The Legislature Today

It is with a heavy heart that I recognize two men that died doing what they did best, fighting fires to ensure the safety of their fellow citizens. Lt. Johnnie Hammons and Timothy Nicholas, of Craigsville, were honorable men who sacrificed everything in the line of duty and for that they should be recognized by the public as heroes. I appreciate everything that the firefighters in our district do to make our lives safe from dangers that they consider the equivalent of a normal day on the job. I commend both the firefighters who have fallen in the past and those who are currently in service. It takes a lot of gumption to do what you do, and for that I admire and commend you.

As of Thursday in the Senate, 396 bills have been introduced. The committees have been busy discussing, amending and sending bills to other committees for more consideration. In the finance committee this week, we have heard from the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety, the Department of Education and The Arts, the Department of Administration and the WV School Building Authority. All meetings were held mostly in regards to budgetary concerns.

The Education Committee is extremely busy this week because we are working to provide the students of West Virginia a complete 180 day school year. On Thursday, there was a joint committee meeting held to discuss possible plans on how to maintain such a schedule. Of the bills introduced this week, I have cosponsored 13 .

One of these is Senate Bill 301, which would adopt green building standards for the construction and renovation of public buildings over 50,000 square feet. This is an important bill because it is an important step toward saving the environment. It is also a step toward becoming more energy efficient, which can save more money for other projects.

Senate Bill 328 would create the West Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank. If passed, the bank would provide loans and other financial assistance for transportation infrastructure. This is such an important bill for the Senate to consider because we need to be more organized in handling the money we use for infrastructure and I believe that this will be the perfect instrument to perform this task.

Here is a list of other bills that I have sponsored so far this week: -Senate Bill 307 would establish an advisory council on maternal risk assessment and calls for the development of a system to provide better evaluation of high-risk pregnancies. -Senate Bill 294 would more concisely define abuse and neglect of the elderly and incapacitated to better provide protection from unnecessary death. -Senate Bill 300 would allow counties and municipalities to enter into energy-saving contracts, because current law only allows the state to do this. -Senate Bill 298 would increase funds from $1 million to $2 million for the Enhanced 911 Wireless Tower Assistance Fund to subsidize the construction of wireless towers.

I also would like to take the chance to invite the students of the district to participate in the Page Program here at the Capitol. It is a wonderful chance to spend a day learning about the state government and I am looking forward to working with any student who would like to take advantage of this program. Please feel free to contact me if you know a student who would be interested in participating.

As always, I encourage anyone with questions, comments or suggestions the people in the 11th district. I can be reached at my office in the Capitol at (304) 357-7906 and through e-mail at randy.white@wvsenate.gov.