West Virginia is one of 35 states not complying with a federal sex offender registration act. And state officials said there are no plans to do so because it would be more costly and less effective than the process now used by state police.

May 14--West Virginia is one of 35 states not complying with a federal sex offender registration act.

And state officials said there are no plans to do so because it would be more costly and less effective than the process now used by state police.

Failure to comply will cost the state about $600,000 a year in federal funding, but officials said implementing the act would cost much more than that.

The federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) wants states to reclassify sex offenders using a three-tier system. Those offenders who fall into the highest tier -- rapists and most child molesters, among others -- are required to appear in person at the appropriate agency at least four times a year to verify their registry information. Others must appear once or twice a year, depending on their convictions.

In West Virginia, sex offenders must notify State Police of any changes in their information within 10 business days and will be visited by a trooper unannounced at least once a year to verify the offender is living at his listed address.

State Police Sgt. Michael Baylous said troopers don't just take a sex offender's word for where he or she is living. If the person isn't there when the trooper visits, the trooper visits again later. If the trooper has reason to believe they've moved, he begins an investigation.

"The current system we have works well," Baylous said. "It's a priority of ours to make sure all offenders are compliant with the law. It's definitely a drain on our manpower, but it's a necessary duty that needs to be done."

There are more than 3,500 registered sex offenders in West Virginia and almost all are required to register for life, according to State Police.

Only about 77 offenders -- convicted of lower-level crimes with adult victims -- are required to register for 10 years.

Sexually violent predators, offenders with the highest risk of re-offending, register for life and are visited at least four times a year. There are 24 sexually violent predators in West Virginia, which includes one in Preston County, according to the state registry.

West Virginia Division of Justice and Community Services Director J. Norbert Federspiel said the state cannot afford to hire enough troopers to do quarterly visits.

"I think we are protecting the public every bit as good as the federal design and, to come into compliance just for the money, would not be smart," Federspiel said. "We are still protecting the public and the State Police take it seriously. They are tough. They want to get everyone registered that is supposed to be."

For example, if quarterly visits were required for all offenders, troopers would have more than 14,000 verifications to do each year.

The state employs 682 troopers, although six are currently deployed by the military, Baylous said. Some detachments assign a trooper to check on sex offenders while others spread the work out.

Federspiel said most states allow sex offenders to check in with any law enforcement agency, or sometimes at courts, but, in West Virginia, sex offenders only check in with the State Police.

There are about 235 law enforcement agencies in West Virginia and some are staffed by only one or two officers, Federspiel said. If the work was spread out to all agencies, he said he thinks the quality of the verification process would go down.

"Even though we don't meet the quarterly registration requirements, I still believe we are as effective because the troopers know where the sex offenders are," Federspiel said. "The State Police actually have someone go to the address to see if they are there. We're pretty tight on our registration requirements and followup. It's just a different method of doing it. To switch over, we just don't have enough troopers to do it."

The federal government allows states that don't meet the SORNA requirements to apply to receive 10 percent of the money they lost -- about $60,000 for West Virginia -- to use to work toward compliance.

Federspiel said West Virginia uses that money to pay State Police troopers and employees overtime to register sex offenders and catch up on registry-related paperwork.