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GOVERNOR TOMBLIN Delivers Point out OF THE Condition Address
Tackle highlights leading priorities and important parts of laws
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (January 13, 2016) – Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today delivered the 2016 State of the State Handle in the Residence Chamber at the Condition Capitol Sophisticated.
Gov. Tomblin’s remarks included an overview of new programs and initiatives related to his prime priorities as governor, as properly as a number of new pieces of legislation he plans to introduce for the duration of the 2016 Legislative Session.
Since turning out to be governor in November 2010, Gov. Tomblin has targeted on problems this sort of as workforce advancement, combatting compound abuse, liable fiscal procedures and work generation. Following are highlights from the State of the Condition speech and other legislative initiatives of Gov. Tomblin.
Financial Advancement
Gov. Tomblin has worked to create a positive enterprise climate now and for decades to arrive, and he stays committed to operating with organization and industry leaders from a variety of industries to generate new investments and carry positions to West Virginia. Organizations from across the nation and close to the globe are noticing the alterations the state has made, and nationally and internationally identified companies – such as Macy’s Amazon, Quad Graphics, Hino Motors, Diamond Electrical, Toyota and Procter and Gamble – have chosen to locate, broaden and commit in West Virginia.
Tonight, Gov. Tomblin added an additional company to the listing of people that have dedicated to West Virginia. Throughout the address, Gov. Tomblin introduced polymer additive producer Addivant has made a decision to stay and expand functions in Morgantown, conserving virtually 100 jobs and introducing at minimum $twelve million in new investments and extra opportunities for work.
While these large investments are a crucial element of West Virginia’s long-term good results, Gov. Tomblin is also dedicated to making sure modest enterprise proprietors have a possibility to excel and expand. Tonight, Gov. Tomblin introduced the Self-Employment Assistance Act, created to make it simpler for unemployed West Virginians to get the help they need to have to open a enterprise. The act allows entrepreneurs to proceed acquiring unemployment benefits while setting up their new enterprise. This will help proprietors reinvest in their new undertaking and employees, whilst also delivering a regular resource of monetary help for their family members.
WORKFORCE Improvement
In working to deliver new investments and generate positions, Gov. Tomblin has also manufactured it a prime priority to ensure these jobs are filled by expert and properly-trained West Virginians. With the support of his Workforce Organizing Council, Gov. Tomblin has set up new workforce improvement plans and strengthened existing initiatives to satisfy the wants of enterprise and business operating right here. The point out has received much more than $40 million in federal grant funding to help Workforce West Virginia functions across the condition, aiding coal miners, their people, and people who have exhausted their unemployment advantages discover careers in developing industries.
By means of a collaborative partnership among business, industry, training and labor leaders, Gov. Tomblin has established a new Regional Occupation Matching Databases, an online resource for both instructional program listings and employment opportunities available close to people’s houses. This databases will aid match students with education packages in vital requirements areas and connect them with businesses in search of these identical abilities.
In addition, Gov. Tomblin also plans to introduce legislation that will increase the West Virginia Division of Well being and Human Resources’ (WVDHHR) Short-term Support to Want Families (TANF) pilot program. Through a partnership with the WVDHHR and Southern West Virginia Group and Technical College, the pilot plan was made to support West Virginians previously acquiring TANF benefits enroll in school courses, get obtain to financial aid and work with advisors to get started a new job path to assistance by themselves and their families. With this software enlargement, more West Virginians will get the assist and assistance they require to turn out to be productive, productive associates of their neighborhood communities.
STRENGTHENING SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA
Gov. Tomblin has focused considerably of his public services to supporting West Virginia’s coal miners and their families. In current many years, the two the state and country have skilled unprecedented downturns in this business, adversely influencing local operations and devastating the lives of several hardworking West Virginians.
Tonight, Gov. Tomblin highlighted ongoing attempts to assistance and reinforce all individuals influenced by the downturn in the coal business. The point out has submitted an software to the Nationwide Catastrophe Resilience Competition (NDRC), looking for far more than $one hundred forty million in funding from the United States Division of Housing and City Development. This competitiveness has the likely to assist Boone, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, McDowell and Wyoming counties alter, adapt and progress their communities. If productive, funding will be allotted to aid repair and rebuild getting older infrastructure, encourage land use organizing and hazard reduction efforts and encourage housing and financial improvement in the location.
Gov. Tomblin tonight also announced plans to develop of the biggest industrial web site in West Virginia historical past – the previous Hobet surface mine in Boone and Lincoln counties. At 12,000 acres, this home is massive sufficient to fit every single main financial improvement project in current background – with thousands of acres still left above. The point out is operating in partnership with local landowners, Marshall College, West Virginia College and the Virginia Conservation Legacy Fund to discover ways to re-create this internet site and diversify southern West Virginia’s economic system.
Strength
In functioning to ensure West Virginia’s strength sector is sturdy and assorted, Gov. Tomblin has also labored difficult to help improvement of West Virginia’s abundant Marcellus, Utica and Rogersville shale formations. Tonight, Gov. Tomblin pressured the need to have to produce the processing and pipeline infrastructure essential to ensure this industry’s continued progress now and for a long time to come, highlighting major expense assignments this kind of as the Columbia Gas Mountaineer Xpress pipeline.
Gov. Tomblin also declared that even though the Division of Environmental Safety carries on to operate on a feasibility study associated to the state’s Clear Power Strategy Submission, it’s very likely that plan will contain items these kinds of as reforestation and substitution of boilers to enhance the performance of existing coal-fired energy plans.
TACKLING Substance ABUSE
Gov. Tomblin has manufactured combatting the state’s material abuse epidemic a top precedence of his administration. As communities and people across West Virginia continue to battle material abuse from a amount of fronts, Gov. Tomblin has invested a significant sum of time and funding to strengthen local community-primarily based treatment method possibilities and applications to give people struggling hope and get them on the road to recovery.
Tonight, Gov. Tomblin released laws to assistance ongoing compound abuse initiatives. He announced new licensing requirements for Suboxone and Methadone clinics, demanding medicine-assisted remedy amenities to provide thorough therapies in coordination with treatment to aid to treat the root triggers behind addictions, fairly than basically giving a limited-time period repair.
In addition, Gov. Tomblin launched legislation to increase the Opioid Antagonist Act of 2015, making opioid antagonists, this kind of as Narcan, obtainable to any West Virginian with no a prescription. This new laws demands pharmacists to prepare individuals who acquire this drug on how to administer opioid antagonists and helps the point out track these obtaining Narcan to help much better focus state sources in places hardest hit by opioid overdoses.
JUVENILE JUSTICE
Gov. Tomblin’s juvenile justice reforms have also created a substantial impact on our state’s youth, as he has labored to improve outcomes for those presently in the juvenile justice technique and offer early-intervention treatment to at-threat students to preserve them in the classroom and out of the courtroom. During his address, Gov. Tomblin touted the achievement of 2015’s Juvenile Justice Reform, exclusively highlighting constructive results of the truancy diversion software.
He also announced the Division of Juvenile Companies has lowered the variety of youngsters becoming sent to out-of-home placements by a lot more than one-3rd and reduced the quantity of detention beds by far more than 40 p.c. So considerably the condition has saved $six million, and the Division of Juvenile Companies is self-confident West Virginia can double that personal savings in coming many years.
Schooling
Ensuring college students stay in the classroom for one hundred eighty times of studying is just one particular of Gov. Tomblin’s education and learning priorities, as he is equally dedicated to guaranteeing West Virginia’s education program stands completely ready to supply learners with the extensive and effective schooling they ought to have. In addition, they should get new learning chances that source the expertise and arms-on experience they need to have obtain long-phrase accomplishment in West Virginia.
To increase upon West Virginia’s academic choices, Gov. Tomblin has produced the Innovation in Education Grant Program, which will not only provide learners with unique abilities and hands-on instruction, but will also give them the prospect to contend amongst their friends on a nationwide and entire world-broad scale. This new program is developed to reward lecturers and schools in West Virginia for innovation and creative imagination in the classroom. The reallocation of $2.8 million in present West Virginia Section of Schooling money will assistance new classroom offerings that are designed to support pupils produce and achieve these abilities in large-demand fields, such as science, engineering, engineering, math and entrepreneurship.
FISCAL Responsibility
During his administration, Gov. Tomblin has created sure to enact and uphold fiscally liable procedures. He understands the point out is encountering significant budget issues, but stays dedicated to generating difficult alternatives now that will support guarantee West Virginia has a bright potential now and for years to come.
Gov. Tomblin tonight released laws to shell out off West Virginia’s outdated workers’ payment personal debt much more than a ten years forward of plan. This also will remove extra severance taxes on coal and natural gas industries before than expected, delivering much-necessary aid for vitality companies struggling with minimal costs.
In helping to guarantee West Virginia’s tax base is both secure and diverse, Gov. Tomblin tonight also proposed elevating the state’s tobacco tax by forty five cents to a overall of $one a pack. This improve will not only support discourage West Virginians from cigarette smoking or employing tobacco items, it will also provide $seventy one.five million each year to assistance wellness-related fees. $forty three million of this revenue will assist fund PEIA, making certain general public staff do not see the spectacular reward reductions to begin with proposed.
Gov. Tomblin also proposed laws to remove a sale tax exemption that will deliver our state’s telecommunications tax in line with 41 other states across the country. This legislation will place the very same 6 per cent income tax on cell mobile phone and telephone line utilization and make $60 million each year.
With these proposed modifications, the 2017 price range Gov. Tomblin introduced employs no income from the state’s Rainy Working day Fund and in simple fact predicts surpluses beginning in 2019.
Gov. Tomblin will also introduce the following items of laws:
Workforce Innovation & Prospect Act (WIOA) Reporting Update
Updates present West Virginia code to reflect 2014 federal regulation for compliance and continuation of federal funding from the U.S. Department of Labor.
Authorizes information sharing by Workforce West Virginia with the condition companies accountable for vocational rehabilitation, work and coaching to better align the workforce method with schooling and economic improvement in an energy to generate a collective response to financial and labor marketplace issues on the nationwide, state and regional stages.
West Virginia Workforce Advancement Board Updates
Updates the composition of the West Virginia Workforce Expenditure Council and alterations its name to the West Virginia Workforce Advancement Board to comply with WIOA.
Borrowing from Wet Day for Unemployment Payment Fund
Authorizes borrowing in sum up to $25 million to supply extra money for unemployment payment.
Managed Substances Monitoring Software (CSMP) Update Invoice:
Calls for practitioners (doctors, pharmacists and others) to sign up for the CSMP to get or renew a license.
Produces an administrative wonderful of $one,000 for failure to register for the CSMP, as effectively as an administrative wonderful of $500 for failure to accessibility the CSMP as essential.
Certificate of Require Exemption for Out-Patient Behavioral Health Neighborhood-Primarily based Providers
Exempts local community-based mostly behavioral well being treatment facilities, applications or services from the certificate of want method contained in W.Va. Code sixteen-2d-1 et seq.
811 – A single Call System
Can make underground pipelines of 4" in diameter and greater subject to "call ahead of you dig" reporting if not or else necessary by point out or federal legislation. Applies to gasoline, oil or any hazardous compound pipelines.
Membership in 811 demands an entity to provide mapping information indicating in which their underground pipelines are found and to reply in the specified time durations when notified by the 811 administrator and be in a position to mark its underground pipes.
15 Minutes Rule
Calls for that drilling, creation and pipeline pursuits are matter to the state’s fifteen-minute crisis notification legislation (WV Code 15-5B-3a (b)(1)).
Provisions use to unexpected emergency activities that include a demise or critical accidents, unplanned ignitions, fires or explosions and similar severe emergency occasions (confirmed emergencies) at drilling, manufacturing and pipeline sites.
Notification must be provided within 15 minutes to the West Virginia Division of Homeland Stability and Crisis Management and include preliminary data relating to the nature and extent of the crisis event, any existence or non-existence of threats to public health, substances concerned or launched and selected principal speak to details.
Transportation Network Company Bill (TNC) – Uber/Lyft
Authorizes TNCs to function in West Virginia by acquiring a allow from DMV.
Calls for vehicle insurance coverage and uninsured and underinsured motorist protection.
Calls for a zero tolerance for drug and alcoholic beverages policy.
Demands TNCs to have a nondiscrimination plan and comply with nondiscrimination laws.
Business office of Coalfield Community Development Invoice
Carries on the Place of work of Coalfield Local community Improvement in Commerce (beforehand in Division of Power)
Air Ambulance Invoice
Supplies air transportation or related unexpected emergency or therapy providers companies working in West Virginia from accumulating far more for support from PEIA lined people than the at the moment allowable Medicare reimbursement charge.
Repeal Behavioral Health Severance & Privilege Tax
Eliminates the behavioral health severance and privilege tax and boundaries the income tax exemption on tough health-related items to people purchased for house use only.
The modify is considered to be revenue neutral and will help make sure continued federal matching money for Medicaid and Medicare.
Lessen Needed Yearly Severance Tax Deposit to Infrastructure Bond Fund
Reduces the volume of severance tax proceeds deposited into the West Virginia Infrastructure Common Obligation Credit card debt Support Fund for payment of financial debt provider on this sort of bonds from $22.5 million every year to an quantity equivalent to annual debt support, not to exceed $22.twenty five million yearly.
Personal Cash flow Tax update
Updates the Personal Income Tax code to be in compliance with federal tax laws
CNIT Update & Revised Filing Day
Updates the Corporate Net Revenue Tax code to be in compliance with federal tax legal guidelines.
Intermodal
Terminates funding of the Particular Railroad and Intermodal Improvement Fund beginning January 1, 2016. The supply of funding is company web revenue taxes.
Racetrack and Historic Resort Modernization Cash Cessation
Ends the Certified Racetrack Modernization Fund and Historic Hotel Modernization Fund and moves all money presently in such money to the Common Earnings Fund.
Cessation of Deposit into Highway Fund from Product sales Tax for FY2016
Removes for fiscal year 2016 the deposit of sales tax proceeds into the State Street Fund from sales of development and routine maintenance components acquired by a second social gathering for use in the design or routine maintenance of a freeway undertaking.
These kinds of product sales tax proceeds will be deposited into the Basic Earnings Fund in lieu of the Point out Road Fund.
State Help Formulation Adjustments
Eradicates the Expansion County University Amenities Act, which allowed growth county boards of schooling to designate common fund revenues from new building (escalating residence taxes) for placement in a development county school amenities act fund.
Adjusts the formulas for the basis allowance for each expert educators and provider personnel.
Adjusts and gets rid of specified changes to the basis allowance for transportation expenses (growing bus existence from 12 to fifteen years and mileage from one hundred eighty,000 to 225,000 miles).
Adjusts the calculation for the foundation allowance to increase instructional packages.
Eradicates specific constraints in the computation of the regional share relevant to development county colleges.
Infrastructure Fund Surplus Lottery Deposit Reduction
Decreases the yearly deposit of Excessive Lottery revenues to the Infrastructure Fund from $forty million to $thirty million for fiscal year 2017.
Will increase the percentage of cash that might be disbursed from the Infrastructure Fund in the sort of grants from twenty% to 50% for fiscal 12 months 2017.
SBA Deposit Reduction
Decreases for fiscal yr 2017 the annual deposit of sales tax proceeds into the School Developing Authority’s School Major Improvement Fund from $five million to $4 million (was diminished for FY16 to $three million).
Decreases for fiscal year 2017 the School Developing Authority’s College Building Fund from $27,216,996 to $24,216,996 (was lowered for FY16 to $21,216,996).
Photographs available for media use. All pictures need to be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”
By Governor Earl Ray Tomblin on 2016-01-13 19:eleven:02