On February 21, 2023, West Virginia Public Broadcasting reported that a local high school student, Hayden Hodge, brought a new bill to the West Virginia Senate Education Committee, where it was introduced by Committee Chair Senator Amy Grady. This bill would allow for instruction on “intelligent design” in science classrooms.
Hodge stated that this bill was intended to “[offer] another idea, another theory,” fostering open academic dialogue. The legislation would “allow teachers to discuss [intelligent design], talk about it” but is “not intended to promote any religious belief.”
The advocacy director of the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia, Eli Baumwell, spoke against this bill, arguing that intelligent design is “not scientific and is not accepted by the scientific community and in promoting it as such, [they would be] promoting this religiously.” He went on to say that allowing teachers to include intelligent design in their curriculum would “violate the students’ rights.”
This bill was reported to the full West Virginia Senate with the recommendation that it pass.
Update:
The West Virginia House of Delegates passed SB 280 on March 9, 2024 (as amendment) on an 89-9 vote. The West Virginia Senate passed the bill on March 9, 2024 (as amended) on a 29-1 vote. On March 22, 2024, West Virginia Governor Justice signed the bill into law.