EDUCATION
This legislative session was a big win for education in West Virginia . The Legislature passed several bills that will have a significant positive impact on students and schools . To begin , HB 3084 involves school choice . Lawmakers promoted educational equity by clarifying the provisions to public charters and providing HOPE Scholarship recipients with the ability to play school sports in HB 2028 . In addition , the Legislature passed the Third Grade Success Act and significant dyslexia legislation in HB 3035 .
HB 3035
By Senator Amy Grady
SENATE : 32-0 � HOUSE : 93-2
This bill establishes a multi-tiered system of support and interventions to promote literacy and numeracy proficiency in early grades . The bill also requires the utilization of instructional strategies based on the science of reading and ensures that training is provided to teachers and support personnel on these evidence-based strategies . In addition , it places assistant teachers and / or aides in every first , second and third grade classroom in the state . States such as Mississippi and Florida have passed similar legislation in the past few years and have seen tremendous growth in their students ’ proficiency , their schools ’ success and their scores on their educational assessment known as NAEP , or the National Assessment of Educational Progress .
The language in the Third Grade Success Act was written with input from education professionals across the country who also contributed to the successful legislation in other states . This piece of legislation is going to have a tremendous impact on student achievement across the state and will be one of those bills we all look back on and celebrate . Supporters of the bill believe this will be one of the most transformative changes in West Virginia ’ s education system that we will see in our lifetime .
Photo by WV Legislative Photography .
HEALTH
Legislative changes to health in the Mountain State include stabilizing PEIA with SB 268 and off-setting additional costs with a $ 2,300 pay raise to public teachers , state police and state employees under SB 423 . The state Department of Health and Human Resources ( DHHR ) is also broken into three agencies under HB 2006 .
SB 268 By Delegate Matt Rohrbach
SENATE : 26-6 � HOUSE : 72-24
SB 268 was the bill to stabilize PEIA . As it was operating , the plan was spending far more than it was taking in , and the provider reimbursement was so poor that a growing number of physicians , hospitals and pharmacies were no longer accepting PEIA . Premiums had not been increased in 12 years . The projections showed a $ 424 million deficit by the 2027 plan year . Thus , the need to act in this session to stabilize the plan was acute .
SB 268 has five main elements to accomplish long-term financial stability . Immediately rebase the plan to the 80 / 20 premium cost-sharing required in state code . Require future payments be made through premiums instead of direct general fund transfers to enable PEIA to benefit from federal and special revenue accounts . The PEIA finance board as a system was given new fiduciary responsibility . A consultant will be engaged to analyze the plan operation and make recommendations for long-term operation changes needed to assure the plan stays stable . Provider reimbursement increases to a minimum of 110 % of Medicare .
HB 2006 By Delegate Matt Rohrbach
SENATE : 33-1 � HOUSE : 95-3
HB 2006 is a piece of legislation that was three years in the making . A similar bill passed in the 2022 regular session but was vetoed .
The reasons for dividing DHHR into three parts are many . It accounts for 40 % of the total expenditures of state government . The various responsibilities of the DHHR impact every West Virginian . As it is currently configured , the DHHR was too large and diverse for any one person to effectively manage . By creating three new departments with more focused missions , supporters believe senior leadership will be able to better manage their tasks . The three departments will be the Department of Health Facilities , the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health . Health Facilities will include the seven hospitals and long-term care facilities operated by the state . Human Services will consist of the bureaus of medical services , social services , child support enforcement , family assistance and behavioral health . Health will consist of public health , EMS , the Chief Medical Examiner , threat preparedness , foster care and an independent office of the inspector general . •
28
WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE