Gayle Manchin

WHEELING — Gayle Manchin hopes her termination as West Virginia Secretary of Education and the Arts this week forces Gov. Jim Justice to move swiftly on a bill that eliminates the secretary’s position, and moves programs within the department to other offices.

She said time is of the essence, as House Bill 4006 dictates all changes happen by June 30 — and some summer programs begin weeks earlier. She is urging him to veto the measure.

“If it forces them to come to a decision sooner rather than later … (my firing) was worth it,” Manchin said.

She said she has not spoken directly with Justice since taking over the cabinet secretary’s job in January 2017.

Manchin, a former West Virginia first lady and wife of U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., was fired Monday night. She was the only woman and the only remaining Democrat among the cabinet secretaries appointed by Justice, who changed political parties from Democrat to Republican last August.

Because of her politics and standing, Manchin has concerns there are political motives to eliminate her position and dismantle the agency for the education and the arts.

Her firing came after she asked the governor’s Chief of Staff Mike Hall earlier on Monday for clarification from the governor as to what was going to happen with HB 4006. She told Hall she had been “inundated with calls and texts” from people wanting to know if specific programs were in jeopardy, or if they might lose a grant for which they had been approved.

She wanted to put out “some kind of press release” to answer the questions she had been receiving, and she was told by Hall to not do anything until hearing more from the governor.

Manchin said when she didn’t hear from the governor within two hours, she put out a press release urging Justice to veto the bill — and she offered to resign if it meant saving the agency and the programs it offers. She said 20 minutes after the press release went out, a call came to counsel at her agency requesting her to come to Hall’s office.

“The first thing he told me was, ‘You defied what I told you to do,'” Manchin said of Hall.

He said the administration was accepting her resignation, but she said she refused to tender it “under those terms.” Hall said she would receive her termination papers Tuesday morning.

Manchin told him why she was frustrated and concerned about there being swift action on H.B. 4006. The legislation was passed March 10, and the governor has 15 days in which to sign or veto it.

“That takes it that much closer to the June 30 cutoff, and some programs start June 1,” she said. “By the end of session, they should have known whether they were going to veto the bill or put into action.”

Manchin said she told Hall they were jeopardizing many in the state.

The State Department of Rehabilitation Services falls under the auspices of the Department of Education and the Arts. Manchin said the department employs 600, and has 13,000 clients who work with those who have disabilities.

It also relies on $70 million from the federal government that must be precisely applied for by the state.

“If this is not done exactly right, the money is frozen,” she said. “There are 600 employees who don’t get paid, and 13,000 who won’t get services. It’s very upsetting, and we have to be doing something. There are situations that have to be addressed immediately.

“They don’t realize the ramifications this has across the state.”

In addition to State Rehabilitation Services, other departments that fall under the Office of the Secretary of Education and the Arts include educational broadcasting, the library commission, culture and history, the Center for Professional Development, and Volunteer West Virginia — a division of AmeriCorps.

In a released statement, Justice said his office had not yet made a decision on HB 4006 to reorganize the Department of the Education and the Arts.

“Earlier today, Secretary Manchin asked the chief of staff, Mike Hall, about how she should approach this,” Justice said. “She was told by the chief of staff to do nothing based upon my public comments this morning, and that my decision to veto or sign this bill has not been made. Later in the day, she decided to defy the chief of staff’s instructions and issued a press release.

“In her press release she offered to resign and remove any political cloud. If there weren’t any earlier political cloud, now there surely is one. She was very critical, made it political, and put me in a very, very bad position. She was told that we accepted her resignation, she refused, and we terminated her.”