Weld Seeks To Attract Veterans to West Virginia
Photo courtesy of WV Legislative Photography Trending
West Virginia Senate Majority Whip Ryan Weld wants to attract more military veterans to come live in West Virginia.
West Virginia has traditionally been at the top of the list among states with the highest per capita number of veterans among its residents, but statistics show that number is actually dwindling as today's returning veterans are finding opportunities elsewhere, according to Weld, R-Brooke.
Weld is chairman of the Senate Military Committee.
"This upcoming session, I plan to introduce a package of bills aimed at attracting vets and returning military members to West Virginia," he said. "The number in the state has decreased. It is an aging group, and we aren't attracting as many younger vets back to state."
Weld explained that early in 2022 West Virginia was in danger of losing services at Veterans Administration medical facilities.
"That fortunately has gone away for the foreseeable future," he continued. "But it was predicated upon the decreasing number of veterans we have living in West Virginia.
"I see it incumbent upon the Legislature to do all we can to attract a demographic of people who are well-trained, ready to enter the workforce, and who can contribute a lot to West Virginia."
Weld suggested the state can first help returning vets by decreasing the governmental red tape they encounter when they apply for licensing for jobs they already were doing in the military. This could be of help to those hoping to secure employment in such jobs as EMTs or electricians.
College tuition assistance programs for both veterans and their immediate families also should be considered, Weld said.
"A number of states have provided this for veterans' children, and we should also help them with their housing," he added. "We should help them with obtaining home loans and having home ownership."
Weld is himself a U.S. Air Force veteran who served in Afghanistan.
"I don't know a whole lot of people around my age living here who served in Iraq and Afghanistan," he said. "It's not a great number. We can do better, and we will do better."
Weld also serves as vice chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. During the last term of the Legislature, he was a member of the banking and insurance, confirmations, health and human resources, redistricting, rules and workforce committees.