Under the proposed new rules, public hearings would no longer be an option. Instead, a public comment period would be built into a revamped committee process.
by Sarah Elbeshbishi
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West Virginians would no longer be guaranteed the right to public hearings on legislation under new rules proposed by the House of Delegates leader last week.
After House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, announced the proposed rules, citizens and advocates raised concerns about how the new process would limit public participation.
“It’s essentially doing away with public hearings,” said Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, adding that if House Republicans want the new process to “preserve public hearings” then more information needs to be provided.
“There’s a lot of details to work out, so it’s not just subject to the whim of the committee chair,” Hansen said.
Here’s what you need to know:
Under current rules, once a bill is assigned to a House committee, citizens can submit a written request for a public hearing, and the House has to hold one.
For example, last year, a public hearing on the bill that would’ve opened up teachers and public librarians to criminal liability for displaying or disseminating “obscene matter” was held nearly three weeks before the legislation landed on the House Judiciary Committee’s agenda.
The rules require an announcement on the House floor and a notice posted on the Legislature’s website at least two days before the hearing. This gives people time to learn about the hearing, spread the word and make arrangements to travel to the Capitol.
On January 24, about 28 people, both for and against holding librarians and teachers criminally liable, came to the Capitol to share their views on the proposed legislation.
“Public hearings just feel like a time-honored tradition of democracy in the House chamber, when literally anyone from the public can speak into a microphone at a podium on the House floor, and at no other point is that true in the legislative process,” said Lida Shepherd, director of the West Virginia Economic Justice Project.
The West Virginia Senate’s rules have no provision for public hearings on legislation.
The revamped committee process
Under the proposed rules, there is no option for a public hearing on the House floor. Instead, the public will have to weigh in on legislation during the first day a bill is considered by a committee. The new rules layout a procedure where committees deliberate on a bill over three days, one to introduce and learn more about the bill and two more to amend, discuss and vote on it
In that three-day process, the first day will be dedicated to examining an introduced bill and hearing from its sponsor. It’s also when the committee will be taking “testimony.”
However, there is no guarantee that “testimony” would mean any member of the public would be able to comment, according to House Communications Director Ann Ali, since it would be up to the discretion of the committee chair.
The new rules don’t require committee agendas to be posted with advanced notice to the public as is currently required when a public hearing is called. Typically agendas are posted a day in advance and can be updated or changed at the last minute, an issue critics raised.
So, the question is: How will West Virginians know a bill they want to weigh in on is being considered in enough time for them to do so?
When asked how public participation will work with no required advance notice, Hanshaw said: “We’re thinking about that.”
But he said House leadership would be unlikely to propose a deadline for agendas.
“We’re never going to eliminate our own ability to move forward when we need to, but the overall goal here is greater engagement with interest groups, with citizens, with bill sponsors, with everybody who has a hand on the process so that we end up with more informed input,” he said.
The new rules will also allow citizens to submit their comments to a committee in writing, offering an alternative option for those unable to attend meetings. Those comments will be logged into the official committee record. However, the protocol for how to do that in a timely fashion is also not spelled out in the proposed rules.
For now, these changes are proposals. The House still needs to vote on the new rules package. The session begins on Feb. 12.
