Column: From the WV Senate Minority Leader

Earlier this week in the Senate we passed a bill that will repeal the state’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Act. The law, originally passed in 2009,  requires power companies to use “alternative fuels” for 25 percent of electricity production by 2025. The original bill included various types of coal and natural gas technology in its definition of alternative fuels and many utilities. 

Prior to the passage of the repeal, I attempted to amend the bill to include a job impact statement that would give us a firm grasp of what if any impact repealing this bill would have on our economy. I am concerned that if the bill in fact will promote coal production, it could hurt the natural gas industry that is booming in our part of the state.

However, in my opinion and the opinion of many in the utility industry, neither the current law nor the repeal bill have any real effect, since power companies operating in the state are already using alternative fuels, as defined in the law, for 25 percent of their electricity production. 

Given that this legislation was repeatedly and incorrectly  portrayed as West Virginia’s version of “cap-and-trade” during the general election campaign, I would like to see empirical data on exactly what the repeal bill will do. We should use data rather than rhetoric to guide our legislative actions.

Also this week, I was honored to have the opportunity to speak that the Fairness West Virginia press conference at the Capitol. The event was held to rally support for Senate Bill 125, which seeks to amend the state’s Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination in employment, housing and places of public accommodation. The state has no such protections for gay, lesbian or transgender residents.

I am proud to be the lead sponsor of this bill and until it is passed the words “with liberty and justice for all” that we recite each morning in the Senate chamber during the pledge of allegiance will continue to ring hollow.

I tell folks that I find it ironic that in West Virginia you can now get married on a Saturday, get evicted on a Sunday and fired on Monday all for doing something that is perfectly legal for others. 

We all want to attract more skilled workers and business to West Virginia, but without these protections it makes attracting a diverse workforce that much harder. This is not a Republican or a Democratic issue, it is a human rights issue and one that we should all support for a truly free and equal society.

If you would like to follow the daily action of the Legislature, visit the 82nd Legislature on the web athttp://www.legis.state.wv.us/.

I hear your voice and I encourage all of you, regardless of party or affiliation, to contact me with any concerns you have regarding issues facing our district or our state. You can write to me at: Jeffrey V. Kessler, State Senate, Room 257M, Bldg. 1, 1900 Kanawha Blvd. E. Charleston, WV 25305.