Bill Text: WV HB2971 | 2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requiring the Department of Commerce to conduct a feasibility study for potential lakes to be built in West Virginia
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-08 - To House Government Organization [HB2971 Detail]
Download: West_Virginia-2021-HB2971-Introduced.html
WEST virginia legislature
2021 regular session
Introduced
House Bill 2971
By Delegate Higginbotham
[Introduced March 08, 2021; Referred to the Committee on Government Organization]
A BILL to amend and reenact §5B-1B-1, §5B-1B-2, and §5B-1B-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to expanding the West Virginia Lake Development Study Commission beyond the southern region of the state; providing legislative findings; and expanding the number of members on the commission.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
aRTICLE 1b. sOUTHERN
WEST VIRGINIA LAKE DEVELOPMENT STUDY COMMISSION.
§5B-1B-1. Southern
West Virginia Lake Development Study Commission Act.
This article shall be known
as the “Southern West Virginia Lake Development Study Commission Act.”
§5B-1B-2. Legislative findings.
(a) The Legislature finds
that the southern coalfields of West Virginia, long one of the most
productive coal producing areas of the world, having provided untold millions
of dollars to the state economy, and having been the financial backbone of the
state’s economy for over a century, is now in the midst of a long decline in
coal production and population, and because of rugged terrain and remoteness
from surrounding regions, suffers from high unemployment and deteriorating
infrastructure and economic base, and requires innovative and alternative
approaches to revitalization are needed throughout West Virginia; and
therefore demands and that the Legislature must look at
innovative ideas and alternatives for new industries and businesses that
provide sustainable long term development for southern West Virginia.
(b) The natural beauty of
the mountainous regions, now popular with outdoor enthusiasts for its Hatfield
McCoy Trail System trail systems, would be an ideal location for a
large recreational lake or lakes, constructed with hundreds of miles of lake
front property, tens of thousands of acres of lake surface, near a four lane
highway and situated near large tracts of developable property, with carefully
considered design and development, could create a new and exciting recreational
area of the state, and provide a myriad of opportunities for further
development and with creative initiative could revitalize this area of our
state. Such a proposal is worthy of careful study and marshalling the forces of
our state and federal governments to thoroughly evaluate and consider this
development, maximizing the design and use of a lake or lake system to provide
a variety of benefits, potentially including hydro-electric generation, resort
developments, housing, and economic opportunities that would create diversity
and renewal to this long neglected and deserving area of our state throughout
our state.
§5B-1B-3. Commission created; undertake study; report to the Legislature.
(a) There is hereby created
the Southern West Virginia Lake Development Study Commission within the
West Virginia Development Office. The commission shall consist of the following
members:
(1) The president of the West Virginia Economic Development Council, who will serve as chair of the commission;
(2) Six Fifty-five
members designated by each of the county commissions of Boone, Logan,
McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, and Wyoming Counties for the counties in West
Virginia;
(3) One member representing the Department of Environmental Protection, to be appointed by the Governor;
(4) One member representing the Division of Natural Resources, to be appointed by the Governor;
(5) One member representing and having expertise in each of the following fields, to be appointed by the Governor:
(A) Geology;
(B) Land use planning;
(C) Law;
(D) Natural resource management;
(E) Tourism development;
(F) Public recreation;
(G) Hydrology; and
(H) Ecology; and
(6) Six Fifty-five citizen
members representing Boone, Logan, McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, and Wyoming each
county to be appointed by the Governor.
(b) The West Virginia
University Bureau of Business and Economic Research and the Marshall University
Center for Business and Economic Research shall assist the commission by
undertaking the study of topics as directed by this section and by the
commission. Working with the commission, the two research groups shall
investigate lake developments across the region and country to identify what
makes large lake developments successful, types of unique amenities and
development sites that would promote economic growth, alternative uses for the
lake and its resources in power generation, regional resource preservation and integration,
enhancement of the Hatfield and McCoy ATV Trail System trail systems,
and other outdoor recreational opportunities.
(c) The commission shall oversee studies that evaluate where a lake can be located to maximize economic benefits and assess environmental impacts, property ownership assessment and purchasing costs, impacts to mineral ownership and development impacts, and other issues as identified by the commission. The commission is empowered to form specialized committees of experts in various fields of law, science, economic development, geological, mineral, and natural resources to make recommendations and provide expertise in their respective fields regarding viability and implications of lake construction, road location, and resource preservation.
(d) The commission is directed to undertake the inclusion of federal resources for assistance in the study of the feasibility and implementation recommendations. The commission shall pursue federal funding for undertaking the study and the subsequent construction of this project upon the finding of viability of the study project.
(e) The commission may call upon other officers, departments, and agencies of state government to assist in its investigation. Upon the request of the commission, the Attorney General of the state shall render legal research and analysis on legal issues associated with developing recommendations for lawful land development construction and compliance with state and federal laws associated with land acquisition and lake construction, to the commission.
(f) All actual and necessary travel expenses of the members of the commission shall be reimbursed by the member’s employing agency. All other expenses incurred by the commission shall be paid by the Development Office.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to expand the West Virginia Lake Development Study Commission beyond the southern region of the state; provide legislative findings; and expand the number of members on the commission.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
