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Gov. Jim
Justice hosted a ceremonial event Wednesday inside the Governor’s
Reception Room in Charleston, signing into law a bill designed to
remove barriers for disabled West Virginians. Senate Bill
94 will allow people with physical disabilities to vote in
elections electronically. The bill, which received sweeping
bipartisan support and passed unanimously in both the West Virginia
Senate and the House of Delegates, will give the Secretary of
State’s Office the latitude to create a system that will allow
people who are physically unable to vote in-person to cast an
electronic absentee ballot instead. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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Also on
Wednesday, Gov. Justice signed House Bill 4130, which will speed up
government construction projects needed in the wake of major
disaster events. Inspired by bureaucratic delays to the
construction process for 2016 flood victims in the RISE West
Virginia program, this bill clears red tape for post-disaster
construction if an official State of Emergency declaration is made.
[Watch Video] [More Photos]
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On
Thursday, Gov. Justice held a press conference to announce
that he has committed $1 million from his Governor’s Contingency
Fund to support ongoing efforts to encourage all West Virginians to
participate in the 2020 United States Census. A complete and
accurate count of West Virginia's population is vital to the State,
because it will determine the amount of federal grant funding the
State can receive for things like education, health care, roads,
veteran’s services, disaster relief, and more. The count also
determines the number of representatives in the United States House
of Representatives apportioned to West Virginia for the next 10
years. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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On Monday,
Gov. Justice announced that January 2020 general revenue
collections were $13 million above estimates. The month of
January also marks the beginning of the third quarter of Fiscal
Year 2020. Cumulatively, FY 2020 is pacing just 0.6% below last
year's revenue collections; which set an all-time state record for
best revenue growth in a single year. [Read More]
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Gov.
Justice announced Wednesday that he plans to establish a Rural
Medicine Task Force to address the healthcare dilemma in West
Virginia. The Governor said he intends to bring together all the
major hospitals and all the leading players to work on this issue. Gov.
Justice has meetings scheduled with officials from his
administration and with interested private parties and plans to
release more information next week. [Read More]
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On
Thursday, Gov. Justice presented a proclamation, officially
declaring Feb. 6, 2020 as Veterans Visibility Day in West Virginia
in honor of those who have put their lives on the line to defend
our freedom. The Governor made the presentation at an event, surrounded
by dozens of West Virginia's bravest veterans, including Medal of
Honor recipient Hershel "Woody" Williams. [More
Photos]
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On
Sunday, West Virginia’s most popular weather predicting
mammal – French Creek Freddie – welcomed hundreds of
visitors to the State Wildlife Center for a Groundhog Day
celebration and his annual winter weather prognostication.
Each year, Freddie comes out of hibernation to determine if West
Virginia will have an early spring or if there’ll be six more weeks
of winter. This year, Freddie did not see his shadow, indicating
that spring will come early in West Virginia. [More
Photos]
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On Monday,
the Herbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs (HHOMA) honored
the start of Black History Month by holding a celebratory event
in the Governor’s Reception Room. The event included a
reading of a proclamation, issued by Gov. Justice, that officially
designated the month of February as Black History Month in West
Virginia. Additionally, Beckley City Councilwoman Janine Bullock
delivered welcoming remarks and Charleston poet/writer Crystal Good
provided poetry readings at the ceremony. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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On
Tuesday, more than 400 students from Huntington Middle School
attended the first installment of the Herbert Henderson Office of
Minority Affairs' Black History Month Lecture Series presentation
at the State Culture Center in Charleston, centering on the life
story of prominent NASA mathematician and West Virginia native
Katherine Johnson. [Read More]
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Last
Friday, Gov. Justice and the Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) announced that the State of West Virginia has been awarded
more than $131 million for the replacement of Summersville Middle
School, Richwood Middle School, and Richwood High School in
Nicholas County. The schools were destroyed due to the
catastrophic flooding in June 2016. The historic flooding resulted
in a Major Disaster Declaration, allowing West Virginia to
receive assistance from FEMA. [Read More]
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This
week, First Lady Cathy Justice spotlighted the expansion of
the Communities In Schools initiative in West Virginia, along with
several of the program's school site coordinators, explaining the
advantages of the program, which forges partnerships with members
of the community to help pave the way to success for the state's
most vulnerable students. [Watch
Video]
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This week,
the West Virginia National Guard’s Mountaineer ChalleNGe Academy
has been named as the National Guard Youth Foundation’s Program of
the Year for 2019. The National Guard Youth Foundation advocates
for ChalleNGe programs throughout the United States and provides
resources to the programs and its graduates to ensure a pathway to
success. Launched in 1993, the mission of the National Guard
Youth ChalleNGe Program is to intervene in and reclaim the lives of
at-risk youth to produce program graduates with the values, skills,
education, and self-discipline necessary to succeed as
adults. The West Virginia MCA was one of the original 10
founding NGYCP programs, and since 1993 has graduated 4,663 cadets.
[More
Photos]
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On
Wednesday, West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools, Dr.
Steven L. Paine, announced that he would be retiring to take care
of and be with his family. After learning of the announcement, Gov.
Justice issued a statement, thanking Dr. Paine for his long and
successful service to the state and the students of West Virginia. [Read More]
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Last
Friday, Gov. Justice hosted members of George Washington High
School's Volleyball, Boys Soccer, and Boys Tennis teams,
honoring each of them for winning their respective state
championships in 2019. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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On
Tuesday, Gov. Justice issued a proclamation, officially designating
Feb. 4, 2020 as Alzheimer’s and Dementia Awareness Day in West
Virginia. Alzheimer's Disease affects more than 38,000 people
over age 65 in West Virginia. [More
Photos]
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On
Wednesday, the West Virginia Small Business Development Center and
Secretary of State’s Office unveiled a new kiosk at the West
Virginia One Stop Business Center in Charleston where business
owners can now access information about services and resources
provided by the SBDC. [More
Photos]
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West
Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles’ Commissioner Everett
Frazier was on-hand Thursday at the Huntington Kroger on
7th Avenue to take part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a
new DMV NOW kiosk. Currently, there are 12 kiosks
installed across West Virginia, including the one in
Huntington. These kiosks help customers to “Skip the Line” and
perform some of the most popular DMV transactions quickly and
efficiently. Customers need to bring their current tax receipt and
vehicle registration card for the vehicle-renewal
service. Driver’s license renewal requires the current driver’s
license. [Watch Video]
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Last
Friday, the Department of Transportation highlighted the newest
leader with the State Division of Motor Vehicles: Everett Frazier.
Last month, Gov. Justice appointed Frazier to lead the DMV.
He has worked in various roles within the auto industry for
more than 30 years, including 25 years in managerial positions. [Watch
Video]
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On
Thursday, Gov. Justice issued a proclamation, officially
designating Feb. 6, 2020 as Civil Air Patrol Day in West
Virginia, honoring Mountain State members of the Civil Air
Patrol, a non-profit that serves as the official civilian
auxiliary of the United States Air Force. [Watch Video] [More Photos]
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Last
Friday, the West Virginia Intelligence Fusion Center announced
that it is coordinating an awareness campaign that will include
posting key information about human trafficking on posters at
welcome centers and rest areas throughout the state. The
posters provide the toll-free hotline and website link for the
National Human Trafficking Hotline. They urge people to get help,
report a tip or find services. They also provide details regarding
the forms of human trafficking. [Watch Video] [Read More]
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This week,
the Division of Natural Resources spotlighted winter trout stocking
season in West Virginia. Cold-water fish like trout enjoy
winter conditions, making this time of year a good time to fish
without large crowds. [Watch Video] [Read More]
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This week,
the Department of Environmental Protection highlighted World Wetlands
Day, which was observed on Sunday and celebrates how wetlands
benefit wildlife, people and the planet. In West Virginia, wetlands
make up less than one percent of the acreage but are home to nearly
a quarter of the state's native plant species and almost half of
the rare plants. [Watch
Video]
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Last
Saturday, Clements State Tree Nursery began taking orders for
container trees. Located along the Ohio River in Mason County,
Clements Tree Nursery is owned and operated by the West Virginia
Division of Forestry. The nursery produces and sells bare root
seedlings to landowners in West Virginia for the purpose of
reforestation, coal mine reclamation, wildlife cover, and Christmas
tree production. [Read More]
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