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Sen. Laura Wakim Chapman: Data Centers: To Regulate, Or Not To Regulate. Is That Even A Question?

I was, like you, blindsided by an “announcement” of a 100-megawatt data center going into the Centre Foundry in Warwood. As your Senator, I attended the recent Warwood community and Wheeling Council meetings because I wanted to hear residents’ questions and concerns directly. My job is to find the facts, share them with you, and most importantly, listen to what you have to say. I will only support what is best for you, my fellow citizens in Warwood, and the Northern Panhandle. There was much discussion about the Power Generation and Consumption Act (HB 2014), which passed with ...

Sen. Patricia Rucker: Another History Milestone For School Choice In W.Va.

This year, June 15 marked an historic moment for education in the Mountain State as the application period for families to enroll in the Hope Scholarship for the 2026-27 school year ended. For the first time, every school-aged child in the state is eligible to enroll in the program providing necessary flexibility in education for every child. This universal eligibility is a huge part of what makes Hope the nation’s gold standard for educational freedom. Unlike other states, West Virginia intentionally chose to not pick winners and losers in school choice by ensuring every student could ...

Reporter’s Notebook: A Government Of The People …

Happy belated Independence Day. I hope your celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence was meaningful and memorable. Communities all across West Virginia celebrated in different ways, but much of the focus – and in some cases vitriol – was focused on the Capitol City Celebration that took place Thursday through Sunday at the same time as the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta was going on. As I have reported since May, Gov. Patrick Morrisey budgeted $2 million for the Capitol City Celebration, coming from the Governor’s Civil Contingency ...

John McCabe: Wheeling’s Place in Our Nation’s Story

I was perusing some files the other day (codeword for I was cleaning out my desk) when I came across the Wheeling 250th anniversary section we produced in 2019. I recalled the time and effort we put into that work, and the pride from our entire staff with the finished product. Those thoughts quickly shifted to pondering Wheeling’s impact — yes, Wheeling, which explorer Meriwether Lewis, during his visit here on Sept. 7, 1803, termed “a pretty considerable village” — on America as this great nation of ours this weekend celebrates its own semiquincentennial. Here in Wheeling, ...

Hoppy Kerchavel: Is It Good To Be The King?

The kingdom was preparing to celebrate its birthday. Grand celebrations were planned. However, inside the castle, the king was unsettled. He shifted uneasily on his newly acquired throne. The gold-leafed, jewel-encrusted gift had arrived only days earlier after the king’s family secured lucrative investments in the donor’s kingdom. For the king, it was just another successful deal. But there were grumblings among a growing number of his subjects. They frowned upon his personal enrichment that went beyond any previous kings. They were angry about higher prices for everyday goods, ...

State Treasurer Larry Pack: Universal Education Freedom Arrives In Mountain State

We have now passed the June 15 deadline marking the end of the application period for 100% funding of the Hope Scholarship program for the 2026-2027 school year. This year’s application closure is distinct from the rest because it is the first year of universal eligibility, meaning that every school-aged child is eligible to apply for the program. Access for all students was an intentional final step of the program’s implementation, providing ample time for developing a structure that would best serve nearly 30,000 students. It’s proven to be good foresight by lawmakers who ...