CHARLESTON — An amendment to allow lawmakers to have more oversight of the judicial branch’s budget has been overwhelmingly approved by voters.
The amendment would allow the Legislature to reduce the budget of the state judiciary by up to 15 percent.
The judiciary budget has been about $140 million each of the past few years.
West Virginia has been unique among states in allowing the judiciary to control its finances independently of the legislative branch. That has been a separation of powers issue in West Virginia.
The Legislature has long talked about gaining more oversight of the judiciary budget, but momentum picked up in the past year.
Controversy broke out over renovation costs for state Senate offices. Additional controversies followed about justices’ use of state vehicles for private travel, as well as working lunches ordered from upscale restaurants.
Last month, most justices on the current version of the state Supreme Court voted in favor of supporting the amendment.
Amendment Two would also require the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals to appear before the legislature to be heard and answer questions concerning the budget of the state judiciary if requested by either chamber of the legislature.
It would also explicitly allow the chief justice to appear at hearings voluntarily.
