West Virginia Senate Bill SB334

West Virginia 2025 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/13/25
• Refer: 2/13/25

Caption

Office of Inspector General rule relating to behavioral health centers licensure

Summary

SB 334 authorizes the Office of Inspector General to promulgate a legislative rule governing Behavioral Health Centers Licensure. The bill does not create a new licensing program in statute; instead, it approves a previously filed and revised administrative rule, identified as 71 CSR 25, after it was modified to address objections from the Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee. In practical terms, the measure gives legal effect to the rulemaking framework the Office of Inspector General intends to use for regulating behavioral health centers in West Virginia. The bill is a standard legislative rule authorization bill, meaning its main function is to allow the agency rule to take effect and guide licensure requirements, oversight, and compliance for behavioral health providers.

Impact

The bill amends and reenacts §64-5B-1 of the West Virginia Code to authorize a specific legislative rule by the Office of Inspector General. Its impact is limited to validating the agency’s behavioral health centers licensure rule, thereby affecting the regulatory standards that apply to behavioral health facilities, operators, and applicants seeking licensure under state law.

Sentiment

The available record suggests a routine and likely procedural measure rather than a controversial policy change. There are no recorded committee transcripts or votes indicating opposition or debate, and the bill appears to have been introduced as part of the normal legislative rule approval process. The overall sentiment is best characterized as neutral to supportive of administrative regulation of behavioral health centers.

Contention

No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Any potential concerns would likely center on the substance of the underlying licensure rule itself—such as compliance burdens, facility standards, or the scope of regulatory authority—but those issues are not reflected in the available transcripts or voting history. Because the bill only authorizes the rule, the main question is whether lawmakers were satisfied that the revised rule addressed prior objections from the Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee.