---
type: "Bill"
title: "Modifying the criminal penalties imposed on a parent, guardian or custodian for child abuse"
description: "Modifying the criminal penalties imposed on a parent, guardian or custodian for child abuse"
jurisdiction: "us/states/wv"
legislature: "West Virginia Legislature"
session: "2025"
identifier: "HB 2123"
citation: "West Virginia HB 2123 (2025)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Crime"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Smith, D."]
version_count: 6
action_count: 41
vote_count: 3
first_action: "2025-02-12"
last_action: "2025-07-30"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/7c0838ba-5895-490f-8efb-8cf6cbe5832b"
source_url: "https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/Bills_history.cfm?input=2123&year=2025&sessiontype=RS&btype=bill"
source_hash: "d41d693682add9eb0da8e4655092340e2d40425e4349552795b7c99000abf3da"
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 2123 (2025) — Modifying the criminal penalties imposed on a parent, guardian or custodian for child abuse

## 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=hb2123%20sub.htm&yr=2025&sesstype=RS&i=2123)
2. **Engrossed Committee Substitute** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb2123%20sub%20eng.htm&yr=2025&sesstype=RS&i=2123)
3. **Enrolled Committee Substitute** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb2123%20sub%20enr.htm&yr=2025&sesstype=RS&i=2123)
4. **Introduced Version** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb2123%20intr.htm&yr=2025&sesstype=RS&i=2123)
5. **hb2123 hfat mcgeehan 4-8 adopted.htm** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/legisdocs/chamber/2025/RS/floor_amends/hb2123%20hfat%20mcgeehan%204-8%20adopted.htm)
6. **hb2123 s jud am _1 3-24 adopted.htm** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/legisdocs/chamber/2025/RS/com_amends/hb2123%20s%20jud%20am%20_1%203-24%20adopted.htm)

## Votes

- Passage — **34–0** (pass) · upper
- PASSAGE-SENATE AMENDED HB — **97–0** (pass) · lower
- PASSAGE — **99–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Smith, D. — primary (person)
- Akers — cosponsor (person)
- Cooper — cosponsor (person)
- Ellington — cosponsor (person)
- Gearheart — cosponsor (person)
- Hanshaw — cosponsor (person)
- Hillenbrand — cosponsor (person)
- Maynor — cosponsor (person)
- Rohrbach — cosponsor (person)
- Worrell — cosponsor (person)
- Zatezalo — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2025-02-12** Filed for introduction `filing`
- **2025-02-12** To Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-12** Introduced in House `introduction`
- **2025-02-12** To House Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-20** Markup Discussion
- **2025-02-24** By substitute, do pass
- **2025-02-25** On 1st reading, Special Calendar
- **2025-02-25** Read 1st time `reading-1`
- **2025-02-26** On 2nd reading, Special Calendar
- **2025-02-26** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2025-02-27** On 3rd reading, Special Calendar
- **2025-02-27** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2025-02-27** Passed House (Roll No. 13) `passage`
- **2025-02-27** Communicated to Senate
- **2025-02-28** Introduced in Senate `introduction`
- **2025-02-28** To Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-28** To Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2025-04-03** Reported do pass, with amendment `committee-passage`
- **2025-04-03** Immediate consideration
- **2025-04-03** Read 1st time `reading-1`
- **2025-04-04** On 2nd reading
- **2025-04-04** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2025-04-04** Committee amendment adopted (Voice vote)
- **2025-04-07** On 3rd reading
- **2025-04-07** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2025-04-07** Passed Senate (Roll No. 328) `passage`
- **2025-04-07** Senate requests House to concur
- **2025-04-09** House received Senate message
- **2025-04-09** House concurred in Senate amend with title amend, passed (Roll No. 426)
- **2025-04-09** Communicated to Senate
- **2025-04-10** House Message received
- **2025-04-10** Senate concurred in House amendments and passed bill (Roll No. 454)
- **2025-04-10** Communicated to House
- **2025-04-10** Completed legislative action
- **2025-04-22** To Governor 4/22/2025 `executive-receipt`
- **2025-04-12** To Governor 4/22/2025 - House Journal `executive-receipt`
- **2025-04-12** To Governor 4/22/2025 - Senate Journal `executive-receipt`
- **2025-04-25** Approved by Governor 4/25/2025 `executive-signature`
- **2025-04-12** Approved by Governor 4/25/2025 - House Journal `executive-signature`
- **2025-04-12** Approved by Governor 4/25/2025 - Senate Journal `executive-signature`
- **2025-07-30** Chapter 77, Acts, Regular Session, 2025 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/7c0838ba-5895-490f-8efb-8cf6cbe5832b`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official West Virginia legislature records).