AGO 1993-08.

• Case Date: August 02, 1993
• Court: West Virginia

West Virginia Attorney General Opinions 1993. AGO 1993-08. West VirginiaAttorney General Opinion1993-08August 2, 1993DARRELL V. McGRAW, JR. ATTORNEY GENERAL The Honorable W. Gaston Caperton Office of the Governor State Capitol Charleston, West Virginia 25305 The Honorable Larrie Bailey Office of the Treasurer Building 1, Room E-145 State Capitol Charleston, West Virginia 25305 The Honorable Ken Hechler Secretary of State Building 1, Room 157K State Capitol Charleston, West Virginia 25305

Re: Appointment of Members to the State Building Commission of West Virginia

Dear Gentlemen: It is our understanding that at a meeting of the State Building Commission held on July 20, 1993, the Commission voted to request an Opinion from this Office as to whether or not gubernatorial appointees to the State Building Commission who have not yet been confirmed by the West Virginia State Senate should formally participate in the business and activities of the State Building Commission. To date this Office has not received a written request for an Opinion. This Office has also been advised that it may be many weeks before the minutes of the July 20, 1993 meeting of the State Building Commission are transcribed.The brief answer to the question presented is that appointments to the State Building Commission are not complete until the advice and consent of the Senate has been given. Until this is done, appointees are not legally entitled to serve in the position of members of the State Building Commission. In rendering this Opinion, we must be mindful that the question presented comes to us in the abstract. The reader must recognize the risk in predicting how courts may choose to construe specific facts and how they choose to apply the facts to the law. Inasmuch as we render Opinions without memoranda and argument representing diverse points of view, we are constrained to approach matters conservatively. THE CONSTITUTIONAL AND STATUTORY FRAMEWORK The Constitution of West Virginia provides in pertinent part that "the governor shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the senate, . . . appoint all officers whose offices are established by this Constitution, or shall be created by law, and whose appointment or election is not otherwise provided for . . . ." W. Va. Const. art. VII, $$ 8. Plainly, this provision vests...