House Dems Focus On ‘Kitchen Table’ Issues For 2026 Session

House Democrats say kitchen table issues like childcare and utility costs are at the forefront of this year’s legislative agenda. Since last summer, the group has been on a Kitchen Table Tour around the state, holding community discussions to understand what was on the public’s mind. 

“We went everywhere,” House Minority Leader Sean Hornbuckle, D-Cabell, said. “We went to the Eastern Panhandle, southern coalfields, central West Virginia, Northern Panhandle, and one of the biggest things was cost of living. And it was about everybody not being able to afford the power bill.”

In a Monday press conference, members of the House Democratic Caucus laid out four major issues they plan to address this year during the 2026 West Virginia Legislative session: utility bills, health care, childcare and housing. 

“I remember very vividly being in Martinsburg, and the young lady, she got on the podium, and she started talking about her issues, and it boiled down to essentially choosing homelessness or death,” Hornbuckle said. “She did not have enough money to be able to continue the life-saving drugs that she needed.”

He said the Democrats plan to propose legislation that will address the rising costs of health care. 

“We have solutions ready to go to help be a part of solving that issue,” he said. 

In response to a question from Lori Kersey, with West Virginia Watch, about examples of specific legislation, Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, noted that electric rates in West Virginia have increased faster than other states. 

“We’d like to see electric rates frozen until the middle of 2027,” he said. “That would give this legislature some time to implement good policies. And one good policy that we’d like to get across the finish line this year is reform at the Public Service Commission (PSC).”

Hansen said he proposes switching the PSC to an elected role instead of one appointed by the governor to make it more accountable.

He also said the state needs to embrace an all-of-the-above energy strategy, “So that we’re not dependent on a single fuel to generate our electricity. We should also embrace gas, nuclear, wind and solar, and that’s what other states have done that have seen their electric rates increase slower than our rates.” 

Del. Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio, the House minority whip, said the group would be introducing legislation related to “junk fees” like processing fees. 

“In many states, they’ve looked at this and said, ‘Wait a minute, we’re basing this off of the actual monthly bill rate and not the fee itself.’ So we want transparency from these companies,” he said. “Right now, it’s a gray area where there’s no transparency.”

Another issue important to Fluharty is Raylee’s Law, a law that would prevent parents accused of child abuse from pulling their child from school and homeschooling them. The bill has passed the House of Delegates twice but never passed the Senate. 

“I believe we have support in the House,” Fluharty said. “Just last week, the governor held a press conference on his childcare issues, and Raylee’s Law was brought up to the governor. Raylee’s Law has been covered locally, nonstop. It’s been covered nationally. It’s been covered globally. And yet the governor last week said he didn’t even know about Raylee Browning in a tragedy that came from her death and the loophole which protects child abusers.”

The Democratic Caucus indicated there were a number of additional bills on their agenda for the year, including efforts to make housing more affordable.