SB 549 West Virginia Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Phasing in increase in daily rate of juror pay

SB 549 would increase the daily payment for jurors in West Virginia from a current range of $15 to $40 per day to a new range of $40 to $100 per day. This change applies to both trial jurors (petit jurors) and grand jurors serving on court cases. The bill replaces the previous minimum of $15 with a new minimum of $40 and raises the maximum from $40 to $100. The reimbursement remains determined by the court and paid from the state treasury, but ensures jurors receive at least $40 per day.

Issues: ✓ Budget & Taxes

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Feb 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 21, 2026 Last action Feb 20, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Version → Committee Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill was amended to change its purpose from a simple pay increase to a phased implementation of higher juror compensation. The Committee Substitute version adds specific effective dates for the pay increases, spreading the changes over two years rather than implementing them all at once. This approach allows the legislature to monitor the impact of the changes and adjust as needed.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include a phased implementation timeline, with different effective dates for different pay levels.

TIMELINE

Added specific effective dates for the juror pay increases, with the first phase taking effect July 1, 2026, and the full increase taking effect July 1, 2027.

FISCAL

Changed the juror pay rate structure from a single increase from $40 to $100 per day to a phased approach starting at $25-$70 in 2026, then increasing to $40-$100 in 2027.

TECHNICAL

Updated the bill's purpose statement to reflect the phased implementation approach rather than a simple pay increase.

Added new sponsors to the bill (Morris, Queen, and Barnhart) and changed the introduction date from January 21, 2026 to February 16, 2006 with a committee report date.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 19, 2026

How they voted

32–0

Passed · 1 other

Total votes 33

Feb 19, 2026

D Democratic2

2 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican31

30 Yea 1

96% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 20, 2026

Committee

To House Finance

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Committee

To Finance

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Introduced

Introduced in House

lower

Feb 19, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed Senate (Roll No. 146)

upper

Feb 16, 2026

Upper · Passed

Committee substitute reported

upper

Jan 21, 2026

Introduced

Introduced in Senate

upper

Jan 21, 2026

Committee

To Finance

upper

1 primary · 14 co-sponsors