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Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Morrisey signs session's key foster care bill, vetoes other measure meant to help system in crisis
The West Virginia State Capitol (West Virginia Legislative Photography) Gov. Patrick Morrisey has signed lawmakers' key foster care measure into law – an omnibus bill that folded together several pieces of legislation. It includes creating a team to review the death of a foster child that occurred while in state care. The Republican governor opted to veto other child welfare-related items, including a bill that would have provided pay raises for attorneys representing foster children. He also slashed lawmakers' funding for a nonprofit that helps foster kids. Lawmakers came into the 60-day session saying they must address widespread issues in the state's troubled foster care system that is serving more than 6,000 children with a shortage of social workers, support services and safe homes for children. Too many children have ended up living in hotel rooms, and the state spent $70 million last year sending foster kids to out-of-state group homes. And, for years, the state hasn't wanted to answer questions about what's happening to kids in the child welfare system. While many of the proposed bills – including one mandating an outside review of the foster system – never made it up for a vote by deadline, lawmakers behind the successful foster care measure say it's a step in the right direction. Foster care is a 'glaring area of need in state government,' said Del. Jonathan Pinson, R-Mason, who is a foster parent. 'We made it clear that we are willing and committed to taking action … We've tried over the course of several years to identify areas that need attention and need work, and many of those areas got touched by [House Bill] 2880,' he continued. 'There's always work to be done, but when you look at the measure that we did get passed … I'm pleased with where we're at.' Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, called it the 'most important bill of the session.' 'For all the praying we do in the Senate, these are the least among us. These are the most vulnerable people,' he said. 'There was a lot of bipartisan work that went into this … It's a really thoughtful bill. It's going to help kids.' But, more should have been done, he emphasized. 'This bill would hit like 20% of what we could have done during the session,' he said. 'This is just a screaming issue for the little ones who have no lobbyists.' During the Legislative Session, a federal judge dismissed a sweeping lawsuit brought by foster children against the state for alleged mistreatment in care. The judge said that the ongoing problems couldn't be solved by the courts, and the 'blame squarely lies with the West Virginia state government.' The foster care measure nearly died in the final hours of session last month as Senate and House members struggled to come to an agreement on what it should contain. Woelfel told lawmakers in a conference committee hashing out the bill that they couldn't let the session's only foster care measure die. Lawmakers eventually agreed to remove a part of the bill that would have regulated in-state behavioral programs for children, and said they'd work on that part in a separate bill for next year. House Bill 2880 in its final form folds together several different foster care measures from this session, including mandating that parent resource navigators, who help parents who are seeking to reunify with their children, be included in key meetings about the child's case. Parent resource navigators are established through the court system. West Virginia terminates parental rights at twice the rate of any other state. 'It's always about reunification with biological mom and dad, but they don't always get a lot of resources through navigating the complex system,' explained Del. Adam Burkhammer, R-Lewis, who sponsored the bill. Burkhammer is a foster parent. The measure also created a Critical Incident Review Team that will review a fatality or near fatality of a child in the custody of the state Department of Human Services. The team must meet within 45 days of the fatality or near fatality to conduct the review and share a report with lawmakers and online. 'I think probably the best part of the bill is the Critical Incident Review Team and being able to put an additional set of eyes on these fatalities and near fatalities,' Pinson said, adding the goal is to help prevent future incidents. 'Being able to bring in additional resources to address our response to these very serious situations is demanded.' The bill also included some new requirements for the state's online Child Welfare Dashboard, including additional information about the state's Child Protective Service workforce. Angelica Hightower, communications specialist for the Department of Human Services, said that the agency didn't have any concerns with the bill. 'We recognize the intent of this legislation to strengthen the delivery and oversight of services within our child welfare system and broader human services framework,' she wrote in an email. 'As we move toward implementation, the department is committed to working collaboratively to ensure that the measures outlined in the bill are carried out effectively and in alignment with the needs of West Virginia's children and families.' Lawmakers also revised childhood immunization rules for foster families in a bundle of rules changes, Burkhammer said. Foster parents will no longer be required to provide the vaccination records of their biological children as an eligibility condition to open their home to a foster child. Both Burkhammer and Pinson said lawmakers' failure to fix ongoing issues with the state's voucher system, which provides money for their foster kids' clothes and other items, was the biggest failure in foster care reform this session. The current voucher system limits spending to only certain stores and regularly results in foster parents and kinship caregivers spending their own money to pay for clothes, beds, car seats and more. 'When parents are willing to step up and put themselves out there for foster children, we've got to make sure that as a state we can provide the resources that they need,' Pinson said. Morrisey vetoed House Bill 2351, sponsored by Burkhammer, which would have given public defenders and guardian ad litems a pay raise of an additional $10 per hour for in- and out-of-court work. The state has a shortage of guardian ad litems, which are required in child welfare cases and represent the best interests of the child. The shortfall has led to cases often lingering in the court system while children await permanency. In his veto message, Morrisey said he was 'sympathetic to the intent of this bill' but noted that lawmakers had reduced his proposed funding amount for the Public Defender Services. 'I want West Virginia to be a national model for fiscal responsibility, and this bill fails to meet that objective,' Morrisey wrote. 'The math does not add up. The Legislature did not fully fund this line item for the ensuing fiscal year, which necessitates the veto of this bill.' Burkhammer emphasized that the shortage of guardian ad litems has led to 'low quality of services.' 'Ulimateily, the child's best interest is not getting the attention it deserves,' he said. Morrisey also cut 75% of lawmakers' allocated funding to West Virginia's Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASA, a program that helps foster children in the court system, before signing the budget bill. In his veto message, the governor said the program relies on grants and could seek additional grant funding. Woelfel believes that despite the vetoes, Morrisey is committed to foster care reform. 'I'm taking him at his word,' he said. 'I think it has got to be a team effort.'
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
FEMA's refusal to help some West Virginia counties just a taste of what's to come
Trash sits on the roadside in McDowell County on April 21, 2025, after the flooding. (Sydnei Tatum for West Virginia Watch) Last week, West Virginia Watch reporter Amelia Ferrell Knisely traveled to McDowell County to talk to residents about recovery efforts after the mid-February floods. She found that many people still have soggy carpets and wet basements after more than two months. Houses are filled with mold. Trash is piled up outside. Some residents say they haven't seen anyone from the state or federal government in their small towns offering help. And McDowell is one of the few counties that actually received federal funding for flood response. In late February, the federal government approved Gov. Patrick Morrisey's request for federal aid. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has so far approved nearly 3,500 applications for individual assistance, and more than $25 million has been awarded to residents in Logan, McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, Raleigh, Wayne and Wyoming counties. Residents who receive that money can use it to cover the costs of temporary housing and home repairs. About 94% of West Virginia communities are considered 'Special Flood Hazard Areas,' which means the more than 84,000 structures in those areas are at a high risk of flooding, according to a 2023 report by researchers at West Virginia University. However, President Donald Trump has suggested that FEMA, which is the only agency currently that administers disaster relief funds, might 'go away.' Last week it was announced that Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency would cut 1,000 employees — or 20% of the workforce — from FEMA, just ahead of hurricane season. On Wednesday, Morrisey announced that FEMA denied individual assistance grants to Boone, Cabell, Greenbrier, Kanawha, Lincoln, Monroe and Summers counties, and public assistance grants in Cabell and Kanawha counties for the February floods. 'Despite today's notification, I am grateful to the Trump Administration for their strong support for Southern West Virginia's recovery following the February floods,' Morrisey said in a statement. We know you're not a native West Virginian, governor, but please stand up for your adopted state. Alex Brown from Stateline, one of West Virginia Watch's sister newsrooms, reached out to the White House about states being denied FEMA funding, and received a statement that said the agency is focused on 'truly catastrophic disasters,' and that states need to have a better 'appetite to own the problem.' West Virginia has no appetite, as shown during the legislative session. On April 4, about three weeks after the devastating February floods, Del. Sean Hornbuckle, D-Cabell, proposed adding $50 million to the state budget for flood prevention. 'We have the ability to do something earthly,' Hornbuckle said. 'The power that we have — not just the divine power — but with a button and a pen that we all have to help out neighbors in the great state of West Virginia.' The amendment was rejected 75-19. Remember the 2016 floods — the deadliest in the state's history? Former Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, a Democrat born in Logan County, declared a state of emergency for 44 of the state's 55 counties. Since November 2019, FEMA has given West Virginia more than $424 million in funding in response to the 2016 floods. More than $42 million was given to 4,949 individuals and families, and more than $172.8 million was given to local and state governments and some nonprofits. FEMA also provided more than $209.8 million to replace Herbert Hoover High, Richwood Middle, Richwood High, Summersville Middle and to relocate Clendenin Elementary. Herbert Hoover High School was destroyed, and students were taught in portable classrooms until their new school was completed in fall 2023. Clendenin Elementary School didn't reopen until fall 2024. Construction hasn't started on the schools destroyed in Nicholas County. In response to that flood, the West Virginia Legislature created the State Resiliency Office. Its purpose is to 'Minimize the loss of life and property, maintain economic stability, and improve recovery time by coordinating with stakeholders to implement disaster resilient strategies. The state Legislature created the West Virginia Disaster Recovery Trust Fund in 2023 with Senate Bill 677. The fund sits empty. No money was allocated to that fund during the 2024 legislative session. The FY 2026 budget, which Morrisey has signed, doesn't include any money for the fund either. There were only three bills related to flooding during the session — House Bill 2858 and Senate Bill 502 were the same bill, meant to allow counties to regulate floodplains under National Flood Insurance Program guidelines. They both died. House Bill 3502, sponsored by Hornbuckle, would have allowed a one-time allocation of $100 million from the state revenue shortfall fund and $150 million from the state's income tax revenue fund for the West Virginia Flood Resiliency Trust Fund. It died in the House Government Organization. West Virginia needs FEMA, but with FEMA potentially out of the picture, it's time the state whet its appetite and take a bite out of the problem. Morrisey has already said he plans to call a special session this summer to deal with the Public Employees Insurance Agency and education funding. Sounds like the perfect time and a good use of tax payer money to move some funding over to the West Virginia Disaster Recovery Trust Fund. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
WV Senate Democrats raise legal concerns with DEI bill's passage
Sens. Joey Garcia, D-Marion (above), and Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, wrote a letter to Gov. Patrick Morrisey, Senate President Randy Smith and Senate Clerk Lee Cassis to say Republicans made procedural errors in passing Senate Bill 474, and asked the governor to veto the bill. (Will Price | West Virginia Legislative Photography) Democrats in the West Virginia Senate are urging Gov. Patrick Morrisey not to sign a bill they say was not legally passed because of a 'series of procedural irregularities.' The letter concerns the Senate's passage of Senate Bill 474, a governor-requested bill that would end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in the state. The House of Delegates passed the bill late on Saturday, the last day of the 60-day legislative session. The Democrats say the Senate erred in the procedures it took late Saturday night as it approved the House's amended version of the bill. In a letter to the governor, Senate President Randy Smith and Senate Clerk Lee Cassis Thursday, Sens. Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, and Joey Garcia, D-Marion, the only two senators from the minority party, say that Senate Republicans improperly suspended a rule they apparently used to bypass considering several pending amendments from Garcia and pass the bill in the final minutes of session. They also argue the Republicans made two other procedural errors. 'Due to the Senate's patent disregard of established legislative procedure, the bill did not properly complete legislative action, and it should not be enrolled, authenticated, or presented to the Governor for approval,' the letter says. 'If the bill is sent to the Governor, it must be vetoed on technical grounds due to the Senate's failure to adhere to its own binding rules of procedure.' The Senate originally passed the bill March 26. The House passed the bill at 10:41 p.m. Saturday after nearly three hours of debate. When the bill went back to the Senate to approve the House's changes, more than a dozen amendments from Garcia appeared to be pending on the legislation. Sen. Amy Grady, R-Mason, at first made a motion to concur with the House's changes to the bill and pass it. The senate stood at ease for a few minutes before Grady withdrew the motion. A few minutes later, Sen. Eric Tar, R-Putnam, moved to suspend Joint Rule 3, which governs how amendments to amendments and disagreements are handled between the two legislative chambers, and concur and pass Senate Bill 474. The rule suspension required a two-thirds roll call vote by both chambers, but the approval was made by a voice vote and with objections heard. The Senate then passed the bill with a 31-2 vote. A short time later, Tarr moved to reconsider the vote by which they concurred and passed the bill. The Democrats argue that the Senate failed to properly reconsider the motion. Tarr instead moved to withdraw his motion and then moved to concur with the House's version of the bill. Next, Senate Majority Leader Patrick Martin, R-Lewis, moved the previous question. Smith turned down Garcia's request that pending amendments be considered, saying that another motion had been called. The Senate then voted again to concur with the House's version of the bill and then passed the bill. Even if the Senate's first passage of the bill was done properly, the Democrats argue, the Senate was required to consider the pending amendments before it could concur in the House's changes to the bill, and they failed to do so. 'If the senator and the governor don't do the right thing, I think this will be litigated and the bill will go down in flames,' Garcia said in an interview with West Virginia MetroNews Thursday. The West Virginia Democratic Party and the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia have also condemned the way the bill was passed. The ACLU-WV wrote in a blog post Monday that the Senate likely broke its own rules in rushing the bill through at the last minute. 'If Gov. Morrisey signs the bill (which we fully expect he will) then we will see the state in court,' the organization wrote. Representatives for Morrisey and Smith did not comment Thursday. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
WV Senate Democrats raise legal concerns with DEI bill's passage
Sens. Joey Garcia, D-Marion (above), and Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, wrote a letter to Gov. Patrick Morrisey, Senate President Randy Smith and Senate Clerk Lee Cassis to say Republicans made procedural errors in passing Senate Bill 474, and asked the governor to veto the bill. (Will Price | West Virginia Legislative Photography) Democrats in the West Virginia Senate are urging Gov. Patrick Morrisey not to sign a bill they say was not legally passed because of a 'series of procedural irregularities.' The letter concerns the Senate's passage of Senate Bill 474, a governor-requested bill that would end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in the state. The House of Delegates passed the bill late on Saturday, the last day of the 60-day legislative session. The Democrats say the Senate erred in the procedures it took late Saturday night as it approved the House's amended version of the bill. In a letter to the governor, Senate President Randy Smith and Senate Clerk Lee Cassis Thursday, Sens. Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, and Joey Garcia, D-Marion, the only two senators from the minority party, say that Senate Republicans improperly suspended a rule they apparently used to bypass considering several pending amendments from Garcia and pass the bill in the final minutes of session. They also argue the Republicans made two other procedural errors. 'Due to the Senate's patent disregard of established legislative procedure, the bill did not properly complete legislative action, and it should not be enrolled, authenticated, or presented to the Governor for approval,' the letter says. 'If the bill is sent to the Governor, it must be vetoed on technical grounds due to the Senate's failure to adhere to its own binding rules of procedure.' The Senate originally passed the bill March 26. The House passed the bill at 10:41 p.m. Saturday after nearly three hours of debate. When the bill went back to the Senate to approve the House's changes, more than a dozen amendments from Garcia appeared to be pending on the legislation. Sen. Amy Grady, R-Mason, at first made a motion to concur with the House's changes to the bill and pass it. The senate stood at ease for a few minutes before Grady withdrew the motion. A few minutes later, Sen. Eric Tar, R-Putnam, moved to suspend Joint Rule 3, which governs how amendments to amendments and disagreements are handled between the two legislative chambers, and concur and pass Senate Bill 474. The rule suspension required a two-thirds roll call vote by both chambers, but the approval was made by a voice vote and with objections heard. The Senate then passed the bill with a 31-2 vote. A short time later, Tarr moved to reconsider the vote by which they concurred and passed the bill. The Democrats argue that the Senate failed to properly reconsider the motion. Tarr instead moved to withdraw his motion and then moved to concur with the House's version of the bill. Next, Senate Majority Leader Patrick Martin, R-Lewis, moved the previous question. Smith turned down Garcia's request that pending amendments be considered, saying that another motion had been called. The Senate then voted again to concur with the House's version of the bill and then passed the bill. Even if the Senate's first passage of the bill was done properly, the Democrats argue, the Senate was required to consider the pending amendments before it could concur in the House's changes to the bill, and they failed to do so. 'If the senator and the governor don't do the right thing, I think this will be litigated and the bill will go down in flames,' Garcia said in an interview with West Virginia MetroNews Thursday. The West Virginia Democratic Party and the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia have also condemned the way the bill was passed. The ACLU-WV wrote in a blog post Monday that the Senate likely broke its own rules in rushing the bill through at the last minute. 'If Gov. Morrisey signs the bill (which we fully expect he will) then we will see the state in court,' the organization wrote. Representatives for Morrisey and Smith did not comment Thursday. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
