By David Beard, The Dominion Post
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Senate Finance Committee took just 30 minutes Friday morning to review and approve the Intermediate Court of Appeals bill – SB 275.
The panel made a few changes from what came over from Judiciary – the most notable being a raise in the judges’ pay to reflect pay raises for other judges approved last year.
The new court would begin work on July 1, 2022. It would have northern and southern districts with three judges each, paid $142,500 per year. The bill originally put the pay at $130,000, but last year’s SB 597 raised circuit judge pay, effective July 1, 2022, at $138,600 and Supreme Court justice pay at $149,600; the change keeps the new judges’ pay in the middle.
Judges will serve 12-year terms. The six judges would initially be appointed by the governor to terms of two, four and six years, and elected thereafter. This reflects a change from the Judiciary version that had different staggered terms…
To read more: https://www.dominionpost.com/2021/02/19/senate-finance-approves-intermediate-court-bill-in-quick-meeting/