First-of-its-kind partnership in state’s history to prevent disability fraud CHARLESTON, W.Va., — West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, the Social Security Administration and its Office of the Inspector General (OIG) announced today the formation of the Cooperative Disability Investigations (CDI) Unit in Charleston. As part of the nationwide CDI Program, the Charleston Unit identifies[Read More…]
Month: December 2015
Charleston to pay man $650K after ambulance drug mix-up
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Charleston city officials will pay a man $650,000 after paramedics in a city ambulance gave the man a drug that nearly killed him. The claim settlement is probably the largest paid by the city in nearly a decade, said City Attorney Paul Ellis, who presented the settlement[Read More…]
Work, training relinked to WV food stamps
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Up to 47,700 West Virginians could lose their food stamp benefits next year unless they work part-time or take job-training classes. The state Department of Health and Human Resources announced Monday that it is reinstating work and job-training requirements for recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Program (SNAP) benefits in[Read More…]
Manchin applauds Senate passage of GONE Act to cut government waste
Manchin-Fischer bill would save taxpayer dollars by closing expired grant accounts WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Friday, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed The Grants Oversight and New Efficiency (GONE) Act, bipartisan legislation to save taxpayer dollars by providing additional oversight over the financial accountability of federal grant programs. The bill, which was reintroduced by[Read More…]
GOP leadership deserves credit for Senate upgrades
A Daily Mail editorial from the Charleston Gazette-Mail CHARLESTON, W.Va. — When the legislative session begins in just a few short weeks, visitors to the Senate side of the Capitol might notice some changes. As the Gazette-Mail’s Phil Kabler wrote last week, the Senate will spend about $250,000 on upgrades to[Read More…]
Broadband service remains urgent need in WV
An editorial from The Herald-Dispatch HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — West Virginia lawmakers heard plenty on Thursday about how the state’s poor broadband infrastructure and slow Internet speeds pose a host of problems for people in the state, whether they are students, medical personnel who need to move large amounts of data or[Read More…]
La. cracker to use Marcellus, Utica shale gas will proceed
WHEELING, W.Va. — At least one new multi-billion-dollar ethane cracker will process material from the Marcellus and Utica shale regions – once it travels to Louisiana via pipeline for use at the Axiall Corp. and Lotte Chemical Corp. petrochemical plant. After several months of discussion, officials with Atlanta-based Axiall and[Read More…]
Letter to Martinsburg paper sparks outpouring
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Can a letter to a newspaper editor make a change? Tom Ressler thought so. He recently wrote a letter to The Journal expressing his concerns about those in poverty in the southern part of West Virginia. His letter made an impact on Taffy Horner, who decided to[Read More…]
Raleigh, Boone mine layoffs just latest in trend
BECKLEY, W.Va. — After announcing 138 additional layoffs at four mines in Raleigh and Boone counties late last week, an Alpha Natural Resources official said Monday that he could not “speculate if the (affected) jobs are coming back.” One section in each of the mines, Marfork Coal Co.’s Slip Ridge and Ellis[Read More…]
Beckley native shines on racing’s biggest stage
BECKLEY, W.Va. — When Sam Vernatter started helping his dad Tim in his Shady Spring auto shop at the age of 12, he never suspected that it would be the start of a career that would take him well beyond his native Shady Spring. Nineteen years later, he found himself[Read More…]
