West Virginia lawmakers have returned to negotiate a long-delayed 2017 budget hampered by the coal industry’s downfall and low natural gas prices.
The Republican-led Legislature reconvened Monday, per Democratic Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s call.
Tomblin has proposed options of tax increases on sales, tobacco, e-cigarettes and cellphone and landline use.
Tomblin suggested using $29 million from the Rainy Day Fund and millions from other funds to backfill the 2016 budget. He requested authority to furlough state employees in fiscal emergencies.
The 2017 fiscal year starts July 1. A $270 million budget gap remains.
The Senate previously passed tobacco and sales tax hikes. The House didn’t. The cellphone and landline tax went unconsidered.
The sales tax increase could be at most 1 percent.
House Speaker Tim Armstead says it’s disappointing Tomblin placed the burden on taxpayers.
The Republican-led Legislature has approved taking $51.8 million from reserves to avoid late payments amid a grim budget.
Tuesday’s 96-2 House vote sends the measure to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, who proposed it. Senators passed it unanimously.
West Virginia expects a $384 million 2016 budget gap. The Democratic governor’s office said if the bill doesn’t pass early this week, the state risks delays in paying some bills.
Delegates rejected a Democratic amendment Monday to move money to address $120 million in cuts to state employee and retiree health benefits next budget.
With bills due immediately, Republicans called the amendment political pandering.
Tomblin spokesman Chris Stadelman said it’s unnecessary to amend the bill for 2016 to assist 2017 benefits.
Tomblin has proposed increasing tobacco taxes to mitigate health plan cuts.
Lawmakers, lobby groups and university researchers are gathering to preview the upcoming state legislative session.
The 2016 West Virginia Associated Press Legislative Lookahead will take place Friday at Marshall University’s South Charleston campus.
Panelists will discuss regional issues facing the Northern and Eastern Panhandles and the southern part of the state.
Another group will talk about the resurgence of a bill to impose forced pooling of oil and natural gas mineral rights when owners are missing or unwilling to participate. The proposal died on a tie vote in the state House last year.
The final two panels will talk about the Common Core educational standards and efforts to expand broadband Internet service across the state.
The Republican-led Legislature begins the 60-day annual lawmaking session on Jan. 13.
Delegate Bob Ashley has been appointed to fill the 3rd District state Senate seat vacated by David Nohe.
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin announced Ashley’s appointment Tuesday.
Ashley, a Republican, has served nearly three decades in the House of Delegates. He operates an insurance agency in Spencer.
Nohe resigned last month to fill a vacancy on the West Virginia Parole Board.
Del. Bob Ashely being sworn in to the @wvsenate this afternoon just minutes after his appointment by @govtomblin. Ashley takes former Sen. David Nohe's seat who resigned for a position on the state Parole Board. A video posted by West Virginia Public News (@wvpublicnews) on Sep 15, 2015 at 11:54am PDT
After almost two months since closing its doors, the Bloomery Sweetshine Distillery in Jefferson County reopened this weekend after a successful cry for help to West Virginia lawmakers.
During this year’s legislative session, the Bloomery Sweetshine Distillery closed after years of being classified as a retail liquor store. The distillery owners claimed this as a misclassification and said it was costing them too much money, killing their business. The distillery closed in early February and the owners said they wouldn’t reopen until the issue was addressed by lawmakers.
“It was an overwhelming heartache. It was so drastic for us to make that decision,” said Linda Losey, co-founder and one of three co-owners of Bloomery Sweetshine, “You know we’ve been funding the distillery for three years out of pocket and trying to get to profitability, and it was really affecting our relationships, our hearts to keep opening and losing and losing and losing because we absolutely, absolutely love what we do, and what we do for this community and for our fans and how they react to us. So for us to, to make the decision to close, we had to make it for the financial reasons, but it really was a drastic decision, and to put seventeen people out of work, that’s what was the killer for us.”
The Bloomery Sweetshine owners estimate it has attracted more than 50,000 tourists to West Virginia since it opened in 2011, some of which were from outside the US. All of its liqueurs are made on site and by hand, and most of the fruits and nuts used in the drinks are grown on site or are sourced within the local community. The distillery offers tastings and the option of buying their products on the premises.
Rob Losey is co-owner and in charge of sales and marketing. He says the decision to close the distillery surprised their local legislators.
“I think that it was also, it was received well by every one of our legislators,” Rob noted, “and that trying to figure out a way to help us, and really to help our county. I mean, one of the things that we do is we bring in a number of tourists, and you know, we’re someplace that people from out of state find as a destination, so they come to visit us and then they spend some time in the county and leave some tax revenue behind. And I think that, that was recognized and that we were, you know, that we were a bit of a shining star in our area, and it was something not to be lost.”
In light of the news of the distillery’s closing, legislators began putting together a bill that would help Bloomery Sweetshine and other distilleries and mini-distilleries like it. Senate Bill 574 was the answer. The bill will reclassify distilleries in the state and give some tax and management fee relief to those owners. It would also raise the production level allowed for mini-distilleries.
Governor Tomblin signed Senate bill 574 on March 31st and it will go into effect on June 12th.
The owners of Bloomery Sweetshine Distillery were elated by the news, but Tom Kiefer, co-founder and co-owner says their closing was not a ruse.
“We didn’t close the doors to send a message that was unintended. We closed the doors, cause we couldn’t afford to stay open, so I don’t agree that a business should close down just to make a stand and fight for reduced taxes,” Kiefer explained, “I mean for us it was, as Linda had said earlier a do or die situation, and the fact that we were dying on the vine cause we always had to supplement every month the business that occurred in the tasting room, just was not an affordable way to continue on.”
Linda says it was ultimately the response from their fans that drove the message home to legislators.
“One of the strengths we had behind us was our fan base, and so if a small business is absolutely feeling the pinch of government regulations and it’s killing the business, then I don’t disagree that you have to somehow contact the legislators and get help, because it’s nearly impossible to do it without the legislative action that is required to put laws into effect that will help the small businesses,” Linda said.
During Bloomery Sweetshine Distillery’s reopening Saturday, it offered tastings to more than 350, most of which visited the distillery for the first time. The owners say they are satisfied with the response from lawmakers and are excited for the effect of Senate Bill 574 in June.
Next year, the owners plan to push lawmakers for another bill, one that will allow them to sell their products on Sundays.
It was Tobacco Free Day at the Legislature, Friday. Coincidentally, the Government Organization Committee held a public hearing about smoking. Currently, a county board of public health passes smoking regulations. House Bill 2208, in its introduced version, would make it so only members of the county commission elected by voters have the power to regulate public smoking.
The bill has since changed and now county commissions could only decide if smoking will be allowed in casinos and video lottery businesses in the county. However, the introduced version stirred up a lot of emotions this morning as almost 30 citizens spoke to the committee.
Only one speaker expressed support for the bill.
Kenny Smith with the American Legion says putting restrictions on veterans who want to be able to go inside certain places and smoke isn’t fair.
“We are obligated to tell a man or a woman serving in the United States services under the age of twenty-one, he may not consume alcohol within our fraternal organizations; however this ship has sailed and it is accepted by this generation. We are now telling these same men and women they no longer enjoy the freedom of smoking within our walls as well,” Smith said, “To this extent, what freedoms will be taken next?”
Donna Gialluco with the Hancock County Health Department couldn’t understand why smoking was not deemed a public health issue in the introduced version of the bill.
“Fifty-one years ago, the surgeon general’s report already sounded an alarm saying the dangers of smoking and how bad they are for us. Moving forward, secondhand smoke has also been a leading cause of cancer among non-smokers in particular,” Gialluco noted, “So again, I ask this question of you. How can a legislation define smoking as not a part of public health?”
After the public hearing ended, the Government Organization Committee began to discuss the bill.
Delegate Isaac Sponaugle, a Democrat from Pendleton County, was the first one to point out that members were no longer looking at the introduced version of the bill but instead at a committee substitute.
The committee substitute no longer restricts smoking regulations to only the county commission, but instead makes it so the commission only has authority over regulations at casinos and video lottery sites. The smoking regulations set down already by each county’s public health board would remain the same as before.
Delegate Sponaugle was curious if the county commission even wanted the authority of regulating public smoking at these sites.
Jack Woodrum with the Summers County Commission spoke on behalf of the commission and says there are language issues with the bill that concern him.
The committee continued to discuss the bill questioning counsel and Woodrum on the issues of liability in the current language, of safety, and of health.
But in the end, House Bill 2208 allowing county commissioners to decide if smoking would be permitted at casinos and video lottery establishments was rejected.