By Charles Young, The Exponent Telegram
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A bill that could establish an intermediate court of appeals in West Virginia was advanced to second reading during Tuesday’s House of Delegates floor session.
Following the defeat of a tax reform package that included elimination of the state’s property tax on manufacturing inventory and equipment and the defeat of a bill that would have ended state subsidies for greyhound racing, the bill is one of the final opportunities for Republican lawmakers to score a major victory before the end of the legislative session at midnight Saturday.
A vote on passage of the court bill is expected to take place Thursday.
The measure, Senate Bill 275, was passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on Monday with an amendment adding appeals from circuit court criminal cases to the new court’s scope of jurisdiction.
Previous versions of the bill stated the new court would have only dealt with civil suit appeals.
The intermediate court would be created effective July 1, 2021. It would have a Northern District and a Southern District, with each district consisting of three judges. …
