House Bill 3469 amends the West Virginia State Police pay statute to provide an additional annual salary increase of $3,000 for members of the State Police who are assigned and serving in field duty, beginning July 1, 2025. The bill keeps the existing rank-based salary schedule in place, including pay for supervisory ranks, nonsupervisory field ranks, administrative support specialists, and forensic laboratory classifications, while layering the new field-duty increase on top of the base salary schedule.
The bill also preserves the statute’s existing provisions on length-of-service increases, supplemental pay for eligible members working beyond the standard pay period, bonding requirements, cadet training repayment obligations, and military leave. It does not change the general structure of the State Police compensation system, but it increases compensation specifically for field-duty personnel, who are the troopers and other members assigned to operational field work.
Impact
The bill would directly amend §15-2-5 of the West Virginia Code, increasing compensation for a defined subset of State Police personnel and thereby raising state payroll obligations beginning in fiscal year 2026. Its practical effect is to increase base annual pay for eligible field-duty members by $3,000 in addition to existing salary schedules and service-step increases, while leaving administrative and forensic classifications unchanged except as already provided under current law. The measure affects the State Police, the state budget, and the pay structure for sworn law-enforcement personnel.
Sentiment
The available context suggests generally favorable sentiment, as the bill is framed as a straightforward pay raise for state troopers and field-duty personnel. The bill text and caption emphasize compensation for officers performing field work, and there are no recorded committee transcripts or votes showing opposition or amendment debate. Because no voting history or discussion excerpts are provided, the record does not show any formal controversy, but the proposal appears to be presented as a targeted salary adjustment rather than a broader policy change.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential areas of debate, if raised, would likely concern the fiscal cost of the raise, whether the increase should apply only to field-duty members rather than all State Police employees, and whether the existing salary schedule already adequately compensates troopers. The bill’s narrow focus on field-duty personnel could also prompt questions about equity between sworn ranks, administrative staff, and forensic employees, but no participant is identified in the record as raising those concerns.
Making a supplementary appropriation to the Department of Human Services, Bureau for Medical Services – Policy and Programming and State Board of Education – State Department of Education
Expiring funds to the unappropriated surplus balance in the State Fund, General Revenue, from the Department Revenue, State Budget Office, PEIA Rainy Day Fund