For all intents and purposes, the 2020 legislative session has already started.
The 2020 West Virginia Legislature doesn’t convene until Jan. 9, but state lawmakers are already at work positioning themselves for the 60-day scramble to get bills passed.
In recent weeks, state senators and delegates across the state have been attending city council, county commission and board of education sessions to learn what’s a priority and what’s not.
West Virginia does not technically allow prefiling of bills in advance, but it does have a special process to facilitate the reintroduction of legislation, which are generally referred to as carry-over bills.
At the end of each session, the Division of Legislative Services gives the lead sponsors a list of his or her bills that failed during the prior session.
The sponsors are asked if they intend to reintroduce any of their bills. Any bill indicated for reintroduction is redrafted and prepared for introduction on the first day of the session.
This year, lawmakers in the House will be met with about 200 bills on the first day of the upcoming session, if last year’s numbers are any indication.
The process to determine carry-over bills in the state Senate is not so easy to ascertain. However, it’s safe to say there will be dozens of them.
Our newspaper recently reported on Delegate Evan Hansen’s plans to reintroduce his Modern Jobs Act, with some revisions, for one.
Other local lawmakers, both Democrats and Republicans, will take advantage of reintroducing carry-over bills in an early start to the uphill battle of getting new laws on the books.
Why is it an uphill battle? Because usually only a small percentage of the bills introduced ever become law.
During this past session, of the 1,823 bills that were introduced the Legislature completed action on 294. About 30 of those were later vetoed by the governor.
Obviously, the process for a bill to become law isn’t a simple or easy matter, and that’s by design.
Each year, many good bills don’t ever make it through the process. Yet, many of the bills pushed unsuccessfully last year, or, not uncommonly, many years, will be back next year.
Of course, any definition of what’s a good or a bad bill is a matter of opinion or politics.
That’s where the public comes in. If you want to have a say in 2020, now is your chance to weigh in on the ground floor.
First, study the issues that concern you, then contact your legislators and give them your input and let us know.
Send letters to the editor (300 words) to opinion@dominionpost.com about what you think ought to be a law.
It’s time you got started, too.
