---
type: "Bill"
title: "Relating to the preservation of missing persons records and evidence"
description: "Relating to the preservation of missing persons records and evidence"
jurisdiction: "us/states/wv"
legislature: "West Virginia Legislature"
session: "2026"
identifier: "HB 4345"
citation: "West Virginia HB 4345 (2026)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Public Safety"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Hornby"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 41
vote_count: 3
first_action: "2026-01-15"
last_action: "2026-06-29"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/c96043ae-bd02-4d8d-8300-35a2e290789a"
source_url: "https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/Bills_history.cfm?input=4345&year=2026&sessiontype=RS&btype=bill"
source_hash: "42bcbd3b55e1f0e6144d8c9d928ca2877b70b08ec4c70d5f11fe0994a689bfa7"
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 4345 (2026) — Relating to the preservation of missing persons records and evidence

## 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=hb4345%20sub1.htm&yr=2026&sesstype=RS&i=4345)
2. **Engrossed Committee Substitute** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb4345%20sub1%20eng.htm&yr=2026&sesstype=RS&i=4345)
3. **Enrolled Committee Substitute** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb4345%20sub1%20enr.htm&yr=2026&sesstype=RS&i=4345)
4. **Introduced Version** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=hb4345%20intr.htm&yr=2026&sesstype=RS&i=4345)
5. **hb4345 s jud am _1 adopted.htm** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.wvlegislature.gov/legisdocs/chamber/2026/RS/com_amends/hb4345%20s%20jud%20am%20_1%20adopted.htm)

## Votes

- PASSAGE-SENATE AMENDED HB — **97–0** (pass) · lower
- Passage — **34–0** (pass) · upper
- PASSAGE — **95–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Hornby — primary (person)
- Heckert — cosponsor (person)
- Holstein — cosponsor (person)
- Masters — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2026-01-15** Filed for introduction `filing`
- **2026-01-15** To Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2026-01-15** Introduced in House `introduction`
- **2026-01-15** To House Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2026-01-30** To House Homeland Security `referral-committee`
- **2026-01-30** Markup Discussion
- **2026-02-02** To House Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2026-02-03** Markup Discussion
- **2026-02-05** By substitute, do pass
- **2026-02-06** On 1st reading, Special Calendar
- **2026-02-06** Read 1st time `reading-1`
- **2026-02-09** On 2nd reading, Special Calendar
- **2026-02-09** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2026-02-10** On 3rd reading, Special Calendar
- **2026-02-10** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2026-02-10** Passed House (Roll No. 64) `passage`
- **2026-02-10** Communicated to Senate
- **2026-02-11** Introduced in Senate `introduction`
- **2026-02-11** To Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2026-02-11** To Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-11** Reported do pass, with amendment `committee-passage`
- **2026-03-11** Immediate consideration
- **2026-03-11** Read 1st time `reading-1`
- **2026-03-12** On 2nd reading
- **2026-03-12** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2026-03-12** Committee amendment adopted (Voice vote)
- **2026-03-13** On 3rd reading
- **2026-03-13** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2026-03-13** Passed Senate (Roll No. 534) `passage`
- **2026-03-13** Senate requests House to concur
- **2026-03-14** House received Senate message
- **2026-03-14** House concurred in Senate amendment and passed bill (Roll No. 677)
- **2026-03-14** Communicated to Senate
- **2026-03-14** Completed legislative action
- **2026-03-14** House Message received
- **2026-03-14** To Governor 3/18/2026 - Senate Journal `executive-receipt`
- **2026-03-18** To Governor 3/18/2026 `executive-receipt`
- **2026-03-14** Approved by Governor 3/25/2026 - Senate Journal `executive-signature`
- **2026-03-25** Approved by Governor 3/25/2026 `executive-signature`
- **2026-03-14** Approved by Governor 3/25/2026 - House Journal `executive-signature`
- **2026-06-29** Chapter 92, Acts, Regular Session, 2026 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/c96043ae-bd02-4d8d-8300-35a2e290789a`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official West Virginia legislature records).