CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The House of Delegates Finance Committee ran through several Senate bills during a Tuesday afternoon meeting, sending the bills to the House floor in hopes of getting final approval on the legislation before the end of the legislative session Saturday night.
Among the bills to pass:
— Senate Bill 533would eliminate the 1-cent pop tax on July 1. 2024. The legislation removes the tax and sends funding from the state Insurance Premium Tax to the West Virginia University School of Medicine, the Marshall School of Medicine and the West Virginia Osteopathic School of Medicine. WVU’s college would receive $14 million, Marshall University’s school would get $5.5 million, and the West Virginia Osteopathic School of Medicine would receive $3.9 million.
— Senate Bill 2 would base unemployment benefits on whether the state’s monthly unemployment rate is higher or lower. The House Finance Committee did change the minimum weeks of benefits from 12 to 14 weeks.
— Senate Bill 172 would raise pay for county elected officials. The committee eliminated a change the House Government Organization Committee made to the bill to increase the pay of constitutional officers.
The committee also approved Senate Bill 274 that raises PEIA reimbursement rates for some of the state’s largest hospitals. The committee did amend the bill before sending it to the floor for further consideration.