Granting municipal fire marshals authority to assist in lawful execution of law-enforcement officer's official duties
This bill grants municipal fire marshals in West Virginia the authority to assist law enforcement officers in carrying out their official duties. It allows fire marshals to arrest individuals who disobey lawful orders at fire scenes, violate arson or explosive offense prohibitions, obstruct a fire marshal, or fail to obey lawful commands, provided they receive required law enforcement training. The legislation also permits fire marshals to file criminal complaints to obtain arrest warrants and clarifies that assistance to federal law enforcement is subject to specific limitations. Additionally, fire marshals may help other law enforcement officers execute their duties when requested, but must work under the direct supervision of the requesting officer.
Bill status
passed
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Jan 2026
Senate Passage
Jan 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Governor
Introduced Jan 16, 2026
Last action Jan 30, 2026
Floor votes · Senate Jan 29, 2026
How they voted
33–0
Passed
Total votes 33
Jan 29, 2026
D
Democratic2
100% Yea
R
Republican31
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
16
Key actions
2
Committee
4
Jan 30, 2026
Committee
To House Government Organization
lower
Jan 30, 2026
Committee
To Government Organization then Judiciary
lower
Jan 30, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in House
lower
Jan 29, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed Senate (Roll No. 23)
upper
Jan 23, 2026
Upper · Passed
Reported do pass
upper
Jan 16, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
upper
Jan 16, 2026
Committee
To Government Organization
upper
1 primary · 3 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Vince Deeds
RRepublican
Co
Bill Hamilton
RRepublican
Co
Mike Woelfel
DDemocratic
Co
Patricia Rucker
RRepublican
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