By Phil Kabler, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — I was running the numbers, and to my astonishment, this will be my 35th regular session of the Legislature, and my third in semi-retirement.
I won’t bore you with how much things have changed at the statehouse over the past three and a half decades, particularly regarding technology. However, I also imagine a legislator from the early years of statehood would recognize the parliamentary procedures in use today — although the current leadership has become quite adept at short-circuiting those legislative rules and procedures for their own ends.
Traditionally, election-year legislative sessions are low-key, given that legislators seeking reelection or higher office tend to eschew controversy.
However, of late that doesn’t necessarily seem to be the case, as present-day legislators feel compelled to throw red meat to their base at all times.
One issue in particular that I’ll be watching is Gov. Jim Justice’s last tussle with the Legislature, as he tries to push through a pay raise for public school and state employees intended to at least partially offset a second straight year of steep premium increases for PEIA health insurance.