WVEC Legislative Update

To read the update online, scroll down to articles (or click on index links below).  If you want to print or read an exact copy of the printed newsletter, try the PDF version. 

Under the Dome
ATV Legislation Headed Down Wrong Road
Bills We Are Tracking
Interim Session Final Wrap-up
Feds urge state to take closer look at selenium, mines
Lean, Clean & Green…..
Timber Reforms
Lobbying ... The Art of Influence ~ A Necessary Evil?
Bottle Bill Rolling Along
Clean Elections Legislation Introduced in the Senate;
House Bill Expected Next Week
Federal officials advise shift in focus to boost W.Va. economy

Under the Dome

Week 2 – Making Sausage

Was it Mark Twain who said, "There are two things you never want to see – the process of making sausage, and the process of making legislation!"?

Well, the legislature’s joint Interim Rulemaking Committee put the art of sausage making to shame last week, in the most overt pandering to industry "special interests" that I have ever witnessed around here.

The committee actually adopted into the water quality rules package a series of terrible, weakening, industry amendments that had NO official legislative sponsor.

This is simply not how things are supposed to be done in our democratic system. Sure, in the past industry has written amendments, we have written amendments. It’s done all the time. But there is always a member of the legislature that submits them as their amendments. Not this time.

The end result was that industry lobbyists and lawyers – folks who have never been elected to public office – were for all practical purposes given a full seat on the committee. THEY were essentially submitting amendments, and doing the committee’s work, while representing only their narrow self-interests.

It was left to Senator John Unger, a member of the committee, to point out how wrong-headed the process had become.

"Mr. Chairman, I just want the committee and the public to be clear as to what’s going on here," Senator Unger said.

"These are special interest amendments as far as I can tell."

He then raised a copy of the first amendment in the air and said, "This amendment to remove the new toxins from the water quality rules is the Chamber of Commerce amendment, is it not?"

Next he raised the second amendment in the air and said, "This amendment to remove the new list of trout streams is the Oil and Gas Association amendment, is it not? Our trout fishermen will love this one."

Then he held the third amendment up and said, "This amendment to remove the designation of all state waters as drinking water sources is the Manufacturers Association amendment, is it not?"

Finally, he waved the last amendment in the air. "And this set of amendments to weaken the standards for selenium, aluminum and manganese, this is the Coal Association’s amendment is it not?"

"So, Mr. Chairman, these are special interest amendments, are they not?", Senator Unger asked.

Without skipping a beat, the committee chairman, Senator Mike Ross, replied (only half-jokingly), "Yes, senator, this committee accepts all special interest amendments."

Senator Unger concluded his remarks by saying that he just wanted to clear things up because "I thought we were supposed to do this" (propose amendments), "but obviously the legislative process is now going in a different direction."

Even though Senator Unger’s performance was eloquent, the committee accepted Senator Herb Snyder's motion to add these four major weakening amendments.

This is not the way the legislative process is supposed to work. I have pointed out in previous years in my column that in most other states the expert agencies promulgate rules and the legislature can only vote them up or down.

Don’t you think it’s time we take control of the government back for the real special interests?

Until next week, remember to keep your bird feeders full.

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The ATV bill (HB4022) that passed the House of Delegates yesterday is completely unacceptable. Not only does it not require ATV’s to be used in accordance with the manufacturers’ recommendations, it does not state that the DNR or other agencies have the power to regulate their use on public lands. Nor does it require helmets on children on private property.

It does however permit the machines on public roads without a painted centerline, which is the majority of the state road system. It does also permit them on the shoulders for a distance of 25 miles. And where in West Virginia is there a 25-mile stretch of road with continuous shoulder?

It does also require the DMV to offer a safety course and there is a limitation on teenagers having passengers. And it does allow counties to regulate their use in subdivisions, a nice provision for the Eastern Panhandle and small bits of other counties, but of no use in most of the state.

Several Senators have introduced the ATV bills that were generated in the interim session. Other versions have also been introduced. These bills are far superior to the version of 4022 that passed. The Senate bill numbers include: 215, 252, 253, and 223.

Remember, the first efforts to regulate these machines surfaced in the early 1990s. West Virginia is one of a handful of states that still does not regulate them. No wonder two dozen or more people die in ATV accidents every year in this state.

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Bills We Are Tracking

 
We will let you know each week the current bills we are tracking - and as usual, keep you informed on all the issues WVEC is working on during the session.

Legislative Reference & Information Center
MB-27, Building 1
State Capitol Complex
Charleston, WV 25305
304 347-4836 toll free: 1 877 565-3447

On Line: www.legis.state.wv.us

 Click here for a complete list of all the House of Delegates Representatives and Senators with their individual contact information. 

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Long time observers shake their heads in disbelief as they review the 2003 interims. It was distinguished by the small number of bills generated by the large number of committees. Several committees, including the select committees on mining and water, did not generate any bills. Two bills emerged unexpectedly: public election financing (nee’ clean election financing) and a payday lending bill opposed by the banking industry.

For those who don’t follow interims- the process is used to study issues that could not be resolved during the legislative session, or issues that really are complicated and technical. There are also standing committees that hear reports and gather information, such as forestry or health and human resources.

At the end of the interim year, in January, studies are done, bills presented and everyone goes home content. And bills from the interim process almost always pass in recognizable form.

This year of the issues followed by the Environmental Council, only a few bills emerged.

DEP has a proposal to create an environmental excellence program for businesses that incorporate environmentally friendly processes and habits. It will include businesses such as stores and inns that don’t have DEP permits.

There will be bills for public election financing and a statewide trails coordinator.

The select committee on mining realized that no bills were necesssary, as the department revamped some of its permitting processes to make them move more quickly. Actually, it appears to be a more efficient process. It includes more training for mine consultants and more DEP staff. There is a proposal to make the committee permanent. We are reserving judgement on this idea, but it seems to work in other areas, such as health and human resources, so maybe it will work in mining.

As for the select committee on water, the committee dealing with the water quantity issue, observers don’t recall other interim committees dissolving in chaos at the last possible moment.

Forest management review commission spent the year studying the economic impact of forestry and related industries. A mound of information emerged, but no legislation.

So there you have it, a flurry of activity, lots of information and reports, and no bad bills. Not a bad year.

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Ken Ward Jr., Gazette Staff Writer
(Reprinted from January 20, 2004 Gazette article with permission)

Federal government biologists have found troubling amounts of the toxic chemical selenium in fish downstream from mountaintop removal mine sites, according to a new report.

Late last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service urged state regulators to more closely examine selenium discharges from coal mining.

On Friday, fish and wildlife officials gave the state Department of Environmental Protection the results of its new study of selenium levels in fish downstream from mining operations.

"We believe that the potential for release of selenium during and after mining should be assessed to ensure that future permits are not issued where there is a likelihood that selenium water quality standards will be violated," wrote David Densmore, supervisor of the service’s regional office, in a letter to Allyn Turner, director of the DEP Division of Water and Waste Management.

During this year’s legislative session, coal industry lobbyists want to weaken West Virginia’s water quality rules for selenium.

Environmentalists are trying to force state mining regulators to more closely scrutinize selenium discharged by coal mining. The West Virginia Highlands Conservancy has appealed a permit that DEP granted in September 2003 to Coal-Mac Inc.

Coal-Mac, an arm of St. Louis-based mining giant Arch Coal Inc., wants to expand its Phoenix Surface Mine operation along Cow Creek, a tributary of Island Creek in Logan County.

Conservancy lawyers argue that DEP should have required the company to test for selenium in its coal and the rock and dirt it removes to get at the coal.

"If elevated selenium levels are found, the material must be isolated from contact with surface and ground water to avoid further selenium pollution," they said in their appeal.

A hearing on that issue is scheduled to start this morning before the state Surface Mine Board.

Selenium is a naturally occurring mineral element that is found is many rocks and soils. In very tiny amounts, it is an antioxidant and is needed for good health. But in only slightly greater amounts, selenium is highly toxic.

In humans, it can cause hair loss, nail brittleness and neurological problems such as numbness. In aquatic life, very small amounts of selenium have been found to cause reproductive failure.

Last year, in a broad mountaintop removal study, federal officials found repeated violations of water quality limits for selenium in the water downstream from mining operations. Violations were found in the Upper Mud River, Island Creek, Twentymile Creek, Spruce Fork and Clear Fork watersheds.

Federal officials based their report of violations on the state’s current selenium rule, which limits the legal concentration of selenium in water to 5 micrograms per liter.

In that study, federal officials said that selenium in streams accumulates in the food chain, increasing the amount to which fish are exposed.

Coal industry lobbyists want the state to abandon its current limit on selenium in water. Instead, they favor a rule to limit selenium in fish tissue to 7.9 parts per million. The joint Legislative Rulemaking-Review Committee has already approved this change.

Last week, coal company lawyer Bob McLusky told members of the West Virginia Coal Association that selenium is clearly found in and around coal reserves. When rock and dirt are moved to expose coal for mining, he said, selenium is released and ends up in streams.

"It’s never been a problem before, because no one has been out there looking for selenium," McLusky said.

The industry’s proposed rule change, McLusky said, "would ensure protection of aquatic life, and make sure we are not automatically in violation of water quality standards for selenium in West Virginia."

McLusky said that the industry simply wants the state to adopt a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standard for selenium.

Libby Chatfield is technical adviser for the state Environmental Quality Board, which writes West Virginia’s water quality rules. Chatfield said that the EPA has actually not completed work on its selenium proposal, although some scientists in the field have reviewed a draft recommendation.

West Virginia’s current rule is based on EPA recommendations. It is not clear when, or if, EPA will change its recommendations. Under the state’s current standards, widespread violations exist downstream from mining operations.

As part of the government’s broad study of mountaintop removal, EPA scientists found 66 violations of the 5-microgram-per-liter limit in water. But, if the state adopts the coal industry proposal of 7.9 parts per million in fish, these violations might disappear.

In their review, fish and wildlife biologists found concentrations of up to 6.89 parts per million in fish tissue downstream from mine sites. They found no concentrations in fish above the 7.9 limit the industry favors.

But in its letter to DEP, the Fish and Wildlife Service suggested that a limit of 7.9 parts per million could be too high. The agency noted that selenium studies have found that concentrations above 4.0 parts per million have caused death of young fish and failure of reproductive systems in adult fish.

In three areas downstream from mining operations, fish and wildlife officials found concentrations above that 4.0 figure, the agency’s report said. The selenium levels could also post a risk to birds that eat the fish, or aquatic insects in the stream, Densmore wrote in his letter to DEP.

To contact staff writer Ken Ward Jr., use e-mail or call 348-1702.

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We’re talking about the new WVEC Outreach and Networking Committee! As many of you know, we’re changing the way we operate when it comes to communicating and funding. Whether it’s with our members, member groups, fundraising, media, events, public education or website, there are many ways to make information and effectiveness happen.

Our aim is to get the most miles per gallon by making sure all the sparkplugs are connected to the same distributor, so to speak. Our past experience shows that too few people are burdened with too many tasks in overlapping endeavors. Quite simply, what we’re asking of some talented, energetic people out there is to come forward with your ideas and some energy for this project. Please note: we do not plan to have long, tedious meetings that drain the souls and patience of everyone! We envision much of the legwork being done from your home, by e-mail and phone.

What we have in mind is to design this project so that no one person is saddled with a ton of work. Oh, sure, you say….watch me volunteer and get stuck with all the hard stuff! Please…if this is your fear…volunteer! …because the more "specialists" that come forward, the less there is for each of us to do. And by specialists, we mean for example, if you have a passion or skill for writing, scheduling, tabling at events, phoning, speaking, for efficiency….please partake in this makeover of how we do things!

This Tuesday, January 27th, we will both be in the WVEC office from noon on, to speak with people at the office and by phone about five areas in our initiative:

Individual Memberships: Recruiting new members how to accomplish, through what methods.

Organizational Memberships: Establishing more communicational flow with current membership organizations and all the fine groups that make us a "council"; contact other groups who may be interested in joining WVEC throughout the state; exchange articles for each other’s newsletters; establish contact persons; post their news on our website.

Fundraising: Fine-tuning established successful methods; exploring new avenues, like business sponsorships of WVEC.

Media Outreach: Cranking up the dispatches to weekly newspapers, issue-specific timely letters-to-the-editor, press events.

Events & Educational Outreach: Spring & Fall Gatherings, E-Day, Fundraisers, environmental speakers for campuses, groups, etc.

C’mon, folks. We want to make this work. We need your talent. Even if you only have two hours a week or one day a month…..if everyone does a little, that would be huge…so, get lubed and lean into the fire.

Call or come down on Tuesday and help us launch this mission. Forget about Mars. Mother Earth needs you!

Timber Reforms

Bills have been introduced in both houses that would protect private property owners. How is this a timber bill, you might ask. Well, SB 63 and its twin, HB 2833, would require timber operators to notify the landowners adjacent to a proposed timber cut to be notified before logging begins. All over West Virginia we have heard stories of folks coming to their farms or weekend retreats to find many acres of trees missing. It’s not always timber rustling outright. Sometimes folks just don’t know or don’t want to know where the property line is.

If you or someone you know has lost trees this way, call your legislators and urge their support for these bills. If you own land with beautiful trees and fear losing them to a logger without your permission (and a good contract) call your legislators. If you believe West Virginia’s property owners should know of a potential threat, call. And also call Sen. Fanning and Del. Yeager who chair the Natural Resource Committees and ask them to run the bills.

WVEC thanks Sen. Hunter and Delegates Brown, Manuel, Doyle, Staton and Mahan for sponsoring these bills.

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When I first came to the Lobby team, I had a very negative opinion about lobbying. I kept asking myself what I was doing even thinking of joining the practice that is so widely perceived as a group of pariah lawyers representing special interests.

Guess what? The lobby team of the West Virginia Environmental Council, your E-Council, IS representing "Special Interests"…"people who breathe and drink water".

Guess what #2? Legislators tell me all the time that they DEPEND on lobbyists to show then the finer points of legislation and issues.

So, for our readers who wish to continue breathing and drinking clean water as long as you can, bear with me as I try to articulate a need for your help in this cause. For the rest of you…well… You see, my view of lobbying has changed 180 degrees. Lobbying is a critically important part of the legislative process. And there are two levels: Professional and Personal.

As your "professional" E-Council Lobby Team interfaces with legislators during the regular session, we are competing for the legislators’ time, mind, and vote with well financed and larger lobbying teams representing THEIR special interests. Those lobby teams work all year on the issues, and are heavy contributors to the campaigns of their chosen favorites. But I am sure that you all know this. This is not a judgment of those lobbyists…just reality.

Recognizing that you breathers and drinkers (of water, of course) are our special interests, we need your help…we need more input AND recruiting of others who are "our special interest" constituency members. We need your increased involvement. We need your feedback. If you agree that we do, in fact, represent all who breathe and drink water, then we ask you to get other "breathers and drinkers" you know involved…with their time, talent and money. Reach out to two more…and ask them to reach two more…

E-Council depends on you and a few dedicated environmental organizations to survive. While I personally will probably not be able to be a part of the lobby team next year, your Lobby Team needs to be a year long activity. This will require a much greater level of funding.

As "professionals," we have the tools, the plans and the strategies to educate and guide the legislative process. Your team will work the bills, the issues, shepherding your position and issues through the myriad of committees, subcommittees and hallway briefings…as well as the private meetings one on one. The team effort is a delicate professional activity that is learned from years of being there all the time.

Now, for the "personal" part. If you do not already, you should plan to get to know your legislator, both Delegate and Senator. Plan to visit her or him if you can, either here in the capitol or at their home office, but let them know who you are…and that you care. You are a critical ingredient in E-Council’s success.

We want to help you personally lobby your delegate or Senator. An excellent opportunity to "personally" lobby will be on E-Day at the Capitol Rotunda, February 17. Details to follow, but please put it on your calendar and plan to be there with us.

Bottle Bill Rolling Along

We expect to see the Bottle Bill introduced in both the House and Senate next week. WV-CAG and the WV Environmental Council lobby teams spent this week recruiting bipartisan sponsorship.

Senate sponsorship has doubled over last year with six senators signing on: Senators Brooks McCabe, Randy White, John Unger, Herb Snyder, Andy McKenzie and Larry Edgell.

We expect the bill to once again be double referenced to the Judiciary and Finance Committee. Once we know that for sure, we will get you information on who to call.

It’s not too early to call your senators and delegates and ask them to support this proven litter control legislation that has worked for decades in other parts of the country!

For more information, visit:

www.wvcag.org or e-mail linda@wvcag.org

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The West Virginia Clean Elections Act (now the "Public Campaign Financing Act") would provide full public financing to qualified candidates who agree to limit their spending and reject all private donations. To qualify for public financing candidates must pass a threshold test by collecting a substantial number of small contributions from registered voters in his/her district. The bill is modeled after laws in Maine and Arizona where it is now the political norm to run for public office free from direct dependence on private campaign contributions.

In December, Clean Elections cleared a major legislative hurdle. Both Sub-Committee B and the full Joint Judiciary committee voted the bill out without recommendation. Its passage even without recommendation, kept the debate alive and we have a new this session. The bill was introduced today in the Senate (SB 270) and we expect the House version to be out early next week.

The most significant change adopted by the interim committee was an amendment that includes providing public financing to candidates for the circuit court and the State Supreme Court. As amended, availability of public financing for the various offices would be phased in starting with judicial and gubernatorial candidates in 2008. Candidates for State Senate would become eligible for public financing in 2010, followed by candidates for House of Delegates in 2014.

SB 270 has been referred to the Judiciary Committee and sources close to the chairman indicate that he is likely to run the bill in the next couple of weeks. Members of the committee need to be hearing from their constituents that Clean Elections is an important issue! For a list of committee members and contact information visit the legislative website at http://www.legis.state.wv.us. Please thank Senators Hunter, Rowe, White, Caldwell, Jenkins, Kessler, McCabe, Sprouse and Unger for sponsoring this much needed legislation. Clean elections is a major step toward election reform that makes all other reforms possible!

More information on Clean Elections is available at: www.ohvec.org or www.wvcag.org.

• Under our current funding system it is increasingly difficult for the average West Virginian to effectively participate in our democracy and to make their voice heard above the special interests that finance campaigns.  Comprehensive campaign finance reform is needed to reduce the influence of special interests in our political process.
• Fewer than ½ of one percent of voting age West Virginians contribute to campaigns leaving the door wide open for wealthy, special interest contributors to influence public policy.  In West Virginia, many issues like better education for our children, greater environmental protection, and better access to health care for all our residents, take a back seat to the big special interests that currently fund many legislators’ campaigns. 
• As a taxpayer and voter, I would rather have my tax dollars subsidize elections instead of projects that largely benefit special interests. 
• Public financing of campaigns in West Virginia will decrease the public perception of corruption in our political system.
• Public financing will decrease the amount of time that a candidate needs to spend raising money and provide more time for a candidate to talk with voters in his/her district about issues that matter most to them. 
• Clean Elections has the potential to reinvigorate democracy.  This system would provide a candidate public funding through collecting many small qualifying contributions from registered voters within his/her district, making the candidate accountable to voters instead of special interest contributors.

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Federal officials advise shift in
focus to boost W.Va. economy

Vicki Smith, Associated Press Writer
ELKINS, W.Va. (Reprinted from January 22 Associated Press Article with their permission)

If West Virginia is going to cash in on a growing national economic recovery, its business and political leaders must look beyond local borders and join a multistate region, federal officials said Thursday.

State leaders also need to stop thinking about economic development in terms of roads, jobs and profits, and focus instead on prosperity.

"It’s about a high and rising standard of living for people," said Randall Kempner, executive director of the Center for Regional Innovation’s Council on Competitiveness.

About 135 business, industry and community leaders from across the state gathered at Davis & Elkins College on Thursday for a regional forum hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Authority.

David Sampson, assistant secretary of commerce for economic development, said the West Virginia gathering was the fourth planned for 20 states in the coming months, all aimed at jump-starting discussions that could encourage regional cooperation.

"We want to make sure that regional and local autonomies are plugged in to the national economy," he said.

Gross domestic product and productivity level are at their highest growth rates in 20 years, while inflation and interest rates are at historic lows, Sampson said.

"While they’re positive and we are pleased with those trends, I can assure you that we are not complacent with those trends," he said.

The state workshops are part of the Bush administration’s plan to help strengthen existing economic foundations and diversify them.

"The key is visionary leadership that is not willing to just put a wall around the economy and try to preserve it, but is realistic about the future," Sampson said.

Kempner said West Virginia and other struggling states must acknowledge that the means for achieving prosperity have changed and are no longer linked to natural resources and manufacturing. Manufacturing today accounts for just 13 percent of the gross domestic product and will continue to decline, he said.

The 13-state Appalachian region, which includes West Virginia, has lost one in five of the manufacturing jobs lost in the United States, the Appalachian Regional Commission said.

Kempner said that means the traditional access route to America’s middle class is slowly being choked off.

To survive, manufacturing that remains must be innovative and competitive.

"If you’re not innovating, you’re not to going to win," Kempner said. "Productivity is about how you compete, not where you compete."

He advised West Virginia to differentiate itself from other states by focusing on incorporating technology rather than technology companies, meaning it should attract a company that uses software wisely rather than one which produces software.

The state also should invest in K-12 education and the development of a work force from within, rather than try to attract workers from other states.

"In the old paradigm, economic development was about chasing smokestacks," Kempner said. "Today, it’s about people, human capital."

West Virginia also needs to protect its quality of life vigilantly and cultivate a culture that is dynamic and tolerant.

"Regions with strong, stiff social constructions that don’t allow new people in are typically not successfully," he said.

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