W.Va. Lawmakers Resume Gay Marriage Debate (Updated)

A House-Senate interim committee expects to hear from both sides Tuesday as it studies whether West Virginia should amend its constitution to define marriage as being between one woman and one man.

As The Associated Press reports, the state Family Policy Council and the national Alliance Defense Fund both plan to weigh in. So do opponents of the proposed amendment. The committee is slated to hear as well from "a law professor considered an expert on the West Virginia Constitution."

Update: AP has coverage from the two-hour hearing, as does MetroNews.

The council pushed for the necessary legislation during the regular session, but fell short.

MetroNews also sets the stage for Tuesday's hearing, and offers audio of key figures in the state debate: Stephen Skinner with the group Fairness West Virginia, and the family council's Jeremy Dys.

'74 Textbook Foes Plan Reunion

The Associated Press reports on a slated Aug. 22 reunion of those who sought to remove an array of textbooks from Kanawha County public schools in 1974, mounting a protest "that drew national attention to the state and erupted in violence."

Sparked by a then-member of the school board (who is expected to attend the South Charleston event), the protests "escalated until thousands of miners and other workers walked off their jobs in support of removing the textbooks," AP's Tom Breen writes. "Police confronted rock throwing and more serious violence: two elementary schools and the school board offices were bombed. Kanawha County schools were closed, with the superintendent warning of ‘mob rule.’

Reunion plans also include a Web site.

Lawsuit Still Likely over PEIA Retiree Subsidies

At least one group representing West Virginia workers remains keen on a legal challenge to a proposed end to retiree health care subsidies, The Associated Press reports.

"The American Federation of Teachers-West Virginia still plans to sue, President Judy Hale told The Associated Press, if the agency’s finance board reaffirms its May move to end subsidies starting with 2010 hires," the article said.

Hale said the recent series of six public hearings "have not resolved her group’s concerns with the board’s process. AFT-WV also questions whether such a change is possible without legislation," the report continues.

The Public Employees Insurance Agency said that around 500 people attended the hearings, with about 130 signing up to speak.

Rose Drops Bid for Federal Bench

Charleston lawyer and veteran Democrat Herschel "Ned" Rose II is withdrawing his name from consideration for a vacancy on the U.S. District Court bench in northern West Virginia, The Associated Press reports.

Both AP and The Charleston Gazette cite a joint statement from U.S. Sens. Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller, both D-W.Va., who had recommended Rose for the post in January.

Lamenting his apparent decision (he did not respond to requests for comment Friday), the statement said Rose "possesses the intelligence, honesty, and quality of character to make an outstanding district judge, and his withdrawal is West Virginia's loss."

AP notes that the news "comes just days after President Obama nominated the two senators' other choice for the federal bench, Kanawha Circuit Judge Irene Berger."

West Virginian in Line for Obama Post

Spencer native Debbie Hersman awaits a U.S. Senate vote after President Obama nominated her to head the National Transportation Safety Board, "the agency that investigates civil transportation accidents," the Charleston Daily Mail reports.

"Since President Bush nominated her to the board in 2004, Hersman has been the member on scene at 16 major transportation accidents," the article said, adding that "the wife and mother of three is certified to drive motorcycles and commercial vehicles, including school buses and large trucks."

The Price of Drugs in W.Va.

West Virginia spent $333 million last year on drug- and alcohol-related crimes, "from initial police investigations all the way through parole," The Associated Press reports.

AP's Tom Breen highlights a new study from the state's Prevention Resource Center, which tracked costs from the 2005 through 2008 fiscal years for Gov. Joe Manchin's Partnership to Promote Community Well-Being.

"Based on those numbers, the report estimates West Virginia will be spending nearly $500 million on crimes linked to drugs and alcohol by the 2017 fiscal year," Breen writes. "The new report comes a week after another Manchin-appointed body made recommendations about reducing overcrowding in the state's 14 prisons and 10 regional jails."

Road and Bridges in W.Va.

A report released this week and reviewed by The Associated Press concludes that "West Virginia will need to find nearly $5 billion over the next 10 years to maintain roads and bridges that are already 'among the deadliest in the nation.'"

AP's Tom Breen offers the highlights of the latest study from TRIP, a transportation research group.

"The report found that 8 percent of the state's roads are in poor condition, and another 29 percent are in mediocre condition," Breen writes. "On top of that, 15 percent of bridges 20 feet or longer are classed as 'structurally deficient' and another 22 percent are 'functionally obsolete.'"

Capito Tops W.Va. Delegation for Privately Funded Trips

U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-2nd, and her office accepted more private funds for travel between 2005 and 2008 than the rest of the state's congressional delegation combined, the Charleston Daily Mail reports.

The article cites a Wall Street Journal review of records amassed by the Center for Responsive Politics.

It lists an adjusted price tag of $16,940 for seven trips by Capito or her staff. Her office disputes an eighth trip, priced at $4,001.

"Following her are the Democrats: Rep. Nick Rahall, seven trips at $5,415; Sen. Robert Byrd, five trips, $7,101; Sen. Jay Rockefeller, one trip, $3,228; and Rep. Alan Mollohan, one trip, $133," the article said.

The article notes that "West Virginia's congressional delegation is nowhere near the top of Capitol Hill's frequent flyers."

Obama Nominates Berger for Federal Bench

President Barack Obama has nominated Kanawha Circuit Judge Irene Berger for the U.S. District Court bench, The Associated Press reports.

Berger would succeed Judge David Faber in the state's southern federal court district.

"She has served as a circuit judge for 15 years," AP reports. "She also has served as an assistant prosecutor in Kanawha County and with the U.S. Attorney’s Office."

U.S. Sens. Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller, both D-W.Va., had recommended Berger for the judgeship in January.

Belated Quote of the Day

"When you call the governor up at 7:15 in the morning and get him out of bed [to ask for a helicopter] - it's pretty neat."

-- Len Rogers, president of the West Virginia Soccer Association, to The Charleston Gazette about enlisting Gov. Joe Manchin to order an Air National Guard Black Hawk chopper to blow water on a rain-soaked soccer tournament field.

The Charleston Daily Mail later quoted a $22,466 price tag for the sortie, meant to aid the U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships. "It was the first time the Region 1 championships have been held in West Virginia," that article noted.

Happy New Year, West Virginia

New fiscal year, that is. West Virginia is among all but a handful of states that start their budget years on July 1.

The Associated Press reports that the Mountain State emerged from the previous, recession-plagued year with "a trio of positive signs for state government’s finances:" a slight general revenue surplus, lottery revenues on track to at least meet projections, and rebounding Wall Street investments.

But the article continues that continuing economic troubles and other factors "overshadow each fiscal indicator."

AP reported earlier on the 2009 legislation that took effect July 1. Those new laws include "Gov. Joe Manchin's proposal to boost alternative and renewable energy sources."

West Virginia also received some bad, but not necessarily unexpected, numbers to kick off the new fiscal year. As AP, MetroNews and Public Broadcasting (with audio) report, "a new national study calls West Virginia the third-fattest state in the country."