Senate committee advances bill to create West Virginia Youth Summer Employment and Career Readiness Program

The Senate workforce committee advanced House Bill 5480, which creates the West Virginia Youth Summer Employment and Career Readiness Program for youth aged 14 to 20, provides paid summer work experience through public-private partnerships and requires that participants be paid at least the minimum wage. The committee adopted an amendment adding immunity protections for participating employers and employees (except in cases of malicious purpose) and voted to report the engrossed committee substitute to the full Senate with a recommendation that it pass as amended.

Malia McCann Coles, a Senate intern who explained the bill to the committee, said: "This bill creates the West Virginia Youth Summer Employment and Career Readiness Program, which establishes a summer employment program for youth aged 14 to 20 and provides paid work experience, career exposure, and skill development through public and private partnerships, supporting emerging employment sectors, growing the state workforce, and attracting new business into the state." The bill places the program within the Department of Commerce's Division of Workforce Development, authorizes a special state treasury account, allows private and public grants and donations, and directs the department to coordinate with the Department of Education and county boards.

Delegate Hornbuckle, the bill sponsor, told the committee the measure is designed to be flexible for counties with limited budgets, allowing matching requirements to be met through in-kind contributions and local partnerships. He said the aim is to "get our kids working, and instilling that work ethic," and used McDowell County as an example of where flexibility could matter for local implementation.

The committee debated employer liability. The senior senator from the fourth (S6) offered an amendment proposing that "an employer who's participating in this program and its employees would be immune from civil, a criminal, or an administrative liability associated with employing a minor as introduced from this program. Unless there is malicious purpose involved." Counsel (S5) confirmed the amendment would exempt participating employers and employees from civil, criminal and administrative liability arising from participation unless malicious purpose is shown. The committee discussed wording and the scope of the immunity, then adopted the amendment to the amendment by voice vote.

After adoption of the strike-and-insert amendment and a title amendment explained by counsel, the vice chair moved that the engrossed committee substitute be reported to the full Senate with a recommendation that it do pass as amended; the committee voted in favor by voice vote. The transcript records that the committee did not specify detailed funding amounts in the session record; the presenter said the program is not contemplated to start on general appropriations and that for fiscal years ending June 2627 funding will come from collections, with grants and matching contributions to support placements.

The committee's action advances HB 5480 to the full Senate. Next steps recorded in the committee transcript are reporting the engrossed committee substitute and the title amendment to the full Senate; the House bill and the committee amendments will be considered there.