SB 65 West Virginia Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Removing persons who perform drywall services from definition of “contractor” in Contractor Licensing Act

Senate Bill 65 amends West Virginia's Contractor Licensing Act to explicitly exclude drywall installers from the definition of "contractor." Currently, Section 30-42-3(d)(6) already exempts "persons who perform landscaping, drywall installation and related services," but this bill formally clarifies that exemption to prevent ambiguity. The change directly affects drywall installers, who will no longer need a contractor license for their work. This is a procedural clarification of existing law, not a new policy requiring additional licensing or regulation for drywall services.
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 14, 2026 Last action Feb 23, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Version Committee Substitute · 3 edits
MINOR
The Committee Substitute version of SB 65 narrows the exemption from contractor licensing requirements by limiting the drywall services exclusion to residential customers only, while also adding 'residential' to the definition of residential structure. The bill's purpose remains the same, but the scope of who is exempt from licensing has been reduced.
Scope change
The bill's scope was narrowed by restricting the drywall services exemption to residential customers only, removing the commercial drywall services exemption that existed in the Introduced Version.
SCOPE

Changed the exemption for drywall services from covering both commercial and residential customers to only residential customers, meaning commercial drywall contractors will now need licensing.

DEFINITION

Added the word 'residential' to the definition of 'residential structure' to clarify the scope of residential occupancy and structure definitions.

TECHNICAL

Changed the bill header from 'Introduced Version' to 'Committee Substitute' and updated the bill status to reflect committee reporting rather than introduction.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
16
Key actions
2
Committee
4
Feb 23, 2026
Committee
To House Government Organization
lower
Feb 23, 2026
Committee
To Government Organization
lower
Feb 23, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in House
lower
Feb 21, 2026
Upper · Passed
Passed Senate (Roll No. 178)
upper
Feb 18, 2026
Upper · Passed
Committee substitute reported
upper
Jan 14, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
upper
Jan 14, 2026
Committee
To Government Organization
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Patricia Rucker
Patricia Rucker
RRepublican
WV
16