Mountain Messenger
  • News
    • Local News
    • Courthouse
      • Civil Suits
      • Deeds
      • Marriages
      • Public Meetings
      • Reunions
    • Club News
    • Education
    • Business News
    • Entertainment
    • Sports News
  • Spiritual
    • Parabola
    • Southern Baptist
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
    • Church Bulletin
  • Obituaries
  • Columns
    • A Look Back
    • Dear Recycle Lady
    • Between The Lines
    • Letters to the Editor
  • eMessenger
  • Special Publications
    • Properties and Lifestyles
    • State Fair Guide
  • Login
  • My Account
  • Contact Us
  • State News
  • National News
  • Classifieds
  • Legals
Subscribe For $2.50/Month
No Result
View All Result
Mountain Messenger
  • News
    • Local News
    • Courthouse
      • Civil Suits
      • Deeds
      • Marriages
      • Public Meetings
      • Reunions
    • Club News
    • Education
    • Business News
    • Entertainment
    • Sports News
  • Spiritual
    • Parabola
    • Southern Baptist
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
    • Church Bulletin
  • Obituaries
  • Columns
    • A Look Back
    • Dear Recycle Lady
    • Between The Lines
    • Letters to the Editor
  • eMessenger
  • Special Publications
    • Properties and Lifestyles
    • State Fair Guide
No Result
View All Result
Mountain Messenger
No Result
View All Result
  • National News
  • WV State News
  • VA State News
  • Contact Us
Home Opinions

The Back Pew – March 11th, 2017

March 10, 2017
in Opinions
Reading Time: 2 mins read
A A
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Thanks to everyone who attended last weekend’s town hall meetings across the district! We will certainly do that again. Now, to the week’s top issues at the Capitol…

BUDGET: Gov. Justice has released two budgets. Legislative leaders, while critical of his plans, have yet to release their own. (Some Senate Republicans introduced a framework where the income tax would be repealed and the sales tax increased dramatically, but this approach would incur more debt and hit working families hardest. Therefore, I don’t expect it to advance.) House Republicans say their budget plan,comprised heavily of cuts,is forthcoming this week. Stay tuned.

I continue to hear everyday from constituents that they want a fair, balanced budget on time. We have yet to deliver. People are starting to fear a government shutdown due to our inability to strike compromise. The longer this process takes, the more uncertainty we face.

WATER QUALITY STANDARDS: Last week the House considered bill 2506, relating to water quality standards. The bill allows more pollutants in our water, though the bill’s sponsors said it did “not lower our water quality standards.” That makes no sense! We need clean water, and we have no business allowing more pollutants in our water. That’s bad for our people, land, and any chance we have of attracting new businesses. So I voted against the bill. Unfortunately, it passed and is now in the Senate. If you don’t want more pollutants in your water, please call your senators.

DRUG DEBATES: For the past two weeks, almost every day has brought a floor debate over which direction drug policy in West Virginia should take. Questions debated include: Are mandatory minimum penalties a deterrent or a failed relic of the past? How can we ensure that law enforcement gets the people trafficking the drugs rather than the users who are addicted? What about treatment? Isn’t that what will do the most good for our families that have been torn apart? So why aren’t we putting our money where our mouth is and funding treatment?

Plenty of penalty bills have been passed adding huge mandatory minimum sentences. However, we have passed no bills relating to treatment. If we fail to address the drug problem comprehensively, we fail. I’ll be pushing for an emphasis on treatment and funding for treatment for the rest of the session.

CAMPAIGNING DISTANCE LIMITS: Over my objections, the House passed a bill last week changing the distance in which campaigning is allowed near polling places from 300 feet to 100 feet. I feel strongly that political advertisements already pollute our communities at election time. We should not allow that to be closer to polling places. However, the House passed the bill at the urging of the Judiciary Committee chair who felt recent court decisions invalidated our 300 foot rule.

As we pass the halfway mark of the 2017 legislative session, that’s the view from the back pew in Charleston.

(Stephen Baldwin is a local pastor and delegate to the WV House. You may reach him at 304-340-3131 or stephen.baldwin@wvhouse.gov)

ShareTweetPin
Previous Post

Morrisey applauds passage of bill allowing attorney generals to carry firearms

Next Post

Pocahontas Knights of Columbus serve at first fish dinner; more dinners scheduled

Join Our Newsletter

  • News
  • Spiritual
  • Obituaries
  • Columns
  • eMessenger
  • Special Publications

© 2022 Mountain Media, LLC

  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Cart
No Result
View All Result
  • eMessenger
  • Local News
  • Courthouse
  • A Look Back
  • Business News
  • Church News
  • Club News
  • Sports News
  • Entertainment
  • Obituaries
  • Opinions
  • Special Publications
  • Contact Us
  • My Account
  • Subscribe | Digital & Newspaper

© 2022 Mountain Media, LLC

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Thank you for supporting local journalism. Please enjoy two free articles per month.

Subscribe Or Login For Full Access

Forgot your password?

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive mail with link to set new password.

Back to login