Del. Jordan Maynor, R-Raleigh, urges his colleagues in the West Virginia House to vote for the Bill house 2719, laws that made companies in the state possible to donate directly to political campaigns and politicians on Thursday, March 13, 2025. (Perry Bennett | West Virginia Legislative Photography)
The West Virginia House of Delegates declined on Thursday an invoice This would have made it possible for companies and companies in the state to donate up to 2,800 US dollars and possibly according to statements directly to political candidates.
With five members absent and do not vote, the body Voted 54-41 Against House 2719. It was the first time in this meeting that a majority of Republicans in the house with Democrats against laws and the first draft law in both chamber was denied this year by a ground vote.
HB 2719 would have removed the language in the state code that banned companies, “member organizations” and companies, to donate directly to political candidates. The Proposed code If every company entered by West Virginia, every company’s secretary of the state would have been allowed to give up to 2,800 US dollars to one candidate per election cycle. The proposed code contained no boundaries on how many companies of a person can donate politically. Due to the legislation, business owners could have given the maximum amount of money to candidates several times by donating their companies to individual donations and political committees.
Those who supported the legislation said that it would raise the transparency for the political giving of the company in the state, since the money given by companies is listed for the first time and published by financial disclosures instead of being referred to by a political action committee or a super -pac (often referred to as “dark money”, since there is no way to see where the money comes from). All funds given by companies should also have met the limits in the state of code.
Del. Jordan Maynor, R-Raleigh, is the deputy chairman of the law committee of the house and sponsor of legislation. While eight legislators spoke on Thursday in HB 2719 on Thursday, Maynor was one of only two legislators who demanded the adoption of the draft law before death.
“The entire unrest we hear how this opens for more money in politics – [corporations] Can do this now, except that there is no transparency with what you are now doing because you are giving big money committees for political actions that are in the dark, ”said Maynor. “This is a transparency calculation … If you go through reports on campaign financing, it shows – because it is limpid – the companies that have given their campaign and that support them.”
But the majority that legislation concluded had profound concerns about how the legislation would give more money to politics, which could buy favor and interest on those who could afford to buy, but that they could not live with the consequences, but would be forced to live with the consequences.
“Exactly in the direction we shouldn’t go in. Nobody at home wants more money in politics, ”said Sean Hornbuckle, D-Cabell from House minority. “We have this fascination for money and greed. What happens is that we do not have elected officers based on merits or what they can do – because it is a luxurious man. That’s all it is. We do not represent people at home as effective because we don’t [elections are] go to the highest bidder. “
Del. Henry Dillon, R-Wayne, said the proposed bill was not the way his voters sent him to Charleston to pass. Even more, he said, it was insulted to approve laws that companies and wealthy people give more of a say in which they are represented for representing companies than the majority of residents who often have difficulty remaining.
“We were sent here to help the average voters in our districts in our districts for the WHO 2,800 US dollars for politics – they cannot even afford to separate from this type of money,” said Dillon. “And yet we will open up new opportunities for people with plenty of resources and practically unlimited resources to influence our elections? … Will that make life better for our voters? ”
Del. Mike Hornby, R-Berkeley, said during the survey on the ground of DEL. Mike Puschkin, D-Kanawha, that originally contained a limit for companies of $ 250 in the invoice. But this upper limit had to be removed from the proposed bill, said Hornby, since “we all have to treat the same” in the campaign financing code.
Hornby – who is the main sponsor of the invoice – is listed by the State Secretary As the incorporator of numerous media And communication Pursue In West Virginia, however, several from compliance or have their registrations from the SOS based on the failure to submit annual reports. He said, while “generally trying to keep out of elections through his business”, he believed that a political candidate should be able to “support a business”.
On the question of Puschkin, who, on the introduction and adoption of this legislation, urges lobby groups, certain companies, a company or someone else, was Hornby’s answer compact.
“Nobody asked,” he said.
They enable our work.
