Latest news with #OfficeofEqualOpportunity
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
WV governor signs bills eliminating Equal Opportunity office, exempting some teens from work permits
The West Virginia Capitol in Charleston, (West Virginia Legislative Photography) Gov. Patrick Morrisey has signed dozens of Republican-backed bills into law, including measures officially eliminating the state's Office of Equal Opportunity and rolling back work permit requirements for some teenagers. The bills were among 73 measures signed by Morrisey April 25 ahead of the governor's bill signing deadline by the end of the day Wednesday. In total, the governor has signed 161 bills, and on Monday, Morrisey said in a post on social media platform X that another 48 bills will be signed and shared in the coming days. 'The final 40 bills are under close review, as we continue to research them and see whether there are adequate arguments to approve these bills to determine whether they should become law,' Morrisey wrote. 'For the future, folks should know that if your bill costs taxpayers money and you haven't provided an offset (a saver) for your proposed program, the odds of your initiative getting approved will be slim,' he continued. Morrisey approved Senate Bill 837, sponsored by Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, that will formally eliminate the state's Office of Equal Opportunity by repealing its mandate in state code. The office was tasked with complying with federal disability rights and investigated discrimination and harassment claims from public employees. While vetting the bills, members of the House of Delegates learned that the OEO seemed to already be gone without lawmakers' required approval. The office doesn't have any employees or a website. Lawmakers opted to keep the office's director position within the Division of Personnel, though the position is currently vacant. Rucker said the bill was an effort to streamline state government since the OEO's work was already being done by the Division of Personnel. Morrisey also signed another measure sponsored by Rucker that will terminate the 'Employee Suggestion Award Board' by terminating five sections of code, including a program that provides cash or honorary awards to state employees whose adopted suggestions result in substantial savings or improvement in state operations. 'We heard that this is not really helping the state. We were very hopeful when this got passed years ago that employees would be able to give us ideas that would really significantly find waste and we could reduce cost to the state. But that is not what has happened,' Rucker said during bill debate March 20 in the Senate. 'Unfortunately, It has been years since there's been a single suggestion.' Rucker said they encouraged state agencies to still accept suggestions from employees regarding cost savings. The governor signed Senate Bill 427 that will roll back work permit requirements for 14- and 15-year olds in West Virginia. The bill is sponsored by Sen. Rupie Phillips, R-Logan. Current state law requires 14- and 15-year-olds who want to work to get a permit from their school superintendent; the new law, which goes into effect in July, no longer requires that permit. Employers seeking to hire the teenagers will still be required to obtain an age certificate verifying the child's age from the state Division of Labor and the written consent of the child's parent or guardian. The age certificate would include the child's age, name and date of birth, as well as information about the job they're seeking, among other things. The governor still hasn't signed off on a number of high-profile Republican-backed measures from this year's legislative session, including a bill tightening the state's already-strict ban on gender-affirming care for minors and a measure requiring school employees to alert parents when a child requests to be referred to by a different name or pronouns that are different from the student's biological sex. While Morrisey issued an executive order eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs in state government, he hasn't yet signed a bill that would codify that order. The measure is facing a potential legal challenge after the Senate's Democratic members said the bill was not legally passed on the final night of session because of a 'series of procedural irregularities.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmakers consider dismantling WV Office of Equal Opportunity, but it appears to already be gone
The Lincoln Walks at Midnight Statue sits in front of the West Virginia state Capitol building in Charleston, (Lexi Browning | West Virginia Watch) Lawmakers are considering dismantling the state's Office of Equal Opportunity for the sake of 'government efficiency.' But the office, which works to protect West Virginians from discrimination, appears to already be gone. The Senate approved a three-sentence bill March 29 that would repeal a section of state code mandating the state's Office of Equal Opportunity. The work — including complying with federal disability rights and anti-discrimination laws — is already being carried out by the state's Division of Personnel, according to bill sponsor, Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson. It wasn't until the members of the House Committee on Government Organization vetted the bill Thursday that it was revealed the office was already likely disbanded, possibly violating state code by not having lawmakers' required approval. A website for the office is now offline. State code requires that the Office of Equal Opportunity have a coordinator; the office's two employees have been moved elsewhere in state government. Sheryl Webb, director of the Division of Personnel, declined to tell House committee members who had directed the division to begin dismantling the office, saying she was fulfilling what had been requested. When Del. Jonathan Kyle, R-Randolph, pressed for an answer, Webb didn't respond. Kyle responded, 'You don't throw anybody under the bus, I understand. But this is where we are in state government, with people doing whatever they want to do, and that's, frankly, unacceptable.' A spokesperson for Gov. Patrick Morrisey did not respond to a question about whether the governor had directed the change. On Friday, Del. Tristan Leavitt, R-Kanahwa, who serves on the House Government Organization Committee, said that further research led him to believe that nothing was done in violation of state code. 'This office continues to be in place, the duties continue to be performed within the Division of Personnel,' Leavitt said. 'The substantive work that that office does, which is really important work, all of that is still moving forward in a way that's in compliance. So, for me, that's very reassuring to know,' Leavitt said. Kyle said on Friday that he believed that the situation in committee was a misunderstanding and concurred with Leavitt's comments. Del. Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, who is also on the committee, said she still thinks that administrators 'moved those functionalities around illegally.' 'They can't just dismantle an office that requires the Legislature,' she said. 'During the presentation, they mentioned that, 'They' told us to go ahead and move everything.' We couldn't get a clear cut answer, whether that was the secretary of administration, or whether that was the governor's office themselves.' Robert Paulson, general counsel for the Department of Administration, maintained that the Office of Equal Opportunity is 'not eliminated' with others performing those duties. He told lawmakers that the department is in the process of naming a coordinator. He wasn't sure who made the call to make the changes. Rucker said she wasn't aware of the changes to the Office of Equal Opportunity. Webb said the change was partially spurred by Morrisey's executive order mandating that government agencies find efficiencies and eliminate waste. Eliminating the Office of Equal Opportunity would save $125,000 in salaries plus $41,250 in benefits, she said. 'We were reviewing how to create efficiencies, this was one of the things that was looked at because of the duplicative nature and the additional cost to it,' Webb said. Young said it was also likely a result of Morrisey's ban on diversity, equity and inclusion practices and policies in state government. Lawmakers created the Office of Equal Opportunity in 2022. A report from the state's Office of the Legislative Auditor earlier this year said that the office was 'needed to facilitate compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws and to minimize liability costs to the state from violations of such laws.' 'However, further progress is needed in developing a statewide and uniform program,' the report said. Despite questions about how the office was eliminated, both Young and Leavitt believed that the state could carry out its functions of complying with federal laws and protecting West Virginians from discrimination. The Division of Personnel already offers equal rights education courses and training to state agencies, according to Webb. 'They're important laws, and I think both the testimony we heard in committee and everything I've learned since indicates that they are prioritizing those and doing everything they can to encourage the entire state government to be aware of the law and to comply with it as fully as possible,' Leavitt said. Young emphasized that state code mandates that West Virginia have this office until lawmakers approve changes. 'It is very concerning and definitely does not follow state code,' she said. 'I do believe it will probably be debated on the floor, because we still have a lot of questions.' The legislative session adjourns April 12. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
