Federal funding for arts and culture has been curtailed. Trey Kay looks at the reasons in the latest Us & Them. Also, the state board of education has approved another round of school closures and consolidations, the state Legislature is expected to take up several bills in the coming session to address foster care and children who are homeless, and U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom was laid to rest Tuesday at the West Virginia National Cemetery in Grafton.
Energy & Environment Stakeholders Weigh In On Legislative Session
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On this episode of The Legislature Today, Curtis Tate speaks with Emmett Pepper of Energy Efficient West Virginia and Lucia Valentine of the West Virginia Environmental Council about energy and environment legislation they’re following, including Senate Bill 592, which would relax safeguards for aboveground storage tanks.
Monday was also Environment Day at the Capitol. Groups held a public hearing outside the House chamber in opposition to Senate Bill 592. An aboveground storage tank leak in 2014 contaminated the drinking water supply for 300,000 residents in the Charleston area.
In the Senate, rules committees don’t meet very often, and bills assigned to them are often considered shelved for the session. As Chris Schulz reports, two bills nearing completion in the Senate were sent to the chamber’s Rules Committee.
In the House, the chamber reviewed several bills for their final reading, touching on topics like voter registration and reading education. Jack Walker brings us the rundown.
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The Legislature Today is West Virginia’s only television/radio simulcast devoted to covering the state’s 60-day regular legislative session.
Watch or listen to new episodes Monday through Friday at 6 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
The pay raises proposed by Morrisey will apply to state employees who are funded through the general revenue budget, which includes the vast majority of state workers. This category covers teachers, State Police, corrections officers and many other essential public servants.
More high school students in West Virginia are graduating now than in 2013, and there are new improvements in early education milestones as well, according to data from the West Virginia Dept. of Education.