WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
2025 REGULAR SESSION
House Bill 2876
By Delegates Horst, Dean, Crouse, Cooper, DeVault, Mallow, Hornby, Brooks, Maynor, Masters, and Jeffries
[Introduced February 24, 2025; referred to the Committee on Government Organization]
A BILL to amend and reenact §20-1-16 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to increasing the number of members on the Natural Resources Commission and specifying that they be wildlife biologists.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
## ARTICLE 1. Organization and Administration.
(a) The Natural Resources Commission, created and established by §20-1-3 of this code, shall be a public benefit corporation and as such may sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, contract and be contracted with, and have and use a common seal. It shall be a commission advisory to the director and to the Division of Natural Resources. The commission shall be composed of seven members, known as commissioners, one from each division of natural resources district and the remainder from the state at large, and shall be appointed to provide the broadest geographic distribution possible so that each commissioner shall attend the division sectional meetings established in §20-1-7(6) of this code within his or her respective district.
(b) The Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint the seven members for the following terms beginning July 1, 2021:
(1) Three for a term of four years;
(2) Two for a term of three years; and
(3) Two for a term of two years.
(4) Successors to appointed members whose terms expire shall be appointed for terms of four years. Any commissioner whose term has expired shall serve until his or her successor has been appointed. An appointed commissioner may not serve more than two consecutive terms. Vacancies shall be filled for any unexpired term. Appointment to fill a vacancy shall not be considered as one of two full terms. Any commissioner who has served two or more consecutive terms immediately preceding the effective date of this section shall not be excluded from consideration for initial appointment under this section.
(c) The members of the commission shall be citizens and residents of the state, and shall be selected with special emphasis on his or her interest in the conservation of the natural resources of the state. No member of the commission shall be a candidate for or hold any public office other than that of member of the commission; nor shall he or she be a member of any committee of a political party. In case a member becomes a candidate for or accepts appointment to any public office or political party committee, his or her position as member of the commission shall be immediately vacated. The Director of the Division of Natural Resources may submit recommendations to the Governor for the appointment of the commissioners.
(d) Commissioners are not entitled to compensation for services performed for the commission, but may be reimbursed by the Division of Natural Resources for actual and necessary expenses incurred for each day in which he or she is engaged in the discharge of official duties, the actual expenses not to exceed the amount paid similar reimbursement to members of the Legislature.
(e) In addition to the members appointed in 2021, there shall be four additional members appointed to the commission in 2025. These new members shall be Division of Natural Resources staff wildlife biologists and each shall be focused on the following:
(1) One biologist will focus on deer;
(2) One biologist will focus on bears;
(3) One biologist will focus on turkeys; and
(4) One biologist will focus on fisheries.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to increase the number of members on the Natural Resources Commission and specify that they be wildlife biologists.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.