West Virginia
West Virginia
Final grade: C+
Exclusion Grade
C+
Relevance Grade
B-
Due Process Grade
B-
Strengths
- Bans many boards from using vague standards like “moral turpitude” and “good moral character” to disqualify applicants.
- Imposes a five-year time limit for considering old convictions.
Areas of Improvement
- Extend state’s protections to medical and security licenses.
- Raise relatedness test from “rational nexus” to “directly related,” a much more stringent standard.
In 2019, West Virginia enacted its first overarching law to protect ex-offenders in the licensing process, earning a C+ for its final grade. However, the new law expressly does not apply to occupations regulated by the state medical board, physician assistants, osteopathic physicians and surgeons, private investigators, or security guards. Thanks to those loopholes, any felony, along with crimes of moral turpitude, can disqualify applicants for medical and security licenses.
Statute: W. Va. Code § 30-1-24 (2019)
Exclusion
| Overarching ban on blanket bans | Yes, but excludes medical and security licenses |
| Ban on considering arrest records | No |
| Ban on considering post-conviction relief records | No |
| Time limit | 5 years, except for sexual or violent crimes |
| Ban on vague, discretionary character standards | Yes |
Relevance
| Relationship between the crime and the license sought | "Rational nexus" |
| Required factors for consideration | |
| Rehabilitation | Yes |
| Time elapsed since crime was committed | Yes |
| Age when crime was committed | No |
| Employment History | No |
| Testimonials | No |
Due Process
| Petition Process | Yes |
| Burden of Proof | Both unspecified |
| Right to appeal | Yes |
| Written notice requirement | No |