WEST virginia legislature

2019 regular session

Introduced

House Joint Resolution 15

By Delegate Kump, Paynter, Wilson, and McGeehan

[Introduced January 17, 2019; Referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary]

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia amending section three, article VI thereof, relating to imposing a limit of eight consecutive years that a legislator may serve; numbering and designating such proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the purpose of such proposed amendment.

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two-thirds of the members elected to each house agreeing thereto:

That the question of ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the state at the next general election to be held in the year 2020, which proposed amendment is that section three, article VI thereof be amended, to read as follows.

Article VI. The Legislature.

§3. Senators and Delegates – terms of office.

            Senators shall be elected for the term of four years, and Delegates for the term of two years. The Senators first elevated, shall divide themselves into two classes, one Senator  from every district being assigned to each class; and of these classes, the first to be designated by lot in such a manner as the Senate may determine, shall hold their seats for two years and the second for four years, so that after the first election, one half of the Senators shall be elected biennially. Beginning with the general election in 2020 no Senator or Delegate may serve more than eight consecutive years thereafter.

Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article eleven, chapter three of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, such amendment is hereby numbered “Amendment No. 1” and designated as the “Legislator Term Limit Amendment” and the purpose of the proposed amendment is summarized as follows:  “The purpose of this amendment is to prohibit a Senator or Delegate from serving more than eight consecutive years as a member of the West Virginia Legislature beginning with the 2020 general election.“

NOTE: The purpose of this resolution is to prohibit Senators and Delegates from serving more than eight consecutive years in the Legislature.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.