By Joe Severino, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Some lawmakers hope a bill passed this session will begin to identify and quantify food insecurities for West Virginia’s children.
The West Virginia Senate advanced the “Emergency School Food Act” on the final day of the 2022 legislative session, leaving the House with just enough time to concur with senators’ amendments to the bill. The introduced House version placed reporting requirements on county school boards, but the Senate’s changes made it so the reporting provisions are voluntary. As of press time Wednesday, the governor had not signed the measure — House Bill 3073 — into law.
Two of the main supporters of the Emergency School Food Act, Delegates Chad Lovejoy, D-Cabell, and Evan Worrell, R-Cabell, said Wednesday that, while the Senate changed the bill’s provisions from mandatory to optional, they were still excited to see it cross the finish line.
“The core is there,” Lovejoy said…