This end of the week update that is time sensitive. Several bad bills made it past Crossover Day and need to be stopped ASAP, while one bill expanding Medicaid coverage needs some help to pass. Both the House and Senate will be in session tomorrow (Saturday) so lawmakers will be at the Capitol at least through the morning. So please take a few minutes to make some calls before you get on with your weekend chores.

Thanks for taking action! — Team WV CAG

Stop Guns on Campus

As you probably heard, HB 2519, the so-called “Campus Carry Self Defense Act”, passed the House, and is now in the Senate where it was assigned to the Judiciary and Finance committees. This bill would allow students 18 and older to carry concealed weapons on campus and in dorms and classrooms. There is still a chance we can stop this.

Please call your senators and tell them to vote no. If they can’t stop it, ask them to support an amendment to only allow those 21 and older to carry. This would eliminate most of the guns in residence halls as older students tend to live off campus anyhow. This is a cross party issue as eight Democrats voted for, and eight Republicans voted against this in the House.

Students and educators will be rallying against the bill on Monday, March 4 at 9 AM in the Upper Rotunda, Senate side (location subject to change). Another action is planned for Wednesday, so watch the next edition of our Capital Eye update for details. 

Action for Clean Water

Our allies at the WV Rivers Coalition sent out the following request for us to make calls to kill the DEP rules bill that keeps our water science back in the 1980s:

The water quality standards rule could be voted on by the House as early as Monday.

Click here to send a letter to your delegates, ask them to vote “no” on SB 163 as it fails to protect West Virginians with the best science available.

TLC Needed for Bill to Cover Expecting Moms

SB 564 expands Medicaid health coverage to additional expectant moms and their newborns that had been ‘falling through the cracks’ in our healthcare system. Earlier this week it passed the Senate on a 34-0 unanimous vote! Now there are only a few days left to get it through two committees in the House. First up is Health & Human Resources (HHR) Committee. Call HHR Committee members and ask them to support the bill and pass it on to Finance. 

Tell Delegates to Say NO to More Money in WV Elections

Can you afford to give $2,800 to a candidate, $5,000 to a political action committee (PAC), or $10,000 to a political party?

On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed a major campaign finance overhaul bill that would allow even more big money into a system that already favors the wealthy and special interests. Additionally, SB 622 completely fails to address the flood of secret money in our elections.

This means our state and local elections will begin to take on the worst aspects of the big-money congressional elections, and we, the people, will continue to struggle to have their voices heard above the special interests that try to buy our elections. 

Call your delegates and tell them we need more disclosure of political spending in our elections, not more money.