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WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
Under
the
Dome
2019 Legislative Session
The 2019 regular session of the West Virginia Legislature was one of the more passionate in recent memory. Despite an
attempt at education reform that resulted in a second teacher strike, as well as verbal disputes and physical altercations that
took place in the Capitol building, West Virginia’s 100 delegates and 34 senators were still able to claim victory by passing
some important pieces of legislation.
In this 2019 legislative review, West Virginia Executive takes a look at just a few of the House bills (HB) and Senate bills
(SB) that were intended to have a major impact on West Virginians and the business community. From eliminating craft beer
regulations and cutting the severance tax to overhauling foster care and public education, the Legislature is moving to put
our people and our businesses first.
SB 529 HB 2010
By Aaron Rote By Del. Jason Harshbarger
SENATE: 33-0 HOUSE: 84-16 SENATE: 33-1 HOUSE: 66-31
During the legislative session, SB 529 was introduced to
lessen some of the regulations that many in the craft beer
industry have been looking to address for several years. One key
component of the bill was the removal of the prior limitations
on size and daily sales of growlers from a maximum of two
gallons per patron per day.
Lawmakers also increased the alcohol cap on beer from 12
percent to 15 percent, allowing breweries to be more flexible
and creative with their creations.
SB 529 included a number of other changes meant to encourage
growth beyond the doors of the state’s breweries. For instance,
it creates a temporary one-day floor extension to an existing
license for certain retailers to provide craft beer events on ad-
jacent spaces and a new special license for one-day charitable
events that will give nonprofits and other organizations addi-
tional options to serve craft beer.
There is a great sense of growth, innovation and enthusiasm
that can now be found in West Virginia’s craft beer scene,
which is why many familiar with the industry found this bill
to be so important. With the signing of SB 529 into law, brew-
eries across the Mountain State now have greater freedom to
produce and sell their products. HB 2010 was drafted to address the state’s foster care crisis.
Prior to this bill, efforts to address the well-being of more than
7,000 children had been made by the West Virginia Department
of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) but were not enough.
The major components of HB 2010 include allowing the
DHHR to contract with managed care organizations to manage
the children’s health care; having a designated official to defend
the rights of the foster children and parents; using performance-
based contracting with placement agencies to place children in
foster homes; conducting a study of kinship care; creating a pro-
tection for parents in medically assisted substance abuse treat-
ment from termination of parental rights solely because of that
situation; and moving to a three-year foster home assessment.
The bill also attempts to manage and track the children’s
health services and medical records because those records have
not always followed them through home transitions.
HB 2010 requires the DHHR to change its rules so parents
can treat foster children more like they would treat their biolog-
ical children, which ensures they have more normal childhood
experiences. The bill’s supporters hope this will enact common-
sense reform that removes the barriers for families who want
to provide loving homes for the state’s children.
CRAFT BEER REFORM
FOSTER CARE
WWW.WVEXECUTIVE.COM
SPRING 2019
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