Changes Afoot for Manchin Press Shop

Marshall University will soon have a new chief of staff, but at the expense of Gov. Joe Manchin's press team, The Associated Press reports.

Matt Turner is taking the higher education post, leaving as the governor's communications director April 30.

His successor is Sara Payne Scarbo, an administration veteran who also managed Manchin's 2008 re-election campaign.

Manchin's office has issued a release on the changes.

Manchin Vetoes Gun-Related Bills

Gov. Joe Manchin has vetoed the bill that gave him "pure heartburn," a measure offering an annual holiday from the state sales tax for gun buyers, The Associated Press reports.

Manchin also vetoed a second bill related to gun sales, this one targeting attempted undercover stings that test background checks by dealers.

While that bill fell victim to a technical flaw, Manchin cited the loss of revenue and a multi-state sales tax agreement when he axed the sales tax holiday.

Long endorsed by the National Rifle Association, Manchin said in a statement that he told the group's leaders in advance of his veto.

“I appreciate the NRA’s understanding of our concerns and I am confident we will continue to have a strong relationship with this organization that represents so many of our residents and their interests in the shooting sports," the statement said.

W.Va. Budget Revenues Sink into Red

West Virginia saw the first signs of a projected $120 million general revenue deficit in March, when tax collections came in $58 million below estimate, The Associated Press reports.

The poor results more than eclipsed a $24 million excess balance, leaving general tax revenues $33 million in the red with just three months left in the budget year.

"State government's two key general revenue sources — personal income and sales and use taxes — reflect the weakened economy," the article said. "Accounting for nearly three-fourths of those revenues, each is down nearly $36 million for the year."

Manchin officials also note that "one bright spot remains severance taxes on extracted natural resources, mostly from coal. They were $6 million above estimate for March and up $85 million for the year."

Manchin Relents on In-Home Care Veto

Gov. Joe Manchin has agreed to replace the $5.5 million he recently vetoed out of the new state budget for an in-home care program, The Associated Press reports.

The governor plans to request a supplemental funding measure in that amount during the expected upcoming special legislative session on education.

"Lawmakers and Manchin have repeatedly sparred over this program," AP reports. "It offers eligible seniors and the disabled an alternative to nursing homes."

Manchin has also posted a release. The Charleston Gazette has coverage as well.

Racing to the Top

Federal officials have released scores, reviewers' comments and other information from the first round of the $4.35 billion Race to the Top education grant program.

West Virginia placed 36th, after applying alongside 40 states and Washington, D.C. The Associated Press scrutinizes the Mountain State's score.

Winning 292 out of 500 possible points, the state was penalized most heavily because it "lacks charter schools and has struggled to turn around its worst schools," the article said. "West Virginia also lost points for the way it evaluates teachers and principals, an unclear reform agenda and a lack of progress raising student achievement. It won near-perfect marks for setting standards and assessing performance, and also earned credit for devoting funds to education and setting up a statewide data system."

The Charleston Daily Mail reports on the state preparing to apply for the second round of funding. MetroNews hears from the head of one of West Virginia's teachers unions on the topic.

Quote of the Day

"Just to show that I'm not biased, I actually think that West Virginia's got a great chance. I did not win that state, but they've got a really good team."

-- President Barack Obama, when asked by Today host Matt Lauer about his pick among the Final Four from the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

Politics and the Road to the Final Four (Updated)

West Virginia University's 73-66 win over Kentucky in Saturday's NCAA men's tournament game earned Gov. Joe Manchin a Louisville Slugger from his Bluegrass State counterpart, the result of a friendly wager, The Register-Herald reports.

"As part of the bet, Manchin put up a product of the renown Blenko Glass Co.," the Beckley newspaper noted. "'I might give him the glass anyway,' Manchin said. 'That way, they’ll always remember our win.'"

MetroNews is among those carrying Manchin's statement praising the Mountaineers for their conduct on and off the court.

The Charleston Daily Mail observes that those rooting for WVU in its April 3 Final Four appearance will include U.S. Reps. Shelley Moore Capito, R-2nd, and Nick Rahall, D-3rd, both alumni of opponent Duke.

"Meanwhile, Rahall said his wife, Melinda, a native of Ashland who graduated from the University of Kentucky, still isn't speaking to him after WVU's upset win over the Wildcats," that article said.

(Rahall threw in a "Go Mountaineers" line during a brief interview last week with The Associated Press. But AP also reports that Las Vegas oddsmakers made Duke "a 2.5-point favorite to beat West Virginia in the semifinals" and "a 7-5 favorite to win the title." The gambling consultants added that "either Duke or West Virginia would likely be favored over Butler or Michigan State in the finals," putting the Mountaineers' odds "at 2-1.")

Update: President Barack Obama touted WVU's chances during an appearance on NBC's Today (about 4 minutes into the interview segment). He quickly qualified his pick by predicting that the winner of the WVU-Duke matchup would prevail in the finals:

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Host Matt Lauer had noted that of the four states with teams left in the tournament, Obama had carried all but West Virginia in 2008.

Election Changes Coming to West Virginia

The Associated Press reports that separate legislation passed this session addressing elections in West Virginia could each attract legal scrutiny.

The Center for Competitive Politics tells AP that it is considering taking the state to court over the measure signed by Gov. Joe Manchin last week. Part of his session agenda, the new law sets up a public financing pilot project for 2012's state Supreme Court races.

The other election-related bill, awaiting the governor's review, "revisits efforts to regulate third-party election advertising." AP reports that the previous attempts spurred federal lawsuits, a trend likely to continue if Manchin signs that bill.

Wielding Line-Item Vetoes, Manchin Signs Budget

Gov. Joe Manchin has approved a new, $11.6 billion spending plan for West Virginia state government after cutting out $17.2 million, The Associated Press reports.

Armed with a line-item veto, Manchin raised 55 objections to the budget bill passed last weekend by the Legislature.

While several of these objections reduced or even zeroed out funding items within programs and agencies, several others "erased language earmarking spending lines for specific purposes," the article said. "Lawmakers had, for instance, spelled out amounts for 361 different fair- or festival-type events."

A number of the vetoes "returned agency or program spending to current levels and then reduced them by 5 percent," AP also reports. "Manchin had proposed cuts of that amount in the budget plan he presented in January, citing the recession-weakened economy."

Lawmakers blasted several of Manchin's line-items, particularly one cutting funding for a senior in-home care program and another removing a legislative directive involving substance abuse funding.

They Voted for You: Health Care Fix-Its

U.S. Sens. Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller, both D-W.Va., helped pass a slightly altered Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 back to the U.S. House.

The 56-43 vote had all Republicans present and three Democrats opposing the measure. Reporting on this stage of the bill's fortunes, The Associated Press said it "would change the new health care law by making drug benefits for Medicare recipients more generous by gradually closing a gap in coverage, increasing tax subsidies to help low-income people afford health care, and boosting federal Medicaid payments to states."

The House later gave final approval to the measure, 220-207. Reps. Alan Mollohan, D-1st, and Nick Rahall, D-3rd, voted for the final bill. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-2nd, joined all of her fellow Republicans present and 32 Democrats to vote against it.

AP reports separately on that final step.

Quote of the Day

"All of us are going to have to look at that ... What we've got to do is make (insurance companies) compete — and a public option is probably the only way."

-- Gov. Joe Manchin to Time magazine on how states might operate the insurance exchanges allowed under the new federal health care law.

The article said that Oregon is "already studying the feasibility of including a public option as part of its state exchange." Time also quotes Manchin suggesting that West Virginia may join with neighboring states to operate a regional exchange.

Election 2010: Congress

• Former Alaska governor and 2008 GOP presidential running mate Sarah Palin has included U.S. Reps. Alan Mollohan, W.Va.-1st, and Nick Rahall, W.Va.-3rd, among 20 House Democrats she has vowed to target for defeat through her political action committee, The Charleston Gazette reports.

• The Charleston Daily Mail also has an item on the SarahPAC hit list, spurred by passage of federal health care legislation.

• The Daily Mail reports separately that West Virginians for Life has ruled out endorsing either Democratic incumbent this year, because of their votes for what the group's leader calls "the greatest expansion of abortion since Roe v. Wade." (Politifact.com has analyzed several abortion-related claims regarding the bill, recently rating as "True" the statement that "there will be no public funding for abortion in this legislation.")

• The six Republicans seeking to challenge Mollohan in November each would have voted against the health care bill, The Intelligencer reports. His primary challenger, state Sen. Mike Oliverio, D-Monongalia, told the Wheeling newspaper "he isn't certain what his vote would have been," as "he doesn't yet know the intricacies negotiated in the bill or how it might affect West Virginia."

They Voted for You: Infrastructure & Tax Cuts

U.S. Reps. Alan Mollohan, D-1st, and Nick Rahall, D-3rd, voted for the "Small Business and Infrastructure Jobs Tax Act."

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-2nd, joined all but four of the House's GOP members in opposing the measure, which passed 246-178.

The Associated Press reports that the bill "combines $13.2 billion in interest subsidies for local construction bonds with $3.6 billion in tax cuts for small businesses and $2.5 billion in aid to states to pay for expanded welfare programs through September 2011."

The bonds are meant to help local governments fund projects. "Republicans said the bills were evidence that last year’s massive economic recovery package was ineffective," and that the tax cuts "were too small to make a significant dent in joblessness," the article said.

The House also passed a separate measure by 239-175 that the AP report said "would provide $5.1 billion to fund local disaster relief projects, including some that date back to Hurricane Katrina, and $600 million for summer jobs programs."

Mollohan and Rahall voted for that bill, while Capito and all but five Republicans present opposed it.

Post-Session Roundup (Updated)

Gov. Joe Manchin has so far signed 61 bills from the just-completed regular session.

The Journal of Martinburg notes his approval of a House-sponsored Caregivers Consent Act. "As a result of serious drug and alcohol issues that some parents may have, the lack of consent medical centers are given to treat children had become a major problem," one health official told the newspaper.

The Charleston Gazette reports that some Lottery Commission members want Manchin "to veto a bill that would change the way that 10-year limited video lottery licenses will be re-bid next year." The measure's sole sponsor defends it to MetroNews (with audio).

The News and Sentinel of Parkersburg hears from area educators about the school-related measures that did and did not emerge from the session.

The Associated Press noted earlier that before adjourning over the weekend, the Legislature had passed corrected versions of all five bills that Manchin had vetoed because of technical flaws.

Update: Manchin has vetoed a sixth bill, which aimed to add 120 or so troopers to the State Police by mid-2016. The governor objected to the time frame and to the bill's overall approach to increasing their ranks. The Gazette has details.

Health Care and West Virginia (Updated)

The Charleston Gazette and Public Broadcasting are among those reporting on what the recently passed federal health care legislation will mean for the Mountain State.

The Associated Press covered President Barack Obama's signing of the "massive, nearly $1 trillion health care overhaul," meant to "for the first time cement insurance coverage as the right of every U.S. citizen and begin to reshape the way virtually all Americans receive and pay for treatment."

Among other relevant provisions, The Gazette says the bill will provide funding for "medical school residencies in rural areas," and to expand both "low-cost community health center care," and "the number of doctors who can work off their student loans by practicing in underserved rural areas." It also provides "free wellness screenings for West Virginia's 372,000 Medicare recipients" and allows more poor adults to seek coverage through Medicaid.

Public Broadcasting (audio here) cites the increased Medicaid eligibility as well as "tax credits for people who are buying insurance on the open market" and "a provision to require all restaurants with more than twenty locations to post calorie counts on their menus."

The legislation also included language proposed by U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., regarding black lung benefits. Both The Gazette and the Charleston Daily Mail report on that provision, with the latter relaying criticism from the state Chamber of Commerce and BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co.

AP also fact-checks some of the more prominent allegations, pro and con, surrounding the new law. FactCheck.org does the same, while Politifact chronicles the Top 5 Lies about the legislation and the Top 10 Facts to know now that it has passed.

AP also sets the stage for Senate action on the House-passed "fix-it bill" to the new law, while reporting separately on the prospects for the federal lawsuit filed by 13 state attorneys general seeking to overturn it.

MetroNews reports on the statement from Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., on the legislation.

Update: The president of Mountain State Blue Cross-Blue Shield, West Virginia's most prominent private insurer, assesses the signed bill for MetroNews. With audio.

They Voted For You: Health Care

U.S. Reps. Alan Mollohan, D-1st, and Nick Rahall, D-3rd, voted for what The Associated Press describes as "a transformative health care bill" that would "extend coverage to 32 million uninsured Americans, reduce deficits and ban insurance company practices such as denying coverage to people with pre-existing medical conditions."

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-2nd, opposed the measure along with the House's other Republican members and 34 Democrats in the 219-212 roll call. "GOP lawmakers attacked the legislation as everything from a government takeover to the beginning of totalitarianism," the article said.

AP also offers a glance of the bill's highlights, and reports separately on Mollohan and Rahall's votes. Others with coverage include The Register-Herald of Beckley, The Intelligencer of Wheeling, and the Charleston Daily Mail. MetroNews has separate items for Mollohan and Rahall.

West Virginia's delegation voted the same way in a 220-211 roll call for a "companion package making a series of changes sought by House Democrats to the larger bill," AP reports. "The fix-it bill will now go to the Senate, where debate is expected to begin as early as Tuesday."

Open Government in West Virginia

A number of "press, state universities and nonprofit groups" have banded together "to help residents and public officials better understand laws that allow access to public documents, information and government meetings," The Associated Press reports.

The new West Virginia Open Government Coalition is aided by "a $15,000 grant from the National Freedom of Information Coalition," writes AP's Tom Breen. "The money will fund an office at Marshall University," the article said, while "members of the group also have plans for educational seminars for public officials and to provide answers to urgent questions by phone."

West Virginia "may be the last state in the country to get such a group," Corley Dennison, dean of Marshall's School of Journalism and Mass Communications, told AP.

Death by Committee

The Associated Press examined the work of the 14 Senate and 14 House committees that took up bills during the just-completed legislative session. Among the findings:

• Just under one-third of the 2,080 bills introduced during the session earned a review from at least one committee during the 60 days.

• About one in 10 bills made it through two committees in the chamber where it started.

• A triple-reference proved too great a hurdle: none of the 20 House and Senate bills each assigned to three separate committees for review survived the session.

• Of the 320 bills that crossed over between the Senate and House, more than 70 percent cleared at least one committee in the other chamber.

• House committees got off to a quicker start, advancing bills almost immediately.

• The House Judiciary Committee proved the busiest overall, considering nearly 200 bills.

The analysis also noted the dearth of bills voted down in committee. "Committee chairs say they tended to limit their meeting agendas to bills they deemed likely to advance," the article said.

But critics of that approach, and the current committee process, include the House's longest-serving sitting member.

They Will Vote For You: Health Care (Updated)

U.S. Reps. Alan Mollohan, D-1st, and Nick Rahall, D-3rd, appeared at a Capitol Hill news conference that unveiled an "agreement with the White House and party leaders to make sure health care legislation does not permit the use of federal funds for elective abortions," The Associated Press reports.

The two were among six anti-abortion Democrats who joined Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., who said the deal "means he can now support a health care bill headed for a vote on the House floor later Sunday."

C-SPAN carried live video of the announcement, with Mollohan standing just off Stupak's left shoulder. Mollohan also spoke to Politico.

The White House has posted the release that includes the executive order issued as part of the agreement.

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-2nd, opposes the pending bill and has posted a video in which she outlines her position.

Update: A former staffer of Mollohan tells The Wall Street Journal that "she and her organization will work to defeat Rep. Mollohan in this year’s election if he votes for the health-care legislation."

Legislature Passes $11.6 Billion State Budget (Updated)

An $11.6 billion budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1 is headed to Gov. Joe Manchin, after the Legislature passed a compromise spending plan.

The Senate voted 29-0, and the House 84-12. Both roll calls involved pairings with absent lawmakers.

The Associated Press (updated) has details. AP had earlier set the stage for Saturday's vote.