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HB 4265

Relating to authorizing the Department of Agriculture to promulgate a legislative rule relating to registration forms and tags for registration, taxation, and control of dogs.

2026 Regular Session Introduced by Doug Smith

HB 4265 broadens state rulemaking authority, enabling Agriculture and many agencies to adopt or amend legislative rules, update rule text, and repeal outdated rules.

Chapter 220, Acts, Regular Session, 2026
#legislature--rulemaking
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Bill Summary · HB 4265

Overview

HB 4265 (2026, West Virginia) authorizes miscellaneous state agencies—specifically including the Department of Agriculture and various boards/agencies listed in the act—to promulgate legislative rules. The bill also directs certain entities to repeal current legislative rules and allows rules to be filed, amended, and modified by the Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee (LRMRC) and the Legislature. The enrolled version includes authorizations for numerous departments to adopt or amend rules, with several explicit rule changes requested by the Department of Agriculture.

Purpose and Intent

  • To authorize the Department of Agriculture (and other specified agencies and boards) to promulgate legislative rules (61 CSR series) for specific program areas.
  • To authorize rules as filed, as amended, and as modified by the LRMRC and by the Legislature.
  • To require certain existing legislative rules to be repealed and to authorize the continued use of updated or amended rules.
  • To implement targeted regulatory provisions across a wide range of functions, with emphasis on agricultural and related sectors (e.g., dog registration, apples standards, public markets, dairy, agritourism, hemp/kratom derivatives), as well as numerous professional licensing and regulatory contexts for various boards.

Key Provisions and Changes

  • Authorizes the Department of Agriculture to promulgate legislative rules on:
    • Registration forms and tags for registration, taxation, and control of dogs (dog registration program).
    • Grades and standards for apples.
    • Public markets.
    • Licensing of livestock dealers.
    • Grade A pasteurized milk.
    • Select plant-based derivatives and select plant-based derivative products of hemp and kratom (with specific amendments to measurement terminology in several subsections; see notes below).
    • Agritourism.
    • Exempted dairy farms and milk/milk products processing.
  • In several cases, the bill reflects rules already filed in the State Register and authorizes them as part of the state’s legislative rules, with amendments to meet objections from the LR-MRC.
  • Notable amendments to specific rules for hemp/kratom derivatives:
    • Several textual modifications to terminology and measurements (e.g., replacing “2.0 percent and naturally derived” with “10 milligrams per dose,” adjusting conjunctions, and replacing “percentage” with “milligram,” etc.).
    • Adjusted thresholds and phrasing to align product definitions and regulatory controls with the Department’s intended regulatory framework.
  • Also authorizes the following entities to promulgate legislative rules (as listed in the enrolled act), each related to their respective statutory authority:
    • Board of Architects (registration and fees)
    • Attorney General (third-party dispute mechanisms; fair treatment of crime victims and witnesses; home improvement deception provisions; preneed burial contracts)
    • State Auditor (standards for requisitions for payment)
    • Various professional boards (Barbers and Cosmetologists, Contractor Licensing, Examiners in Counseling, Funeral Service Examiners, Landscape Architects, Medicine, Medical Imaging, Municipal Pensions Oversight Board, Occupational Therapy, Optometry, Osteopathic Medicine, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Psychologists, Public Service Commission, Real Estate, Secretary of State, Senior Services, and Board of Social Work)
  • For several rules, the bill preserves sunset provisions or adds new sunset provisions (e.g., for certain Attorney General rules, with a termination date of August 1, 2036).
  • The act effectively consolidates and streamlines the authority to adopt and update regulatory rules across multiple agencies via legislative rulemaking, while requiring amendments to reflect committee and legislative review.

Who/What is Affected

  • State agencies and boards listed in the act, most notably:
    • Department of Agriculture (primary focus areas listed above)
    • Board of Architects
    • Attorney General
    • State Auditor
    • Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists
    • Contractor Licensing Board
    • Board of Examiners in Counseling
    • Board of Funeral Service Examiners
    • Board of Landscape Architects
    • Board of Medicine
    • Medical Imaging Technologists / Board of Examiners in Medical Imaging
    • Municipal Pensions Oversight Board
    • Board of Occupational Therapy
    • Board of Optometry
    • Board of Osteopathic Medicine
    • Board of Pharmacy
    • Board of Physical Therapy
    • Psychologists
    • Public Service Commission
    • Real Estate Commission
    • Secretary of State
    • Senior Services
    • Board of Social Work
  • State agencies and professionals regulated by these boards, as well as entities subject to licensing, professional disciplinary processes, and standards of professional conduct.

Procedural and Timeline Aspects

  • The act relies on the ongoing framework allowing miscellaneous agencies and boards to promulgate legislative rules under the authority of various code sections (primarily §64-9-1 et seq., and specific enabling statutes for each agency).
  • The rules referenced in the bill were filed in the State Register on various dates in 2025 (and prior), with many amendments to address Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee objections; the bill confirms authorization for those rules as filed or amended.
  • Sunset provisions are introduced for certain Attorney General rules, indicating termination after August 1, 2036, unless extended or renewed.
  • The act became law as Chapter 220, Acts, Regular Session of 2026, with effective date “in effect from passage” (i.e., upon enactment).
  • The legislative process mirrored in the enrolled version shows standard steps: introduction, committee consideration, passage by both houses, governor’s signing, and eventual chapter designation and effective date.

Summary

HB 4265 broadens and formalizes the authority of multiple state agencies to adopt legislative rules, with a notable emphasis on agricultural and food-related regulation, animal control, and product standards, while also addressing a wide range of professional licensing and regulatory regimes. It instructs certain agencies to repeal existing rules while preserving or updating rules via filing, LR-MRC review, and legislative amendments. Specific Department of Agriculture rule areas—dog registration, apples standards, public markets, livestock dealer licensing, Grade A milk, certain hemp/kratom derivatives, agritourism, and exempt dairy farms—are central, but the bill also enables many other boards and agencies to promulgate or modify rules consistent with their statutory authorities. Sunset provisions, amendments to rule text, and adherence to committee objections are recurring features of the rulemaking framework under this act.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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