Committee tables bill to add animal‑cruelty case section to court website after OES flags fiscal questions

Delegate McGoughlin introduced House Bill 673, which would direct the executive secretary of the Supreme Court to create a separate publicly viewable section for animal‑cruelty cases on the court’s case information system. The patron said using existing court data would be "more cost effective" and would "capture the intent of the legislation," and stressed records for pending charges would be clearly labeled and removed if dismissed or reversed on appeal.

Eileen Longenecker of the Office of the Executive Secretary (OES) told the subcommittee this was the first time OES had seen the proposal and said it would have a fiscal impact: "This is the first time I'm hearing about OES doing this. It would have a fiscal impact." Delegates pressed how automatic updates and removals would work; the patron said the database would be "automatically updated through this database as well." Counsel and members noted there are operational steps and safeguards involved and warned implementation would not be entirely automatic.

After limited testimony, Delegate Delaney moved to lay the bill on the table for the day; the motion was seconded. Clerk opened the roll and HB 673 was tabled by recorded vote 6‑3. The clerk recorded the action as "tabled."