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GOVERNOR TOMBLIN Delivers State OF THE State Tackle
Handle highlights prime priorities and key parts of laws
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (January thirteen, 2016) – Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today shipped the 2016 Condition of the Condition Handle in the Residence Chamber at the Condition Capitol Complicated.
Gov. Tomblin’s remarks incorporated an overview of new applications and initiatives relevant to his best priorities as governor, as well as a number of new parts of laws he plans to introduce during the 2016 Legislative Session.
Considering that getting to be governor in November 2010, Gov. Tomblin has centered on problems such as workforce growth, combatting compound abuse, dependable fiscal guidelines and job creation. Pursuing are highlights from the Condition of the Condition speech and other legislative initiatives of Gov. Tomblin.
Economic Improvement
Gov. Tomblin has worked to produce a positive company local weather now and for a long time to arrive, and he remains committed to operating with business and market leaders from a assortment of industries to create new investments and bring work to West Virginia. Organizations from across the nation and around the world are noticing the modifications the state has manufactured, and nationally and internationally identified businesses – which includes Macy’s Amazon, Quad Graphics, Hino Motors, Diamond Electric, Toyota and Procter and Gamble – have selected to identify, grow and make investments in West Virginia.
Tonight, Gov. Tomblin added yet another firm to the record of people that have committed to West Virginia. In the course of the tackle, Gov. Tomblin announced polymer additive maker Addivant has decided to remain and expand operations in Morgantown, conserving virtually one hundred jobs and adding at least $twelve million in new investments and added options for work.
Although these large investments are a important portion of West Virginia’s lengthy-phrase success, Gov. Tomblin is also fully commited to guaranteeing modest business proprietors have a possibility to excel and grow. Tonight, Gov. Tomblin introduced the Self-Employment Guidance Act, developed to make it less difficult for unemployed West Virginians to get the assist they require to open a organization. The act enables business people to continue getting unemployment rewards even though establishing their new organization. This will help proprietors reinvest in their new enterprise and workers, although also providing a steady resource of financial support for their people.
WORKFORCE Growth
In functioning to bring new investments and develop work, Gov. Tomblin has also manufactured it a best precedence to ensure these jobs are loaded by experienced and well-skilled West Virginians. With the help of his Workforce Arranging Council, Gov. Tomblin has proven new workforce improvement applications and strengthened current initiatives to meet up with the wants of business and business running here. The state has acquired much more than $40 million in federal grant funding to assistance Workforce West Virginia operations across the point out, assisting coal miners, their family members, and people who have fatigued their unemployment rewards discover careers in increasing industries.
Via a collaborative partnership amid enterprise, industry, schooling and labor leaders, Gov. Tomblin has proven a new Regional Job Matching Databases, an online resource for both educational program listings and employment possibilities obtainable near to people’s houses. This database will help match college students with training programs in critical needs locations and link them with businesses searching for people exact same abilities.
In addition, Gov. Tomblin also ideas to introduce laws that will grow the West Virginia Office of Health and Human Resources’ (WVDHHR) Short term Assistance to Require Households (TANF) pilot system. By means of a partnership with the WVDHHR and Southern West Virginia Local community and Complex University, the pilot system was designed to help West Virginians presently getting TANF advantages enroll in college programs, get accessibility to economic assist and function with advisors to commence a new career path to assist on their own and their people. With this software expansion, far more West Virginians will receive the support and support they want to become effective, profitable associates of their regional communities.
STRENGTHENING SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA
Gov. Tomblin has committed considerably of his community provider to supporting West Virginia’s coal miners and their households. In recent many years, each the point out and country have skilled unparalleled downturns in this market, adversely impacting local functions and devastating the lives of numerous hardworking West Virginians.
Tonight, Gov. Tomblin highlighted ongoing initiatives to assist and improve all these influenced by the downturn in the coal industry. The point out has submitted an application to the National Catastrophe Resilience Competitiveness (NDRC), seeking far more than $140 million in funding from the United States Office of Housing and Urban Development. This competition has the potential to help Boone, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, McDowell and Wyoming counties adjust, adapt and advance their communities. If productive, funding will be allocated to support fix and rebuild growing older infrastructure, promote land use planning and hazard reduction endeavours and encourage housing and economic growth in the region.
Gov. Tomblin tonight also declared programs to produce of the greatest industrial site in West Virginia historical past – the former Hobet surface area mine in Boone and Lincoln counties. At 12,000 acres, this property is big enough to in shape every key economic advancement undertaking in current historical past – with countless numbers of acres remaining above. The condition is operating in partnership with regional landowners, Marshall University, West Virginia University and the Virginia Conservation Legacy Fund to uncover approaches to re-develop this web site and diversify southern West Virginia’s economic climate.
Strength
In working to ensure West Virginia’s strength sector is robust and assorted, Gov. Tomblin has also labored difficult to help advancement of West Virginia’s ample Marcellus, Utica and Rogersville shale formations. Tonight, Gov. Tomblin stressed the require to create the processing and pipeline infrastructure essential to ensure this industry’s ongoing expansion now and for many years to appear, highlighting main investment assignments this kind of as the Columbia Gasoline Mountaineer Xpress pipeline.
Gov. Tomblin also announced that even though the Section of Environmental Protection proceeds to work on a feasibility study associated to the state’s Clean Energy Strategy Submission, it really is likely that program will incorporate products these kinds of as reforestation and substitution of boilers to boost the performance of current coal-fired electricity programs.
TACKLING Substance ABUSE
Gov. Tomblin has made combatting the state’s material abuse epidemic a best precedence of his administration. As communities and families throughout West Virginia continue to fight material abuse from a number of fronts, Gov. Tomblin has invested a important volume of time and funding to improve community-based treatment choices and packages to give individuals battling hope and get them on the highway to restoration.
Tonight, Gov. Tomblin launched laws to support ongoing substance abuse efforts. He introduced new licensing needs for Suboxone and Methadone clinics, requiring medication-assisted treatment method amenities to give extensive therapies in coordination with treatment to assist to handle the root causes guiding addictions, fairly than basically giving a limited-term repair.
In addition, Gov. Tomblin introduced laws to broaden the Opioid Antagonist Act of 2015, creating opioid antagonists, this sort of as Narcan, offered to any West Virginian without having a prescription. This new laws requires pharmacists to teach those who obtain this drug on how to administer opioid antagonists and assists the condition observe those receiving Narcan to help far better emphasis state resources in locations hardest hit by opioid overdoses.
JUVENILE JUSTICE
Gov. Tomblin’s juvenile justice reforms have also created a considerable impact on our state’s youth, as he has labored to boost results for individuals currently in the juvenile justice method and give early-intervention care to at-chance students to maintain them in the classroom and out of the courtroom. Throughout his deal with, Gov. Tomblin touted the good results of 2015’s Juvenile Justice Reform, particularly highlighting constructive results of the truancy diversion program.
He also introduced the Division of Juvenile Services has reduced the quantity of youngsters getting sent to out-of-house placements by a lot more than 1-3rd and lowered the number of detention beds by a lot more than forty %. So far the point out has saved $six million, and the Division of Juvenile Providers is confident West Virginia can double that cost savings in coming many years.
Education
Ensuring college students stay in the classroom for a hundred and eighty days of studying is just a single of Gov. Tomblin’s education and learning priorities, as he is equally dedicated to guaranteeing West Virginia’s education and learning method stands all set to supply learners with the extensive and efficient education and learning they deserve. In addition, they ought to obtain new studying chances that source the skills and arms-on expertise they require obtain long-phrase accomplishment in West Virginia.
To enhance upon West Virginia’s educational offerings, Gov. Tomblin has produced the Innovation in Education and learning Grant Program, which will not only provide students with particular skills and arms-on coaching, but will also give them the opportunity to compete between their friends on a national and globe-extensive scale. This new system is created to reward academics and schools in West Virginia for innovation and creativity in the classroom. The reallocation of $2.eight million in present West Virginia Section of Education income will assist new classroom offerings that are developed to aid pupils build and obtain these expertise in high-need fields, these kinds of as science, engineering, engineering, math and entrepreneurship.
FISCAL Accountability
All through his administration, Gov. Tomblin has created certain to enact and uphold fiscally liable procedures. He understands the state is experiencing significant price range difficulties, but remains fully commited to producing hard selections now that will support ensure West Virginia has a vivid potential now and for several years to come.
Gov. Tomblin tonight launched legislation to spend off West Virginia’s previous workers’ payment debt far more than a 10 years in advance of timetable. This also will remove added severance taxes on coal and normal gasoline industries previously than predicted, supplying a lot-essential relief for vitality companies battling with minimal charges.
In aiding to ensure West Virginia’s tax base is the two stable and varied, Gov. Tomblin tonight also proposed increasing the state’s tobacco tax by forty five cents to a whole of $one a pack. This boost will not only help discourage West Virginians from smoking or employing tobacco products, it will also provide $71.5 million annually to help overall health-connected charges. $forty three million of this income will help fund PEIA, ensuring community employees do not see the remarkable reward reductions to begin with proposed.
Gov. Tomblin also proposed legislation to eradicate a sale tax exemption that will bring our state’s telecommunications tax in line with forty one other states across the place. This laws will area the same six per cent revenue tax on mobile phone and telephone line usage and generate $sixty million annually.
With these proposed changes, the 2017 price range Gov. Tomblin presented employs no cash from the state’s Rainy Working day Fund and in fact predicts surpluses commencing in 2019.
Gov. Tomblin will also introduce the adhering to parts of legislation:
Workforce Innovation & Chance Act (WIOA) Reporting Update
Updates current West Virginia code to reflect 2014 federal regulation for compliance and continuation of federal funding from the U.S. Department of Labor.
Authorizes info sharing by Workforce West Virginia with the condition organizations dependable for vocational rehabilitation, employment and coaching to better align the workforce method with training and financial growth in an effort to produce a collective response to economic and labor marketplace challenges on the national, condition and regional amounts.
West Virginia Workforce Development Board Updates
Updates the composition of the West Virginia Workforce Investment Council and alterations its name to the West Virginia Workforce Development Board to comply with WIOA.
Borrowing from Wet Working day for Unemployment Payment Fund
Authorizes borrowing in sum up to $25 million to give added money for unemployment payment.
Managed Substances Monitoring Software (CSMP) Update Monthly bill:
Calls for practitioners (physicians, pharmacists and other individuals) to sign up for the CSMP to receive or renew a license.
Creates an administrative fine of $one,000 for failure to register for the CSMP, as effectively as an administrative fine of $five hundred for failure to accessibility the CSMP as essential.
Certification of Need Exemption for Out-Client Behavioral Wellness Neighborhood-Primarily based Services
Exempts local community-based behavioral health treatment amenities, plans or companies from the certificate of want method contained in W.Va. Code 16-Second-one et seq.
811 – A single Phone System
Can make underground pipelines of four" in diameter and better subject matter to "call ahead of you dig" reporting if not otherwise necessary by point out or federal legislation. Applies to gasoline, oil or any dangerous material pipelines.
Membership in 811 needs an entity to offer mapping information indicating in which their underground pipelines are situated and to respond in the specified time durations when notified by the 811 administrator and be ready to mark its underground pipes.
fifteen Minutes Rule
Demands that drilling, generation and pipeline activities are subject to the state’s fifteen-moment unexpected emergency notification legislation (WV Code 15-5B-3a (b)(one)).
Provisions use to crisis events that entail a dying or significant accidents, unplanned ignitions, fires or explosions and comparable significant unexpected emergency occasions (verified emergencies) at drilling, manufacturing and pipeline websites.
Notification have to be offered within fifteen minutes to the West Virginia Division of Homeland Protection and Unexpected emergency Administration and consist of preliminary info concerning the mother nature and extent of the unexpected emergency occasion, any existence or non-existence of threats to general public health, substances associated or introduced and designated principal contact details.
Transportation Network Firm Invoice (TNC) – Uber/Lyft
Authorizes TNCs to run in West Virginia by getting a allow from DMV.
Requires auto insurance policy and uninsured and underinsured motorist protection.
Calls for a zero tolerance for drug and liquor policy.
Demands TNCs to have a nondiscrimination plan and comply with nondiscrimination legal guidelines.
Office of Coalfield Neighborhood Advancement Monthly bill
Proceeds the Business office of Coalfield Community Growth in Commerce (earlier in Division of Vitality)
Air Ambulance Monthly bill
Offers air transportation or related emergency or remedy companies vendors running in West Virginia from gathering a lot more for services from PEIA covered people than the at present allowable Medicare reimbursement rate.
Repeal Behavioral Wellness Severance & Privilege Tax
Gets rid of the behavioral wellness severance and privilege tax and limits the product sales tax exemption on tough health-related goods to these purchased for property use only.
The change is considered to be profits neutral and will assist make certain ongoing federal matching cash for Medicaid and Medicare.
Reduce Essential Yearly Severance Tax Deposit to Infrastructure Bond Fund
Lowers the amount of severance tax proceeds deposited into the West Virginia Infrastructure Basic Obligation Personal debt Services Fund for payment of financial debt services on such bonds from $22.5 million each year to an sum equal to once-a-year financial debt services, not to exceed $22.25 million annually.
Individual Cash flow Tax update
Updates the Private Revenue Tax code to be in compliance with federal tax legal guidelines
CNIT Update & Revised Submitting Day
Updates the Corporate Internet Income Tax code to be in compliance with federal tax rules.
Intermodal
Terminates funding of the Specific Railroad and Intermodal Improvement Fund beginning January 1, 2016. The resource of funding is company web revenue taxes.
Racetrack and Historic Hotel Modernization Cash Cessation
Finishes the Accredited Racetrack Modernization Fund and Historic Resort Modernization Fund and moves all funds at the moment in this sort of cash to the Standard Revenue Fund.
Cessation of Deposit into Highway Fund from Income Tax for FY2016
Removes for fiscal yr 2016 the deposit of sales tax proceeds into the Point out Highway Fund from revenue of design and servicing components obtained by a second social gathering for use in the construction or upkeep of a highway project.
This kind of sales tax proceeds will be deposited into the General Earnings Fund in lieu of the State Highway Fund.
Point out Assist Formulation Alterations
Eradicates the Expansion County Faculty Amenities Act, which allowed growth county boards of education and learning to designate standard fund revenues from new building (increasing property taxes) for placement in a progress county university services act fund.
Adjusts the formulation for the basis allowance for the two skilled educators and provider staff.
Adjusts and removes specified changes to the basis allowance for transportation fees (escalating bus lifestyle from 12 to fifteen several years and mileage from 180,000 to 225,000 miles).
Adjusts the calculation for the basis allowance to enhance tutorial plans.
Gets rid of specified restrictions in the computation of the neighborhood share applicable to progress county faculties.
Infrastructure Fund Extra Lottery Deposit Reduction
Decreases the annual deposit of Excessive Lottery revenues to the Infrastructure Fund from $forty million to $30 million for fiscal 12 months 2017.
Will increase the proportion of cash that could be disbursed from the Infrastructure Fund in the sort of grants from twenty% to fifty% for fiscal 12 months 2017.
SBA Deposit Reduction
Decreases for fiscal 12 months 2017 the annual deposit of revenue tax proceeds into the University Constructing Authority’s School Key Improvement Fund from $5 million to $4 million (was lowered for FY16 to $3 million).
Decreases for fiscal calendar year 2017 the University Constructing Authority’s College Building Fund from $27,216,996 to $24,216,996 (was decreased for FY16 to $21,216,996).
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By Governor Earl Ray Tomblin on 2016-01-13 19:54:forty eight