Short Takes from the Session: Day 16 (Updated)

BUCKS FOR JOBS: West Virginia and Marshall universities, the intended beneficiaries, are praising Gov. Joe Manchin's proposed $50 million investment to endow a research fund. The Associated Press, The Charleston Gazette, MetroNews and the Herald-Dispatch of Huntington are among those with stories.

ABORTION: Manchin tells MetroNews' Talkline show that he would sign a pending bill "that would stop state money from funding for elective abortions for poor women." The governor "says, philosophically, funding for those elective abortions should not be part of the basic health care expenditures of the state," MetroNews reports. With audio.

'CAPTIVE' MEETINGS: Following some disagreement over the measure when it was crafted during interim meetings, lawmakers have introduced a bill "that would bar employers from forcing workers to hear talks on religious or labor matters," the Register-Herald of Beckley reports.

DRIVING WHILE DIALING: The House Roads and Transportation Committee voted down a bill Wednesday "that would have outlawed drivers talking on hand-held cell phones," The Gazette reports. Some committee members called for an interim study instead.

REAL ID: West Virginia could join the roster of states "refusing to change what appears on their driver's licenses to meet new national security standards," The State Journal reports.

PUBLIC TV (Update): The new director of the state Educational Broadcasting Authority told lawmakers he's arrived to find a "gaping hole" in his TV stations' audience: the 18-to-49 demographic. The Gazette has details.

DNR (Update): As part of its ongoing scrutiny of the state budget, the Charleston Daily Mail reports that "a decline in hunting and fishing license sales has left a $1.8 million budget hole for the state Division of Natural Resources."