What is "home rule?"
Local governments are creatures of the state and must look to the state for authority
through state constitutions, local charters and state legislation. As in many
other states, the lines between state and local government authority can be
contentious. Across the country, many local governments seek the right to govern
themselves, or “home rule”. To increase “home rule,” West Virginia launched
a pilot program in 2007 allowing for greater municipal self-determination within
the limits of state law. This program has increased innovation in West Virginia
municipalities by allowing them to respond to individual demands through tailored
regulation and has served as a national model for other states looking to expand
municipal powers. Municipal regulation covers topics such as energy facility
siting; anti-discrimination, minimum wage, gun regulations, and consumer protection.
Following West Virginia’s decision to make the Home Rule Pilot Program permanent
in 2019, the West Virginia Law Review symposium intends to explore the development
of “home rule” in West Virginia and the tensions that arise between the state
and local governments as a result.
Home Rule and Lobbying
Professor Diller’s talk will examine the role of cities in vindicating their
interests the “old-fashioned way”: by lobbying elected officials. Professor
Diller will discuss the means by which local governments can influence the
legislative process through lobbying, endorsements, and contributions and
examine the implications of weak or robust lobbying by local government officials
to the arguments for and against constitutional “home rule,” or judicially
enforced limitations on the subjects or methods by which the legislature
may preempt.
Professor Paul Diller
Willamette University College of Law
Home Rule and Gun Regulation
Assessing gun sanctuaries that conflict with state law by concentrating on gun
violence in Seattle and Pittsburgh.
Moderator:
William Rhee, Professor of Law
WVU College of Law
Panelists:
Matthew Davis, Visiting Lecturer
Birmingham City University School of Law
Sheila Simon, Assistant Professor of Law
Southern Illinois University School of Law
Analyzing the importance and effect of local LGBTQ+ legislation.
Panelists:
Mark Dorosin, Managing Attorney
Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Rosemary Humway-Warmuth, City Solicitor
City of Wheeling, West Virginia
Andrew Schneider, Executive Director
Fairness West Virginia
Home Rule and Criminal Justice Reform
Examining the potential for localities to implement criminal justice reform with
a specific focus on the West Virginia public defender system.
Panelists:
Casey Baker, Assistant Professor of Legal Environment
Marshall University
Ralph McKinney, Assistant Professor of Management
Marshall University
Jeffery Usman, Assistant Professor of Law
Belmont University College of Law
Home Rule and Consumer Law
Delving into how municipalities can best address consumer protection.
Moderator:
Jonathan Marshall, Director
Center of Consumer Law and Education
Panelists:
TBA.
Home Rule and the Courts
Inspecting the role of the courts in defining local government authority by focusing
on the rules of judicial construction employed in home rule cases,including
Dillon’s Rule, the power of state preemption, and the need to accept the structural
conflict between the democratically elected local officials and the power of
states to override them.
Frayda S. Bluestein, David M. Lawrence Distinguished Professor of Public
Law and Government
University of North Carolina School of Government
Home Rule and West Virginia
Looking back at the West Virginia Home Rule Pilot program from its inception
in 2007 to its statewide enactment in 2019.
Moderator:
Jesse Richardson, Professor of Law and Lead Land Use Attorney
WVU College of Law
Panelists:
Robert Bastress, John W. Fisher Professor of Law
WVU College of Law
Paul Ellis, Former City Attorney
Charleston, West Virginia
Ryan Simonton, City Attorney
Charleston, West Virginia
Home Rule and the Environment
Exploring how municipalities address environmental policy gaps including farmland
solar policy and pipeline routing.
Panelists:
Genevieve Byrne
,
Staff Attorney
Farm & Energy Initiative Institute for Energy and the Environment, Vermont
Law School
Sarah Fox, Assistant Professor of Law
Northern Illinois University College of Law
Heidi Robertson, Steven W. Percy Distinguished Professor of Law and Professor
of Environmental Studies
Cleveland State University College of Law
Materials: An electronic PDF written materials will be included with the order.