'It’s biological sex week here at the West Virginia state Senate'

The West Virginia Weakly Reader for Saturday, March 8, 2025

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We’ll start with what West Virginia lawmakers got up to at the state Capitol this week and go from there. But first, The Weakly could use some feedback on our daily, Legislative Daybook emails.

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The West Virginia Weakly Reader (sources cited in the footnotes)

🚻 West Virginia lawmakers are getting close to sending Gov. Morrisey one of his legislative priorities. On Friday, the House approved Morrisey’s Senate-passed bill that defines “woman” and “man” in state law. But delegates amended the bill, so the change will have to be okayed by the state Senate before it can be sent to Gov. Morrisey’s desk. Supporters say the bill is necessary to preserve single-sex spaces. The advocacy group Fairness WV calls the measure an extreme, anti-transgender bathroom ban.¹

🤔 On the other side of the Capitol, state Senator Joey Garcia (D-Marion) quipped on Thursday that “it’s biological sex week here at the West Virginia state Senate.” He didn’t mean it as a compliment. Senators passed two bills focusing on transgender kids. One would tighten the state’s ban on gender-affirming care by prohibiting hormone treatment for children diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The other would require teachers to out kids to their parents if they question their gender identity.²

🗳️ The state Legislature has completed action on a Senate-passed bill that would prohibit ranked-choice voting - a form of vote counting that isn’t used anywhere in West Virginia. The House gave the bill final passage on Friday, sending it on its way to Gov. Morrisey. Democrats argued that municipalities should be allowed to experiment.³

🧑‍🏫 The state Senate’s version of the elementary school discipline bill began moving this week and is expected to be up for a Senate vote on Monday. The full House overwhelmingly passed its bill this week. Lawmakers are attempting to address increasing incidents of violence in elementary classrooms.⁴

🍬 West Virginia is now the first state in the nation to pass a sweeping ban on artificial food dyes. Over objections from opponents who argued that lawmakers were overstepping their authority to regulate food, the state Senate this week overwhelmingly passed a House bill that would ban several types of yellow, blue, green and red food dyes. The Senate, however, changed the effective date to 2028. The House will have to agree before the measure can be sent to Gov. Morrisey for his signature.⁵

🙌 A rally is planned at the state Capitol today. The West Virginia Women’s Alliance is partnering with several other groups to mark International Women’s Day. More than 200 people have signed up for the rally on the WVWA’s Facebook page.⁶⁷

⁉️ There are questions surrounding the federal building in downtown Huntington and another in nearby Ashland, Kentucky. The two appeared on an online list of “noncore” properties to be sold or closed by the federal General Services Administration, but the list has been take offline, so … who knows?⁸

❓ During her weekly press briefing, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito answered questions about the cost-cutting efforts of Elon Musk’s DOGE and they’re effect on West Virginia. Responding to a question from The (Morgantown) Dominion Post, she said, “The goals are great. The methods are good. But the execution is probably a little rough at this point, the president’s only been in [office] between five to six weeks.”⁹ Meanwhile, West Virginians are protesting DOGE. Dozens demonstrated in front of Senator Capito’s Martinsburg office on Thursday after demonstrating in front of the local office of her nephew, Congressman Riley Moore.¹⁰ There was also a rally Elkins on Thursday, in front of the Randolph County Courthouse.¹¹

🏢 Turns out the closure of the Social Security Administration office in Logan was not due to Elon Musk’s DOGE cost-cutting team. Senator Capito’s office confirmed to HDMedia this week that “this was something that had been on the horizon prior to DOGE.”¹² Logan’s mayor said last week that the building has had repeated structural issues and that closure had been in the works for the past year.

📝 Coal companies owned by U.S. Sen. Jim Justice have been given a May 1 deadline to pay more than $400,000 in delinquent mine safety penalties. If not, they could face fines or contempt of court. An agreement with federal prosecutors was filed this week.¹³

😒 The Charleston Gazette-Mail is reporting that the Raleigh County mine where a worker was killed last week has a long history of safety and environmental violations.¹⁴

📺 The head of AFT-WV, Kristie Skidmore, appeared on MSNBC on Thursday amid confusion over whether President Trump planned to sign an executive order to shutter the federal Department of Education.¹⁵

⚖️ Former state Senator Mike Maroney (R-Marshall) has a date for his jury trial on a charge of driving under the influence. The trial in Marshall County Circuit Court is set to get underway at the end of next month, on Wednesday, April 30. A separate trial date for the indecent exposure and disorderly conduct charges against Maroney has yet to be set, but a court hearing is scheduled for next week.¹⁶

🔥 The cause of Friday’s major fire in downtown Moundsville is being investigated. The (Wheeling) Intelligencer newspaper published dramatic photos of the blaze being fought by firefighters from 18 separate departments. Five buildings were destroyed.¹⁷

🔌 The Jefferson County Commission has approved a five point measure outlining its opposition to the PJM transmission line, including the seizure of private property. It’s called the Jefferson County First Resolution. “If transmission lines are going to be built in our county, then we should be benefiting economically,” JCC President Pasha Majdi said at the commission’s meeting this week. “They can’t just tread on our lands to power data centers in Loudoun County (in neighboring Virginia).”¹⁸

Weakly whatnot: News and opinion from around West Virginia

• Statehouse beat: Lawmakers are scared of their constituents ~ Phil Kabler, Charleston Gazette-Mail (Paywall)

• Senate bill erodes teacher-student trust ~ Hoppy Kercheval, WVMetronews

• Certificate of Need important to West Virginia (Editorial) ~ The (Wheeling) Intelligencer

• The wrath of CON (Commentary) ~ Steven Allen Adams, Parkersburg News and Sentinel

• Time to tackle the issue (Opinion) ~ Toni Milbourne, The (Martinsburg) Journal

Finally, our most clicked link this week was the commentary on ranked-choice voting written by WVMetroNews Talkline co-host T.J. Meadows:

• Why are legislators moving to ban Ranked-Choice Voting?

1. Delegates pass bill defining ‘man’ and ‘woman’ ~ Brad McElhinny, WVMetroNews

2. Senate passes two bill on transgender issues; House has another primed for passage ~ Brad McElhinny, WVMetroNews

3. West Virginia House passes Senate measure to ban ranked choice voting ~ David Beard, Parkersburg News and Sentinel

4. Elementary student discipline bill passes WV House after tweaks get most lawmakers on board ~ Amelia Ferrell Knisely, West Virginia Watch

5. WV Senate passes bill banning artificial dies in food, opponents say it’s overreach ~ Amelia Ferrel Knisely, West Virginia Watch

6. Groups to gather at WV Capitol for International Women’s Day ~ Ashley Perham, Charleston Gazette-Mail (Paywall)

7. International Women’s Day Rally and Press Conference Facebook page

8. Huntington, Ashland federal buildings potentially for sale ~ Destiney Dingess, Huntington Herald-Dispath (Paywall)

9. Capito fields questions on DOGE, effects on West Virginia during weekly briefing ~ David Beard, The (Morgantown) Dominion Post (Paywall)

10. Dozens protest in front of local offices of Rep. Moore, Sen. Capito ~ Tom Markland, The (Martinsburg) Journal

11. Dozens rally in favor of federal workers outside courthouse in Elkins ~ Taylor McKinnie, The (Elkins) Intermountain

12. Logan Social Security closure not due to DOGE ~ Dylan Vidovich, Huntington Herald-Dispatch (Paywall)

13. Justice firms agree to pay off $409K debt to feds a year-plus after previous deadline ~ Mike Tony, Charleston Gazette-Mail (Paywall)

14. Following Raleigh County mine death, poor safety record and MSHA concerns loom ~ Mike Tony, Charleston Gazette-Mail (Paywall)

15. Teachers ‘fearful for their livelihood’: Backlash to Trump plan to eliminate Dept. of Education ~ MSNBC

16. Trial, hearing dates set for Maroney court cases ~ Emma Delk, The (Wheeling) Intelligencer

17. UPDATE: Five buildings were destoyed in Jefferson Ave. fire ~ The (Wheeling) Intelligencer

18. Commission votes to approve the Jefferson County First Resolution ~ Ainsley Hall, The (Martinsburg) Journal