Legislation Details:

UPDATE: 3/27/2024 - HB 5105 was vetoed by Governor Jim Justice on 3/27/2024.  In Governor Justice's veto statement, he cites his reasons for the veto as deferring to the "licensed medical professionals" who claim that the bill "could and likely would result in reduced immunity and harm to West Virginia's kids." NVIC strongly disagrees with those in the medical community who opposed the bill at every stage and yet conveniently derive additional profits from forced vaccination.  These are the same experts who claimed the COVID-19 vaccine prevented infection and transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and supported shutting down our schools and businesses. The Governor also said that he "has always and will always defend our freedoms as West Virginians and Americans." However, defending freedom would mean supporting the right of all individuals and parents on behalf of their children to make informed vaccination choices free from force, coercion, or penalty. West Virginia, along with California, Connecticut, New York, and Maine, are the only states to not provide parents with either a religious exemption, a conscientious/philosophical exemption, or both.

UPDATE: 3/9/2024 - HB 5105 passed the Third Reading in the Senate by a vote of 20 Yeas, 12 Nays, 2 Absent.  The Senate requested the House to concur. The House concurred with the Senate amendment by a vote of 70 Yeas, 29 Nays, 1 Absent, and HB 5105 was sent to the Governor.  March 9, 2024 is the last day of session, so it is important to note that the House does not have time to reject the detrimental Senate amendment and challenge the differences in the House and Senate versions in a conference committee. 

UPDATE: 3/7/2024 - HB 5105 passed the Second Reading in the Senate as amended by a voice vote on 3/7/2024.

UPDATE: 3/6/2024 - HB 5105 was reported "do pass, with amendment" out of the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee on 3/6/2024. The amendment removes the religious exemption added in the House. The bill only guarantees that full time virtual public school students are exempt from vaccine requirements. The amendment also allows for private and parochial schools to elect to develop a policy that exempts the private or parochial school from mandatory vaccination requirements, but the amendment also allows a private or parochial school to choose to maintain the mandatory vaccination requirements of West Virginia Code §16-3-4 (c). Finally, the amendment provides liability protections for private and parochial schools, administrators, employees, board, owners or operators. 

NVIC opposes this amendment because it leaves the vast majority of students in West Virginia with only a medical exemption.  Only students who are willing to give up in person educational opportunities or whose families could afford to pay private school tuition and move to be near a private or parochial school that chooses to adopt a policy of exempting the school from state vaccine requirements will have the option to delay or decline vaccines that are included in school vaccine mandates. This is discriminatory.  NVIC opposes vaccine mandates and supports informed consent to vaccination.

These changes to the bill's provisions necessitate a title change to our bill post from "Creates religious vaccine exemption for all students; eliminates vaccine requirements for private, parochial, & public virtual students with exception" to "Eliminates vaccine requirements for public virtual schools, allows private & parochial schools choice to maintain or exempt from vaccine requirements." 

UPDATE: 3/1/2024 - HB 5105 was referred to the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee on 3/1/2024. 

UPDATE: 2/26/2024 - HB 5105 passed the House 3rd Reading as amended on the House floor by a vote of 57 Yeas, 41 Nays, 2 Absent, on 2/26/2024. View the engrossed version HERE. 

UPDATE: 2/23/2024 - HB 5105 was amended in the House on the 2nd Reading by a vote of 58 Yeas, 37 Nays, 5 Absent, on 2/23/2024. 

The amendment establishes Subsection (l) to create a religious vaccine exemption for all students:

Subsection (l) "Notwithstanding any other provisions in this code, no provision of this section shall apply to any child whose parents or guardians present a letter stating that a child cannot be vaccinated for religious reasons and an exemption from the requirements of this section shall be granted."

NVIC supports this amendment because it create a religious vaccine exemption for all students. This amendment necessitates a title change to our bill post from, "Eliminates vaccine requirements for private, parochial, & public virtual school students with exception to participate in WVSSAC sponsored athletics," to "Creates religious vaccine exemption for all students; eliminates vaccine requirements for private, parochial, & public virtual students with exception."

UPDATE: 2/22/2024 - HB 5105 is eligible for a House floor vote as of 2/22/2024. 

UPDATE: 2/21/2024 - HB 5105 was substituted and passed the House Judiciary Committee on 2/21/2024. 

The Committee Substitute amends West Virginia code §16-3-4, regarding compulsory immunization of school children, information disseminated, offenses, and penalties, to:

exempt private and parochial students from the school immunization requirements;

amend the criteria of Subsection (i) regarding physician penalties for proving a false immunization certificate to be "knowingly and intentionally";

amend Subsection (j) regarding virtual public school students being exempted from the immunization requirements to add the exception for students that participate in West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission sponsored athletics; and 

establish Subsection (k) to remove private or parochial students from being eligible to participate in West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission sponsored athletics unless they meet the immunization requirements. 

Subsection (j) "A child attending virtual public school shall be exempt from the requirements of this section, except if that child participates in West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission sponsored athletics."

Subsection (k) "Any student at a private or parochial school that has not received the immunizations in this section shall not be eligible to participate in West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission sponsored athletics."

NVIC supports the provisions of the substitute that eliminates vaccine requirements for certain students. NVIC cannot support the provisions of the substitute that would forced a student to be vaccinated as a condition to participate in WVSSAC sponsored athletics. Although this is an improvement to HB 5105 and allows students attending virtual public schools to participate in extracurricular and co-curricular activities that are not WVSSAC sponsored athletics, no student should be forced to be vaccinated as a condition to attend school or participate in athletic events. 

These changes to the bill's provisions necessitate a title change to our bill post from "Eliminates vaccine requirements for public virtual school students with exception to participate in extracurricular or co-curricular activities" to "Eliminates vaccine requirements for private, parochial, & public virtual school students with exception to participate in WVSSAC sponsored athletics". 

UPDATE: 2/14/2024 - HB 5105 was referred to the House Judiciary Committee on 2/14/2024. 

UPDATE: 2/14/2024 - HB 5105 was amended and passed the House Health and Human Resources Committee on 2/24/2024. 

The amendment added an exception to Subsection (j) to remove students of virtual public school that participate in public school extracurricular and co-curricular activities from being exempted from the immunization requirements. 

Subsection (j) A child attending virtual public school shall be exempt from the requirements of this section, except if that child participates in public school extracurricular and co-curricular activities.

NVIC cannot support this amendment. NVIC is opposed to all vaccine mandates. No student should be forced to be vaccinated as a condition to attend school or participate in extracurricular or co-curricular activities. This amendment necessitates a title change to our bill post from "Eliminates vaccine requirements for public virtual schools" to "Eliminates vaccine requirements for public virtual school students with exception to participate in extracurricular or co-curricular activities". 

NVIC recommends amending HB 5105, at minimum, to remove the exception that requires students attending virtual public school to be vaccinated in order to participate in extracurricular or co-curricular activities. An even better improvement to this legislation would be to remove vaccine mandates for all school children, not just those attending virtually. 

HB 5105 was introduced and referred to House Health and Human Resources Committee on 1/25/2024. This bill is sponsored by State Delegate Laura Kimble.

HB 5105 eliminates the vaccine requirements for students attending virtual public schools.