West Virginia House Bill HB2915

West Virginia 2025 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/24/25
• Refer: 2/24/25

Caption

Exempting county school buses from paying the toll fees

Summary

House Bill 2915 would add a new section to West Virginia law to exempt county school buses from paying toll road fees when used in the regular course of a school system’s operations. The bill defines regular use broadly to include transporting students to and from school, taking students to school-related activities such as field trips, after-school events, and sporting events, and driving the bus for maintenance purposes. In practical terms, the measure would relieve county school systems from toll charges on qualifying bus trips over toll roads operated by the West Virginia Parkways Authority. The bill is framed as a narrow transportation cost exemption for public school buses rather than a broader change to toll policy for other vehicles or users.

Impact

The bill would amend the West Virginia Code by adding §17-16A-31 to the article governing the West Virginia Parkways Authority. Its effect would be to create a statutory toll exemption for county school buses, shifting those travel costs away from local school systems and toll operators and potentially reducing toll revenue collected from school-related bus travel. The exemption would apply only to county school buses used in the course of regular school system operations as defined in the bill.

Sentiment

Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes, the measure appears to be presented as a straightforward cost-saving proposal for public education transportation. The stated purpose is limited and practical, suggesting generally favorable intent toward easing operating expenses for county school systems. No contrary positions are documented in the available materials.

Contention

No committee transcripts, recorded votes, or formal opposition are included in the available context, so there is no documented legislative dispute to summarize. Potential points of contention, if raised, would likely involve the loss of toll revenue for the West Virginia Parkways Authority, whether the exemption should extend to other public or private school transportation, and how broadly “regular use” should be interpreted for maintenance trips and school-related travel.