CHARLESTON, W.Va. –Several leaders from across the state have expressed their thoughts and opinions in the four days since the 60-day legislative session came to a close.
Vice President of Policy and Advocacy for the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce Brian Dayton says his group is not content with what was done.
Brian Dayton
“Frustration is probably the correct word from the Chamber’s perspective,” Dayton said Wednesday morning on MetroNews’ Talkline. “It’s really a frustration that there was a lot of missed opportunity when it came to focus on job creation, economic development and better education outcomes.”
As far as economic development goes, Governor Patrick Morrisey has been adament that his data centers bill, which got across the finish line, will attract corporations to build in West Virginia and thus, help the state thrive. The bill was one of the main focuses of his economic “Backyard Brawl” to compete with bordering states.
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Lawmakers passed a couple of bills relating to education and the school system, one focusing on school discipline, while two others aim to put over $60 million of state funds towards the HOPE Scholarship.
Dayton says the session wasn’t all negative, but too much time was wasted.
“There were a few good bills that got through the process, but there was a lot of time that was spent this session, from the business community perspective, on defending against legislation that would make it harder to create jobs in West Virginia and make us a less attractive state to locate,” Dayton said. “That’s frustration right there because we’ve been on such a good path moving forward trying to advance some good ideas.”
West Virginia Manufactures Association President Bill Bissett also appeared on MetroNews’ Talkline Wednesday to share his thoughts on how the session went. He says he’s giving lawmakers and the governor more grace.
Bill Bissett
“I’m not as critical as some,” Bissett said. “One of the things I’m quick to bring out is context. You have to consider you have a new governor, you have a new Senate president, you have 10 new senators in a body of 34, you have a new process for legislation in the House — that’s a lot of new in one session. It’s not only new for the people serving, but also for those interacting with them, so that was a big factor.”
Bissett did say that he sees the concerns people like Dayton have, and he just wants to see the state prosper.
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“Overall, I think there is a valid concern about how much was pro-economic development. I think some of the legislation that came out of the governor’s office was very positive, which we supported, but at the same time, I think we really need to focus on what grows the economy of West Virginia and what allows us to not only grow our population, but what allow people to stay here?”
In addition to the recently wrapped-up 60 day session, Governor Morrisey has gone on record saying there’s a chance he will call one or more special sessions this year to focus on topics such as education and PEIA. For now, Dayton says the Chamber of Commerce is setting its eyes towards making the next regular session better.
“We’re working and talking with legislators right now to do a bit of a reset heading into the 2026 session next year. We’re already thinking in that direction about how do we re-direct that focus down on those things that are going to really improve people’s lives on the day-to-day basis,” Dayton said.
BRIDGEPORT, W.Va (WDTV) – West Virginia lawmakers continued working as the Saturday midnight deadline approaches.
Senate Action
The Senate passed 12 bills, including one requiring adult content websites to use age verification to block minors. Senators also passed a bill creating a Cold Case Task Force.
House Bill 49-90, targeting gift card crimes, and House Bill 54-37, the Vape Safety Act, also passed unanimously. All four bills now go to the House for concurrence.
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Delegates passed Alyssa’s Law, allowing teachers to wear mobile alert buttons that notify 9-1-1 and trigger a school lockdown in emergencies. The bill is named after a victim of the 2018 Parkland shooting.
Bill 4005, which clarifies jobs prohibited for workers under 16 — including bar work and logging — also passed. Both bills now head to Governor Patrick Morrisey’s desk.
Senate Bill 4 would require bystanders to stay at least 30 feet from first responders.
Senate Bill 75 would allow West Virginia law enforcement to cooperate with officers in bordering states. A bill from the Education Committee would allow teachers with at least 15 years of experience to become certified as school principals.
For more legislative coverage, go to our website at wdtv.com.
The West Virginia Mountaineers (10-3) welcome the Maryland Terrapins (10-5) to Kendrick Family Ballpark Tuesday afternoon the first encounter between the two programs since 2023 and the first meeting in Morgantown since 2018. The first pitch is set for 2:00 p.m. EST and the action will stream on ESPN+.
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The Mountaineers captured their fourth consecutive series of the season after taking two of the three games from Columbia over the weekend. West Virginia sophomore Matt Ineich and senior Brodie Kresser both blasted grand slams during the series. Ineich lifted WVU in game two with a walk-off grand slam in the 10th in game two, and Kresser ignited a 16-1 rout, capping a six-run second inning in the series finale.
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Gavin Kelly leads West Virginia at the plate with a .436 batting average with a Big 12 leading nine doubles. Ineich and senior Paul Schoenfeld has raked in a team-leading 16 RBI apiece, while senior Matthew Graveline has clubbed a team-high three home runs.
On the mound, West Virginia is expected to start sophomore David Hagen. The right-hander has made four appearances on the season, including one start. He last started in the home-opener against Ohio where he pitched two scoreless innings and recorded a strikeout to collect his first win of the season. He holds a 1.00 ERA with five strikeouts on the season.
After starting 3-4, Maryland is 7-1 in its last eight games. The Terrapins won two of three at UNC Wilmington in the season opening series, followed by a midweek win against Georgetown before getting swept at Louisiana. The Terps bounced back with a pair of midweek wins versus Delaware and swept a one-win Wagner team.
Junior Brayden Martin is batting a team-best .443 to go with four doubles and 12 RBI. Redshirt freshman Ryan Costello leads the Terps in home runs (9) and RBI (21) and is third in batting average at .328, while freshman Ty Kaunus has a team-high seven doubles and has .269 batting average.
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Maryland is scheduled to start freshman Nic Morlang. The right-hander has four appearances on the season, including four starts. He allowed five earned runs in his appearances, coinciding with his two starts, in six innings of work. In his last two appearances in relief, He’s allowed one earned run on five hits.
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West Virginia leads the all-time series 8-5, including a five-game winning streak over Maryland.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to a series of parties in Morgantown over the weekend.
Morgantown police officers, West Virginia University Police and state police responded to reports of overcrowded parties, underage drinking, physical altercations and multiple injuries.
Morgantown Communications Director Brad Riffie said several citations were issued for open containers and underage consumption.
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Two large parties were dispersed and six arrests were made without incident.
None of the reported injuries are believed to be serious or life-threatening.
The Morgantown Fire Department assisted in the operations.
