This week's broadcast of Mountain Stage is a special episode featuring songs that represent the four seasons of the year. You'll hear live performances by Doc Watson, Bruce Hornsby, Susan Werner, Molly Tuttle, Taj Mahal, Norah Jones and many more.
In a memo signed by his deputy chief of staff, Gov. Jim Justice has placed a moratorium on state vehicle purchase, prohibiting them “indefinitely.”
Any exceptions, according to the memo, “will only be granted in the most extraordinary circumstances” and must be approved by the Governor’s Office.
Since taking office in January, Justice has made reducing the size of the state’s vehicle fleet a top priority. So far, state agencies have handed over the keys to more than 300 vehicles, which will likely be auctioned off.
In the memo, Deputy Chief of Staff Jason Pizatella wrote he expects that number will increase.
Pizatella also reminded cabinet secretaries and agency heads that the hiring freeze implemented by former-Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin would remain in effect “due to the current budget crisis.”
Hiring will be allowed in areas that are deemed “critical to the public safety and welfare of the state.”
The latest revenue estimates from Justice’s office predicts a $497 million shortfall in the 2018 fiscal year.
Lawmakers are also attempting to fill a $123 million shortfall in the 2017 fiscal year that ends June 30.
Justice has been highly critical of lawmakers for not sharing a budget plan at the halfway point of the Legislative Session, but Republican leaders say lawmakers have never put out a budget before the end of the session because they are still considering bills that have financial implications for the state.
Health care services for nearly 30 percent of West Virginia’s population may be difficult to access if lawmakers don’t fully fund the Medicaid program in an expected special session.
In Pineville, West Virginia, a town of 500, residents filled up the front rows of the county courtroom recently. They came to hear the latest legal update on a battle some have been fighting for generations - securing clean water. Bobby Lee Keen and his wife Patsy attended the hearing. “How come they have people living like they're in a third world country in the United States of America?” asked Bobby Keen.
On this West Virginia Morning, drinking water in Wyoming County is making people sick but it’s unclear who is responsible. Also, a look at voter concerns ahead of May's primary election.