Summary of Bill: HCR 27 (2026) – West Virginia
Purpose and Intent
- House Concurrent Resolution 27 requests a comprehensive legislative study of disaster recovery and flood resiliency funding, coordination, statutory compliance, and disaster case management capacity within West Virginia.
- The resolution acknowledges the existence of the State Resiliency Office and State Resiliency Officer, their roles, and broad authority to manage disaster recovery, flood mitigation, hazard mitigation, and resiliency planning.
- It aims to ensure West Virginia maximizes funding drawdown, strengthens internal recovery capacity, reduces reliance on external entities when appropriate, and accelerates recovery outcomes for residents.
- The study also considers potential federal policy or FEMA structural changes and how those might affect the state’s funding and administration.
Key Provisions Studied
The resolution directs a comprehensive study with two primary components and related analyses:
1) Comprehensive study of disaster recovery and flood resiliency funding and coordination
- Inventory of funding sources: Identify all federal, state, and other funding sources (competitive, formula, discretionary) for flood resiliency, hazard mitigation, disaster recovery, and long-term community resilience.
- Funding history and participation: Analyze funds West Virginia has applied for, been awarded, drawn down, declined, or not pursued over the past ten years, including reasons for non-participation or non-deposit into the Disaster Recovery Trust Fund or Flood Resiliency Trust Fund.
- Compliance with statutes: Assess whether funds eligible for administration by the State Resiliency Office are deposited, administered, and disbursed in accordance with statutory requirements under §§29-31-1 et seq.
- Leadership and authority: Evaluate whether the State Resiliency Officer is fully exercising the statutory authority to lead, coordinate, and direct recovery and resiliency efforts across relevant state agencies.
- Interagency coordination: Review how well the State Resiliency Office coordinates with other departments, divisions, and agencies for research, planning, and implementation support.
- Forward-looking FEMA/federal context: Analyze anticipated federal policy or structural changes within FEMA and related agencies and their projected impact on WV’s funding, planning requirements, and administration.
- Recommendations: Provide statutory, administrative, or structural reforms needed to ensure the State Resiliency Officer is the clear lead for statewide disaster recovery and resiliency efforts as contemplated in code.
2) Feasibility study on cross-training WVEMD and Commerce disaster case management
- Cross-training proposal: Determine whether personnel in the West Virginia Emergency Management Division (WVEMD) and the Community Outreach and Development Division of the Department of Commerce should receive cross-training as disaster case managers to support response and long-term recovery during declared emergencies.
- Cost analysis: Project costs for mandatory disaster case management training, including initial certification, ongoing continuing education, and administrative costs.
- Potential savings: Evaluate cost savings from reduced reliance on nonprofits, contractors, and third-party recovery entities.
- Operational feasibility: Assess feasibility of assigning disaster case management responsibilities to existing personnel during emergencies.
- Impact on outcomes: Consider effects on speed, coordination, and overall effectiveness of recovery efforts; whether cross-training would improve timeliness and efficiency.
- Staffing and funding: Recommend staffing models, training standards, funding mechanisms, and performance measures needed for implementation.
- Comparative analysis: Compare with disaster case management models in other states; estimate return on investment.
- Legislative recommendations: Advise on whether adopting such a model would strengthen statewide disaster resilience and recovery capacity.
Affected Parties and Entities
- State Resiliency Office and State Resiliency Officer (primary focus)
- WV Emergency Management Division (WVEMD)
- Community Outreach and Development Division (within the WV Department of Commerce)
- Other state agencies involved in disaster recovery, hazard mitigation, and resiliency planning
- Legislative committees responsible for flood resiliency, disaster recovery, and related budgets
- Statewide partners, including flood resiliency and disaster recovery collaborative partners, subject-matter experts, and intergovernmental entities
Procedural and Timeline Aspects
- Status: Introduced March 3, 2026; referred to the House Rules Committee.
- Nature of instrument: A concurrent resolution directing a legislative study rather than immediately changing law.
- Output expectations: Findings, analyses, and recommendations to be reported to appropriate legislative committees, accompanied by proposed statutory or budgetary changes.
- Use of resources: The Legislature may utilize existing partners and experts to conduct the study.
Potential Impact
- If adopted, the bill would spur a comprehensive review of funding streams, compliance, and leadership of disaster recovery activities in West Virginia.
- Could lead to reforms to strengthen centralized leadership (State Resiliency Officer) and improve efficiency, transparency, and compliance in use of disaster-related funds.
- Might result in policy changes, administrative adjustments, or budget allocations to implement cross-training for disaster case management, potentially altering workforce development and interagency collaboration.
- Provides a framework for proactive planning amid evolving federal FEMA policies and funding structures.
Note: This is a summary of the bill’s stated purpose, scope, and potential effects based on the introduced text. It does not reflect enacted law or final legislative decisions.
