (R-Mason) and Sen. Patricia Rucker (R-Jefferson), the chair of the Senate’s School Choice Committee. They say the video simply depicts human development in the womb, but opponents say it’s inaccurate and there are concerns about LiveAction’s involvement.
As mentioned at top, the House Judiciary Committee is meeting this morning and it seems to be the panel to watch today:
The librarian bill may not be on the agenda, but HB 4016 is. That’s the bill opposed by voting advocates like the League of Women Voters of WV. It would prohibit the delivery of unsolicited absentee ballot applications to any person who has not specifically requested one from the county clerk.
Other Committee meetings on the schedule today:
9:00 a.m. The House Committee on Finance in the Committee Room.
9:30 a.m. The House Judiciary Committee
10 a.m. Senate Workforce
10:45 a.m. House Rules will meet behind the Chamber.
10:00 a.m. The House Committee on Education.
60 Days links: We’re helping to get eyeballs on the work that the reporters at the state Capitol and elsewhere do every day. So far, 60 Days has generated more than 230 link clicks since the beginning of the legislative session. It’s a small but important thing to do to. Your decision to read what’s on the other side of a link we provide helps support journalism in West Virginia.
West Virginia librarians aren’t the only ones facing challenges. Hat tip to Ogden Newspapers state government reporter Steven Allen Adams for reposting this story out of Idaho on X, the former Twitter.
Adams also has a story on yesterday’s announcement from Gov. Jim Justice and Senate President Craig Blair on the launch of new digital options for West Virginia driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations. So, goodbye to fumbling around for pesky papers after being pulled over.
West Virginia Watch has a nice roundup of the education bills moving through the Legislature by reporter Amelia Ferrell Knisely. So far, they are long on ideology and short on addressing persistent problems.
Following a floor debate on personal freedoms, delegates on Thursday rejected a bill that would have allowed authorities to collect DNA samples from people who were only alleged to have committed a crime. Jeff Jenkins of WVMetroNews has that story here.
Here’s another take on the DNA bill from Henry Culvyhouse of Mountain State Spotlight. He reports that it could have helped crack cold cases and exonerate the wrongfully convicted.
And for the foodies among us, reporter Maria Young has a story in the Charleston Gazette-Mail on two West Virginia chefs named as semifinalists for this year’s James Beard Award in the Best Chef Southeast Category.
Resources:
Know of any bills we should be keeping tabs on? Any events, press conferences, etc., we should know about? Tell us about them in the comments.
And finally, one last reminder — the candidate filing period for the 2024 election cycle ends tomorrow (Saturday) night at midnight. So, if you’re a brave soul hoping to represent your community at the statehouse that’ll be your last chance to enter the race of your choice.
LWVWV has put out a call to members to Make Some Noise in opposition to HB 4806 by contacting members of the House Judiciary Committee, its next stop. HB 4806 targets transgender students for harm in WV schools and conflicts with a 2020 opinion of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.