2010 Legislative Accomplishments by Governor Joe Manchin and the Democratic-led Legislature

  Economic Development

• Intermediate Business Courts (HB4352) - creates new courts, within the existing system, to handle disputes between businesses to reduce the caseload in existing courts.

• South Charleston Tech Park (SB 611) – allows the Higher Education Policy Commission to relocate its offices in the old Union Carbide/Dow Tech Park; preserving the research facility for potential business development

• Energy rate flexibility (SB 656) – allows the PSC to negotiate more flexible rates and payment plans for energy-intensive industries to help attract manufacturing 
   
• Local labor for construction jobs (HB 4359) – requires local workers (within 50 miles) be hired for construction projects costing over $500,000

 
Responsible Government

• Judicial Vacancy Advisory Commission (HB 4036) – creates a formal process to advise governors on appointments for judicial vacancies codifying existing practices
   
• State Vehicle Fleet Accountability (SB 219) – centralizes all of the state’s vehicles under one office and established guidelines for their supervision to reduce cost
   
• State Supreme Court clean elections (HB 4130) – creates a pilot project for a publicly financed elections system for the 2012 State Supreme Court races so judicial candidates can be free from large-scale fundraising
   
• Elections Spending Disclosure (HB 4647) – increases the requirements for groups to disclose their political spending, giving the public more information about who is running ads

Public Safety

• Child Predator Unit (Budget bill) – increases the size of the State Police’s child protection unit
   
• Dilapidated Buildings (HB 4034 & 4038) – increases cities’ abilities to clean-up abandoned, vacant properties
   
• School Bus Safety (HB 4223) – increases penalties for traffic violations involving school buses and illicit drug offenses on school on school buses

• School Building Authority (SB 229) –allows greater flexibility for the SBA to issue bonds, freeing more funding for school construction
   
• School Calendar Flexibility (HB 4040 & 4652) – allows counties more flexibility in designing their school calendar to ensure students get the full 180 days of instruction and creating local committees in each country to provide input
   
• High School Dropouts (HB 4593) – establishes several new measures to reduce the number of high school dropouts

2009 Legislative Accomplishments by Governor Joe Manchin and the Democratic-led Legislature

Education

• Ensuring students get help with critical skills if needed when they reach 3rd & 8th
  grades – SB 1001

• Allowing schools to apply to become Innovation Zones where new academic
  policies can be developed locally and tested – HB 109

• Modernizing teacher hiring policies to attract more new teachers – SB 1006

• Increasing PROMISE scholarship funding to allow more students to receive
  scholarships protecting the program's long term viability - SB 373

• Allowing veterans to attend WV colleges at in-state tuition rates - HB 2335
   

Economic Development and Energy

• Creating tax incentives to attract high tech data centers – SB 1003

• Increasing the use of alternative & renewable energy to 25% of all output by
  2025 – HB 103

• Securing unemployment compensation fund: maintain its solvency at minimal
  cost – SB 246

• Reporting of industrial accidents to authorities & the public in a timely manner -
  SB 279

• Establishing carbon sequestration rules: promotes pilot projects - HB 2860

• Establishing new procedures to ensure better post-mine land use planning to help
  create jobs – SB 1011

• Updating the state building code promoting energy efficiency - HB 2976
   

Health Care

• Raising salaries for mental health care workers at state hospitals – SB 1002

• Creating tax breaks to help parents who care for autistic children – SB 1009

• Increasing coordination of state's health care programs - SB414

Responsible Government

• Fixing state pension loophole to help prevent double-dipping - SB 244

• Expanding early voting to allow counties to create additional early voting
  locations - HB 2464

• Extending the deadline for teachers to convert back to the old retirement system,
  helping to ensure the system's solvency - HB 2870

• Helping cities better manage their pensions, saving cities money at no cost to
  state taxpayers – SB 4007

• New voting methods for military and overseas citizens to make it easier for them
  vote – HB 406

• WV was one of very few states to end the fiscal year with a surplus – most states
  have had to make drastic cuts or raise taxes

For more information and the accomplishments of Delegate Sharon Spencer and the Democratic Party in West Virginia over the last 10 years, please visit the West Virginia Democratic Legislative Council here: http://www.wvdlc.com/Issues.htm.