Legislature attacks public education

January 31, 2023

The hyper-conservative Legislature has resumed the attack it started last year on West Virginia’s public schools. Some attacks are more subtle than others, but most of them are aimed at allowing complaints or even lawsuits against public schools or their employees. There are, of course, the headline-dominating “anti-racism” and “anti-stereotyping” bills (of which there are multiple iterations). Four of them, to be exact. There are two virtually identical “anti-stereotyping” bills in the House (HB 2347 and HB 2940). Then there is the “Anti-Racism Act” (SB 130) that ...

‘Life at conception’ bill violates Constitution

January 28, 2023

The Legislature is officially considering the most restrictive kind of abortion ban. The “Life at Conception Act of 2023,” or HB 2885, was introduced to the House this past week, courtesy of local Delegate Geno Chiarelli and four of his compatriots. The bill reads: “we hereby declare that the right to life guaranteed by the Constitutions of the United States and the State of West Virginia is vested in each human being.” It then defines “human being” as “preeminent set of divinely created beings commonly and collectively known and referred to as humans or humanity, ...

The Good, the Bad and the Stupid Pt. 2

January 26, 2023

Good: HB 2774, the “Welcome Home Grant Program.” The pilot program will offer cash grants (up to $5,000) to help veterans and their families relocate to West Virginia on the condition they stay for three years. To us, this bill is a “good, but …” Veterans are an odd group in that they are nationally lauded and beloved, but when it comes time to pay them back for their service — in benefits, health care or jobs — the nation leaves them standing there empty-handed. If West Virginia wants to attract veterans to the state, it needs to be prepared to offer more than $5,000 ...

Fairmont State’s Police Academy offers multiple advantages

January 25, 2023

Fairmont State University recently welcomed the inaugural class to its Police Training Academy. It’s no secret that police departments across the state have faced staffing shortages — in part because of cultural shifts and attitudes around law enforcement, in part because of uncompetitive pay and in part because of challenges getting officers trained. The new training program at FSU will address the third challenge (and maybe a little bit of the first, too). Until the FSU academy opened its door, the West Virginia State Police Academy outside of Charleston was the only place ...

Hydrogen energy or more natural gas?

January 24, 2023

The Legislature just passed SB 162, which authorizes “the director of the Division of Natural Resources to lease state-owned pore spaces underlying state forests, natural and scenic areas, and management areas, and other lands under the jurisdiction and control of the director for carbon sequestration,” though it “prohibit[s] the leasing of pore spaces underlying state parks.” The bill is lauded as paving the way for hydrogen energy production in West Virginia, and hopefully helping the state land a federal “clean” hydrogen hub. On paper, it looks like a win for both ...

Will he, though?

January 21, 2023

Would The Dominion Post like to see a Morgantown native in the governor’s mansion? Sure, but we think there are more important qualifications for the person who wants to be West Virginia’s leader. For example: Caring more about what’s happening in the Mountain State than in Washington, D.C. Mac Warner, in his essay, points to the four governors he wants to emulate: Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia and Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota. If Warner’s intent was to reassure us of his priorities, he’s failed. The first ...