HB 3013 West Virginia House of Delegates · 2025 Regular Session

Relating to open captioning for motion pictures

HB 3013 requires movie theater chains operating six or more theaters across multiple locations in West Virginia to provide open captioning for at least two weekly showings of films that include open captioning in their production. It also mandates that theaters offer audio description upon request for films that feature audio description. The law excludes drive-in theaters and prohibits requiring new equipment purchases if it would create an undue financial burden on theaters. This bill directly affects larger theater chains and aims to improve accessibility for deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind, and low-vision patrons.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Apr 2025
House of Delegates Passage
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 27, 2025 Last action Apr 2, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Committee Substitute Engrossed Committee Substitute · 3 edits · Apr 1, 2025
MINOR
The bill was updated from a 'Committee Substitute' to an 'Engrossed' version, indicating it has passed its committee stage and is ready for the next legislative step. The substantive policy content regarding accessibility requirements for theaters remains consistent, but the document now includes a specific 'ENGROSSED' header and removes a summary note that was present in the previous version.
Scope change
The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; the text of the law itself was not altered, only the version status and surrounding metadata.
TECHNICAL

Added 'ENGROSSED' header to indicate the bill has passed committee review.

Removed a summary note explaining the bill's purpose and a note about strike-throughs.

Updated the version label from 'Committee Substitute' to 'Engrossed Version' in the history section.

Floor votes · House of Delegates Apr 1, 2025

How they voted

918
Passed · 1 other
Total votes 100
Apr 1, 2025
D Democratic9
9 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican91
82 Yea 8 Nay 1
90% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
18
Key actions
2
Committee
7
Apr 2, 2025
Committee
To Government Organization
upper
Apr 2, 2025
Committee
To Government Organization then Judiciary
upper
Apr 2, 2025
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
upper
Apr 1, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed House (Roll No. 318)
lower
Mar 27, 2025
Lower · Passed
By substitute, do pass
lower
Mar 21, 2025
Committee
To House Government Organization
lower
Feb 28, 2025
Committee
To House Government Adminstration
lower
Feb 27, 2025
Committee
To House Government Organization
lower
Feb 27, 2025
Introduced
Introduced in House
lower
Feb 27, 2025
Committee
To Government Organization
lower
1 primary · 9 co-sponsors

Sponsors