West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey Story Archives - Page 2 of 8

Federal Judge Denies W.Va. AG’s Motion To Block Tax Provision In American Rescue Plan

A federal judge in Alabama has denied a motion brought by West Virginia and 12 other states to block enforcement of a piece of the American Rescue Plan that prevents states from using federal relief dollars to backfill revenue losses from tax cuts.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and attorneys general from other states argued that the provision violates the Spending Clause and the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which gives states the right to control taxes.

Embedded in the American Rescue Plan is a provision that makes clear that states cannot use the federal relief dollars “to either directly or indirectly offset a reduction in the net tax revenue.” Morrisey and others argue that the language found in the bill prevents states from cutting taxes.

In a Wednesday court filing, U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler says the states do have standing to bring the case, but they failed to show that the court could provide relief that would address the harm they would suffer in the absence of an injunction.

Despite being denied the injunction, Morrisey expressed optimism that the provision would later be overturned. He cited another case brought forth by the state of Ohio that challenged the constitutionality of the tax provision in the American Rescue Plan.

“This is the first step of many, and it’s similar to what happened in Ohio, where that state lost on the preliminary injunction and won the base case on the merits,” Morrisey said. “We’re hopeful we will win on the district court level, and if not, then we’ll appeal the case.

“We are correct on the merits: the federal government cannot coerce a state into forfeiting one of its core constitutional functions in exchange for a large amount of money,” he added.

Earlier this year, the West Virginia House of Delegates shot down a proposal backed by Gov. Jim Justice that would have phased out the state’s income tax, but also would have raised other taxes.

Upon passage of the American Rescue Plan, Justice took aim at U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, saying Manchin added that provision to block his plan to eliminate state income taxes.

W.Va. Attorney General Morrisey Joining Texas Lawsuit To SCOTUS Over ‘Election Irregularities’

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey says his office will join an effort that urges the U.S. Supreme Court to consider “irregularities and unconstitutional actions in this year’s election.”

The lawsuit — brought by the attorney general of Texas on behalf of the state — seeks to block the final certification of results declaring Democrat Joe Biden the winner of the presidency.

The joining of the lawsuit comes as President Donald Trump and other Republicans around the nation continue to rally behind the president’s efforts to overturn the results of the presidential election — in which Biden won with 306 electoral votes — and as states certify their results.

On Tuesday, the nation’s high court shot down another lawsuit filed by U.S. Rep Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania that argued that a 2019 state law was unconstitutional and all mail-in ballots in the past election should be thrown out.

Despite the rejection — and a string of dozens of other unsuccessful court challenges across the nation that questioned the outcome of the election — Morrisey, a Republican, will move forward in joining the suit brought forth by the Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

The suit from Paxton targets four closely contested states — Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — claiming that pandemic-era changes to election procedures in those states violated federal law. The suit asks the U.S. Supreme Court to block the states in question from voting in the Electoral College.

With guidance from Morrisey, West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner allowed for all registered voters to use the ongoing pandemic as a reason to request an absentee ballot and vote by mail in the general election. State officials have said there were no voting irregularities in West Virginia during the 2020 election cycle.

“Many Americans and West Virginians have seen their confidence in the electoral system undermined as they watch one report after another outlining the many, many problems with the 2020 elections. That must change,” Morrisey said Wednesday, the same day state elections officials certified the results of the general election.

Morrisey, who just won a third term as West Virginia’s chief legal officer, announced earlier this week he was quarantining after testing positive for the coronavirus and being diagnosed with pneumonia.

To date, there has been no proof of widespread election fraud in the 2020 election. U.S. Attorney General William Barr said last week that the Justice Department — including U.S. Attorneys and the FBI — uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud that could change the outcome of the election.

Barr’s comments dispute those from Trump, who continues to claim without proof that the election was rigged in favor of President-elect Biden.

In a Wednesday virtual news briefing, Gov. Jim Justice noted that Trump handedly won the state in the election over Biden. Trump won West Virginia with a 39 point margin of victory over the Democrat.

“We absolutely, overwhelmingly, voted for President Trump and we want President Trump to be able to have his due,” Justice said.

At the time of the governor’s daily briefing, Morrisey had not yet announced he would join the lawsuit that’s been taken to the U.S. Supreme Court, but Justice did say he would support whatever decisions the attorney general would make.

“I don’t know the particulars. I’m not a lawyer. I’m not our attorney general,” Justice said. “At the end of the day, I’m sure our attorney general will make the right moves, and I’ll support what he comes up with and everything.”

On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Alex Mooney — of West Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District — introduced a resolution in the House that calls on GOP colleagues to support Trump challenging the election. He called for instances of fraud to be investigated and punished.

West Virginia AG Morrisey: Order To Reduce Abortions Will Be Upheld In Court

West Virginia’s attorney general on Thursday said a ban on elective medical procedures during the coronavirus pandemic will reduce abortions but will be upheld in an eventual legal challenge.

The executive order, which went into effect this week, mirrors directives in other Republican-controlled states that been temporarily blocked by federal judges. West Virginia’s order, which doesn’t explicitly include abortion, says that it applies to all procedures that aren’t “immediately medically necessary to preserve the patient’s life or long-term health” to preserve medical supplies and protective equipment.

“We believe that this broad-based prohibition will be upheld because it’s designed to protect the public health and applies to all elective procedures and all elective facilities,” Attorney General Patrick Morrisey told The Associated Press in an interview.

Similar orders in Alabama, Texas and Ohio faced legal challenges soon after they were announced from pro-abortion groups who argued the directives violated existing rights to the procedure. Lawsuits were also filed in Iowa and Oklahoma, after governors in those states similarly ordered a stop to non-emergency procedures and specifically included abortion among them.

Morrisey said the state’s order applies to abortion facilities despite a section that excludes “procedures that cannot be performed consistent with other law at a later date.” West Virginia bans abortions after 20 weeks.

“The number of abortions would likely be reduced because most are elective procedures,” said Morrisey, a Republican who has signed onto a multistate court filing supporting Texas’s legal position.

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has previously declared a state of emergency, ordered all non-essential businesses to close and issued a stay-home order in response to the virus. On Wednesday, he pushed back the primary election from May 12 to June 9, citing fears about the coronavirus spreading at polling places, and extended a statewide schools closures until at least April 30. Legislative leaders from both parties have called for schools to be closed for the rest of the year.

Justice has also mandated that people entering the state from places hard-hit by the virus must quarantine for two weeks or face an obstruction charge, and said authorities will watch roads and conduct home checks to make sure people comply. The order triggered constitutional concerns over Fourth Amendment rights that prohibit unreasonable searches and seizures. Justice acknowledged that his directive might be unconstitutional but said it would continue nonetheless.

At least 217 people in the state have the virus after 5,493 tests, according to state health officials. The state has reported two virus fatalities, an 88-year-old Marion County woman and a Jackson County resident with several underlying health issues.

West Virginia was the last U.S. state to report a confirmed case, though Justice attributed that to a lack of testing. Testing remains limited, meaning most people now spreading the highly contagious virus may not know they have been infected, and state health officials have admitted their count lags behind the actual total as results pour in from counties around the state.

Widespread business closures during the pandemic have resulted in at least 90,000 unemployment claims in March, Justice said. A typical month usually sees only around 5,000 state unemployment claims.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks, and the overwhelming majority of people recover. But severe cases can need respirators to survive, and with infections spreading exponentially, hospitals across the country are either bracing for a coming wave of patients, or already struggling to keep up.

West Virginia Bill to Limit Use of Settlement Funds Vetoed

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has vetoed a bill that sought to limit fellow Republican Attorney General Patrick Morrisey’s use of money from lawsuit settlements.
The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the governor this week vetoed legislation to put a $7 million cap on the amount of settlement funds that Morrisey could have in his office’s consumer protection account.
Morrisey, who opposed the bill, has $12 million in his consumer protection account.

Justice says the bill would have discouraged state agencies from filing lawsuits and delay agencies seeking to solve problems because lawmakers would have the final say on the settlement monies’ spending.
A similar bill last year died in the state Senate.

Morrisey Says Anonymous Election Materials Should be Legal in W.Va.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey says a state law prohibiting anonymous election pamphlets is unconstitutional.

Morrisey issued the opinion Tuesday in response to a request by Secretary of State Mac Warner. Both are Republicans.

Morrisey says the state law quote “violates the First Amendment because it is overbroad and not narrowly tailored to a compelling state interest.” Morrisey says a federal court decision in West Virginia in 1996 found an older version of the same law about freedom of expression prohibitions concerning anonymous pamphlets was unconstitutional.

Secretary of State spokesman Steven Allen Adams says residents and political candidates had raised concerns about 2017 municipal election campaign materials such as yard signs, pamphlets and placards that didn’t indicate who paid for them.