---
type: "Bill"
title: "Relating to fentanyl prevention and awareness Education (Laken’s Law)"
description: "Relating to fentanyl prevention and awareness Education (Laken’s Law)"
jurisdiction: "us/states/wv"
legislature: "West Virginia Legislature"
session: "2024"
identifier: "HB 5540"
citation: "West Virginia HB 5540 (2024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Education (K12)"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Stephens"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 39
vote_count: 3
first_action: "2024-02-09"
last_action: "2024-04-22"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/bfdabcf7-4fc9-4c49-9ac4-de9058fb2e5b"
source_url: "https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/Bills_history.cfm?input=5540&year=2024&sessiontype=RS&btype=bill"
source_hash: "8618ebb0366413bae0a51d3652f97045cfe7953ad053a52d57041f1dd578249e"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-wv"]
---

# West Virginia HB 5540 (2024) — Relating to fentanyl prevention and awareness Education (Laken’s Law)

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Committee Substitute** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb5540%20sub.htm&yr=2024&sesstype=RS&i=5540)
2. **Enrolled Committee Substitute** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb5540%20sub%20enr.htm&yr=2024&sesstype=RS&i=5540)
3. **Introduced Version** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb5540%20intr.htm&yr=2024&sesstype=RS&i=5540)
4. **hb5540 hfa stephens 2-19 _1 adopted.htm** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/legisdocs/chamber/2024/RS/floor_amends/hb5540%20hfa%20stephens%202-19%20_1%20adopted.htm)
5. **hb5540 sfa takubo _1 2-23 adopted.htm** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/legisdocs/chamber/2024/RS/floor_amends/hb5540%20sfa%20takubo%20_1%202-23%20adopted.htm)

## Votes

- PASSAGE-SENATE AMENDED HB — **97–0** (pass) · lower
- PASSAGE — **95–0** (pass) · lower
- Passage — **32–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Stephens — primary (person)
- Barnhart — cosponsor (person)
- Dittman — cosponsor (person)
- Ellington — cosponsor (person)
- Hite — cosponsor (person)
- Lewis — cosponsor (person)
- Rohrbach — cosponsor (person)
- Sheedy — cosponsor (person)
- Toney — cosponsor (person)
- Willis — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2024-02-09** Filed for introduction `filing`
- **2024-02-09** To Education `referral-committee`
- **2024-02-09** Introduced in House `introduction`
- **2024-02-09** To House Education `referral-committee`
- **2024-02-15** By substitute, do pass
- **2024-02-16** On 1st reading, Special Calendar
- **2024-02-16** Read 1st time `reading-1`
- **2024-02-19** On 2nd reading, Special Calendar
- **2024-02-19** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2024-02-19** Amendment reported by the Clerk
- **2024-02-19** Amendment adopted (Voice vote)
- **2024-02-20** On 3rd reading, Special Calendar
- **2024-02-20** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2024-02-20** Passed House (Roll No. 238) `passage`
- **2024-02-20** Communicated to Senate
- **2024-02-21** Introduced in Senate `introduction`
- **2024-02-21** Committee reference dispensed
- **2024-02-22** On 1st reading
- **2024-02-22** Read 1st time `reading-1`
- **2024-02-23** On 2nd reading
- **2024-02-23** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2024-02-23** Floor amendment adopted (Voice vote)
- **2024-02-24** On 3rd reading
- **2024-02-24** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2024-02-24** Passed Senate (Roll No. 249) `passage`
- **2024-02-24** Senate requests House to concur
- **2024-03-01** House received Senate message
- **2024-03-01** Immediate consideration
- **2024-03-01** House concurred in Senate amendment and passed bill (Roll No. 420)
- **2024-03-01** Communicated to Senate
- **2024-03-01** Completed legislative action
- **2024-03-04** House Message received
- **2024-03-09** To Governor 3/21/2024 - Senate Journal `executive-receipt`
- **2024-03-21** To Governor 3/21/2024 `executive-receipt`
- **2024-03-09** To Governor 3/21/2024 - House Journal `executive-receipt`
- **2024-03-09** Approved by Governor 3/27/2024 - Senate Journal `executive-signature`
- **2024-03-27** Approved by Governor 3/27/24 `executive-signature`
- **2024-03-09** Approved by Governor 3/27/24 - House Journal `executive-signature`
- **2024-04-22** Chapter 118, Acts, Regular Session, 2024 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/bfdabcf7-4fc9-4c49-9ac4-de9058fb2e5b`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official West Virginia legislature records).