Archives for January 2019

Beckley has voted to add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to its list of protected minorities.

The Register-Herald reports the Beckley Common Council voted 4-2 Tuesday to add LGBTQ discrimination protections to the city’s code.

Mayor Rob Rappold asked the city council in November to consider an ordinance prohibiting housing and employment discrimination against those who identify as LGBTQ. A similar measure was proposed in 2014 and tabled amid community opposition.

An annual retreat for Republican members of Congress at a West Virginia resort has been postponed due to the government shutdown.

The retreat had been scheduled from Jan. 30 to Feb. 1 at The Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs.

The Congressional Institute said in a statement Wednesday that members of Congress instead should be in Washington, D.C., “negotiating a path that gets our federal workforce back on the job.”

The statement says the conference will be rescheduled for later this year.

A bill has been introduced in the House of Delegates that would make it illegal to drive in the left lane of the highway if it prevents the flow of traffic. House Bill 2355 would make such act a misdemeanor.
Delegate Gary Howell, R-Mineral, put forward the bill on Wednesday. A press release stated “many out-of-state drivers” may not understand the left lane is used for passing.

About 30 people attended a public listening session Thursday at the Department of Environmental Protection, many criticizied the department for recently opting not to defend its own proposal to update water quality standards. At the request of the West Virginia Manufacturers Association, the state lawmakers who were members of a joint rule-making committee decided to leave the standards the way they are instead, at levels enacted in the 1980s.

The Mountaineer Food Bank at Beckley VA Medical Center has added Governement Furloughed employees to their list of people served. The food bank usually serves 350 folks, bewtween 10 a.m. to noon the third Thursday of every month. Of the individuals who had signed up to receive food this week eight were furloughed federal workers. The Mountaineer Food Bank is a nonprofit network that operates in 48 counties. Federal workers unable to attend Thursday’s food bank can call Mountaineer Food Bank for information about assistance.

Applications for absentee ballots for the Lewisburg Special Levy Election are available in the office of the City Recorder. Any person who is going to be absent from this city, or who is confined to a health care facility on election day, February 16, 2019 and who is duly registered to vote in this city, can now apply by mail or telephone to the office of the Recorder, and receive an application for absentee ballot. Mail requests will be accepted through Friday, February 8, 2019.

Early Voting in person will conducted in the office of the Recorder February 4th, through February 15th from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.

Special voting in person from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. will be observed on Satur

First the Forever Stamp now the Forever Pass. General Manager of the West Virginia Parkways Authority, Greg Barr, said, “If people didn’t get the three year EZ Pass they can get a $25 one year plan. In addition to annual fee travelors will need to purchase a $13 transponder, which is a small device that is placed on your dashboard. Barr expressed the convenience of With the E-Z Pass drivers can drive through the toll booth without stopping and it can be used in other states.

Three state lawmakers announced Tuesday they plan to introduce a bill that would divert $10 million from the state’s current nearly $200 million surplus to help President Donald Trump build a wall along the southern U.S. border.

Delegates Carl “Robbie” Martin, Patrick Martin, and Caleb Hanna, shared their proposal in a press release. Martin said, “West Virginians support our President and the wall,” he said. “They’re sick of seeing Washington politicians sit on their hands while drugs and criminals pour over our border. It’s time for the states to stand up and do what they can to support our President in his fight to protect innocent Americans.”

A routine traffic stop in Greenbrier County earlier this week turning into a sizable drug bust. Police pulled over a car driven by Heaven Moore, and found nearly ten-thousand dollars’ worth of methamphetamine and a semi-automatic weapon. Moore was arrested and is in jail awaiting arraignment on a possession with intent to deliver charge.

Times apparently tought for a Greenbrier County man charged with breaking into a closed-down summer camp and stealing property inside. Police were called to the property on Walker Hill Lane in Ronceverte. The owner said they had been checking out the property when he found a coat with a wallet and ID inside belonging to Dustin Crouch. The owner went on to look at surveillance video which showed Crouch breaking in and stealing things. Crouch has been caught and was sent to the Southern Regional Jail.